Farrel Hegarty has opened up about a deeply personal chapter of her life that she had never publicly discussed before.
The former Coronation Street star, known to viewers as Lou Michaelis, revealed that she was once married to a man before later coming out as gay. Scroll down for more information.
Farrel Hegarty Reveals Marriage And Divorce For The First Time
Speaking candidly to Attitude Magazine, Hegarty revealed that she had been in a long-term relationship with a man and eventually married him before the marriage ended in divorce. The actress admitted that she had never spoken publicly about this part of her life before.
“God, I’ve never said this before, I was with a guy for a long time. I ended up marrying him, and then I quickly got divorced,” she said.
The actress explained that the experience led her to question what she wanted in future relationships. “And then it was only after that where I was like, ‘Okay, well, who do I wanna date? Men and women?’ And then the men just never happened for me again. And that was, like, four years, four and a half years ago.”
The revelation comes more than a year after Hegarty became a familiar face on Coronation Street. She first arrived on the cobbles in 2025 as Lou Michaelis, one half of the soap’s notorious “neighbours from hell” couple alongside her husband Mick.
Coronation Street Actress Opens Up About Her Journey With Sexuality
Hegarty also spoke honestly about how she continues to navigate conversations about her sexuality. She explained that her personal journey is still relatively recent and that she sometimes feels unsure about how openly she should discuss it.
“So it’s not that long ago, and so for me, I’ve kind of, like, stepped back in … If I feel like I’ve, like, came out, kind of half went back in again, and I’ve come out again,” she said. The actress admitted that she sometimes questions whether she deserves to be part of queer conversations. “So for me, the queer content thing, if I’m being honest, I’m getting raw now, is, like, that I don’t know if I’m worthy of it yet.”
She continued by explaining the self-reflection that followed those feelings. “It’s only when I’ve looked at myself a bit, I’m like, ‘Why am I not, why am I a bit nervous about putting that out there?’ And I’m like, ‘Oh’, I described it as, like, can you, have you got a place at the table yet?”
Hegarty’s character Lou Michaelis became part of one of Coronation Street’s most dramatic storylines. Lou and Mick were eventually sent to prison after their chaotic reign on the street came to an end. Stay tuned to Soap Opera Daily for more Coronation Street spoilers and behind-the-scenes updates.