BBC Strictly Come Dancing's Ellie Leach suffered heartbreak before dance success while famous cousin supports every move

Ellie Leach has become a standout star of this year's Strictly Come Dancing and the glitz and glam of the show is worlds away from how viewers previously saw her in Coronation Street.

The actress spent more than 12 years in the ITV soap before her exit earlier this year as Faye Windass. In that time she tackled many harrowing storylines, including her character falling pregnant when she was 12. then in 2020, Faye was sexually assaulted by evil Ray Crosby and, last year, she went to prison for attacking Adam Barlow in a case of mistaken identity, thinking that he was her sleazy boss.

Back in May, Corrie fans watched as Faye decided to leave the street after reconnecting with her daughter Miley and ex Jackson Hodge. And, filming her last scenes at the Salford-based set was a big day for the soap star.

READ MORE: BBC Strictly Come Dancing star Katya Jones praised for tribute to 'inspirational' co-star

READ MORE: Read more of today's top stories from the Manchester Evening News

"It was emotional but it was happy tears," Ellie, who filmed on her last day with Colson Smith (Craig Tinker), Lisa George (Beth Sutherland) and Mikey North (Gary Windass), previously told to Manchester Evening News. Her family were also able to join her and Ellie was given some special gifts to leave with.

"We finished and loads of people came on set and brought me gifts and it was really emotional and so, so nice. I got a really lovely handbag, some flowers, a big Millies cookie which said, ‘Faye Windass Forever,’ and I got a really beautiful, engraved necklace from the cast which means I can always have Corrie with me wherever I go," she said. "It’s engraved with two hearts and it says FW for Faye Windass."

And it didn't take long for