Michelle Collins is struggling to get to grips with her northern accent for 'Coronation Street'.
The former 'EastEnders' actress - who will make her debut on the ITV1 soap playing new Rovers Return landlady Stella Price later this month - admitted she is having to "work hard" to master a Manchester accent.
She told Closer magazine: "I've been working hard with a dialect coach to get the right accent but it's tough. At least I'm very good at pulling pints - I did that when I was an out of work actress.
"I have to keep pinching myself that I'm actually in 'Corrie'."
The 50-year-old actress - who previously played feisty femme fatale Cindy Beale in 'EastEnders' - recently admitted she signed up for the soap so she could pay for her 14-year-old daughter Maia Rose to go to university.
Michelle said: "It is quite nice to have a bit of security in my life because my daughter is 14 and will be off to uni - so she will be able to go now."

Source: List