‘Ryan will be at my wedding’: Corrie star Tina O’Brien on the ex who broke her heart and letting herself love again
Loved-up Tina opens up about her engagement and life in her blended, happy family
TINA O’Brien is attempting to explain her very 21st-century family set-up.
“It took a while for everyone to find a way to make it work, but now it does – really well, in fact!” she says.
That’s because Tina’s ex-partner – and father of her seven-year-old daughter – Ryan Thomas has formed an incredibly close friendship with her fiancé, personal trainer Adam Crofts.
In fact, it was Adam who was responsible for Ryan’s recent fitness overhaul that has seen him reveal brand-new abs of steel.
The uniqueness of the situation isn’t lost on Tina, 32, who plays Coronation Street’s Sarah-Louise Platt.
Somehow the O’Brien/Thomas households have transformed themselves into one happy, blended family.
So how on earth did they do it?
“I don’t know!” she laughs.
“It’s taken a lot of years and a lot of biting my tongue. Seriously, though, it’s mainly down to Adam and Ryan.
“It helps that everyone has moved on and is in a happy place. Ryan is really happy [he’s loved-up with digital marketing consultant Lana Martin, 25] and we are happy, so there aren’t any issues.
“For the sake of Scarlett, it has been well worth preserving [our relationship] and choosing our battles.”
With the white flag being waved by both parties, they all – including Tina and Adam’s 21-month-old son Beau – even celebrated Christmas Day together two years ago, as it suited everyone’s plans that year.
To many, that might sound like one hell of a fraught way to spend the day. But it passed without a hitch.
“It could have been really, really awful, but it genuinely wasn’t. Beforehand, I did have a moment where I thought: ‘This could be really awkward’, but Ryan was fine, Adam was fine and Scarlett was very happy.
“In the end I was thinking: ‘Actually, this is lovely.’”
However, that’s not to say things always run smoothly.
As with any parents who have split and are trying to raise their child, there are moments of discord.
“[These can be] small things, such as Ryan not liking Scarlett wearing nail varnish when I’ve put it on her, or the times when he has brought her back late.
“But it’s about finding your middle ground and getting on with each other. It’s also realising that, at the end of the day, they are daft, petty things. [It’s fine] as long as we can get past it, and everyone has got the end goal of trying to make it work for Scarlett.”
It’s a pretty remarkable turnaround, given just how heartbroken Tina was when Ryan, 32 – who played Jason Grimshaw, her former love interest in Corrie – dumped her out of the blue.
He then ungallantly announced that she didn’t do it for him any more.
The devastating split, coming just a year after Tina gave birth to Scarlett, left her broken.
It took a long time and a lot of support from friends and family for her to feel like herself again.
Men took a back seat as she concentrated on getting her life back on track.
So when she met Adam, 31, in 2011 in a coffee shop – a year and a half after her split from Ryan – dating was still the last thing on her mind.
“He was working on his computer and Scarlett went over and said: ‘Hello, man,’” she recalls. “He told us his name was Adam and we got talking.”
The pair ended up swapping numbers and they had their first date a few weeks later.
“I was meeting friends in Manchester to watch the Royal wedding on massive screens, and I said he should come along,” she reveals.
“He gave me a kiss right in the middle of the street, just before I had to leave, and I was like: ‘I think I really fancy you!’
“I was nervous because I didn’t want to get involved with anyone. There were a couple of times when I thought: ‘Maybe this isn’t such a good idea and maybe I’m better off on my own.’”
It was six months before Tina felt ready to properly introduce Adam to Scarlett.
“It was the most nerve-wracking day. I worried about whether Scarlett would get on with him and if he would get on with her.
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“He came over and she had this daft Wendy house and he was like: ‘Let me see!’
“He’s nearly 6ft and climbed straight in and started playing. There was no awkwardness. That’s when I knew he was the one. He’s become my best friend.”
The couple’s happiness was sealed in October 2014 with the arrival of baby Beau.
Tina, Adam and Ryan now juggle the childcare commitments between them, with the help of Tina’s mum and a nanny.
“My mum looks after them on a Monday and Ryan looks after Scarlett as and when he can,” Tina says.
“He’s moved to London, so it will be really interesting as it’s a new chapter for him.
“I’m so lucky that Adam is a great father and so hands-on. I learn a lot from him.”
Adam currently works in a Manchester gym and recently spent 12 weeks transforming Ryan, who is rumoured to be following in Tina’s footsteps and signing up to Strictly.
Ryan and Adam sometimes hang out together and there’s talk of a lads’ holiday. All very civilised. Tina nods.
“To be honest, a lot of it stems from Adam being so laid-back and brilliant. There have been times where I’ve called Adam and said: ‘Oh right, you’re there with Ryan?’ Adam is amazing. He is one in a million.”
Little wonder then, that Tina immediately said yes when Adam went down on one knee two months ago at a boutique hotel in Manchester.
“He had put candles all around the room and heart petals on the bed,” she reveals.
“I genuinely can’t remember what he said to me. I know I didn’t cry at the time, but I did afterwards. Proper girl!”
However, for the moment, the wedding has had to take a back seat as the couple focus on moving out of their rented home just outside Manchester, and into a new place together.
Instead, she says that they are likely to tie the knot either next summer or the following one.
And, yup, Ryan will be on the guest list.
“It would be wrong not to,” she says firmly.
Tina returned to Corrie last March after an eight-year break, which saw her enjoy a brief stint on Strictly (she lasted four weeks in the competition) and appear as schoolgirl Bex Fisher in BBC drama Waterloo Road.
There’s no doubt she adores her two children – during breaks in our shoot she’s constantly showing off pictures of them on her phone – but she admits she loves being back at work and being able to feel like herself once again.
“Since becoming a mum I can’t believe the difference in the time I have for myself. My priorities have completely changed,” she says.
“Sometimes I try and make an effort and book a massage every couple of months, or have a bath with a glass of red wine.
“It’s important, because it’s very easy to lose your sense of self when you have children. I enjoy working because, in a selfish way, it allows me to do something for me.”
Thanks to a huge plot line that has seen Sarah- Louise fall apart as she tries to cover up the murder of her abusive ex-partner Callum Logan, she’s been racking up 12-hour days on the cobbles – which is all the more gruelling when you are operating on just a few hours’ sleep.
She says Beau is currently keeping her and Adam awake at night and this morning woke up at the bleary-eyed time of 5.45am.
Not that you would have any idea.
Tina is genuinely lovely – chatting happily to everyone on the shoot – she’s fresh-faced and looks years younger than her age.
But she says she has no beauty regime, relying on baby wipes to remove her make-up, followed by Nivea moisturiser.
At a miniature 5ft 1in, she is a slim size 8-10 with legs to die for.
She claims she’s still 4lb away from her pre-baby weight, after opting to let the extra pounds drop off naturally.
“I put on 31/2st each time I was pregnant, and both times I didn’t care. I was a carb monster. I would make toast with gnocchi and cheese on top. It was amazing!
“It was only after that I was like: ‘Hang on a minute!’ The weight came off very, very slowly, to the point where it’s still coming off slowly!”
There are some who would take full advantage of having a personal trainer fiancé. But not Tina.
“I’m not great [with fitness], but I should be because Adam’s really into it. My stomach and my boobs are the two main areas that aren’t what they were. I think if I spent more time exercising I could sort it out, but it’s not high on my to-do list!”
Nor will she be going down the route of doctoring selfies on social media to make herself look slimmer.
In fact, showing off her body online is a huge no-no: “I am certainly not a prude, but I do feel awkward taking selfies.”
She says she also frets about the influence social media has on young girls.
“I worry about my daughter growing up in a world where there is so much Photoshop. There’s a lot of pressure for girls,” she says.
“It’s very different to when I was growing up. One day Scarlett is going to have Instagram and it scares me. You have to try and figure out how to police it yourself. I’m really, really dreading it.”
When Tina first joined Coronation Street at just 16, she struggled to cope with her new-found fame and developed crippling panic attacks.
She describes moments when she would become completely overwhelmed while shopping or in other situations where people recognised her.
“I’d start by feeling anxious and then my heart would pound, my hands would get sweaty and I would feel like I was going to faint.
“I would basically have to look for an exit. If I felt trapped I’d have an attack. It was horrible.”
Determined to overcome her anxiety, she contacted celebrity life coaches The Speakmans who taught her ways to manage difficult situations.
Having not suffered an attack for two years, Tina is confident she has learnt how to cope.
“I had to learn to trust in my ability to handle it and know that I’m safe,” she says.
“Now I can feel the panic rising and will allow it to happen, instead of fighting it. You have to let it wash over you and that gets rid of the power.
“I purposely put myself in uncomfortable situations to push myself out of my comfort zone, like with the live Corrie episode last September.
“I don’t think I’ll ever be a non-anxious person, but now I’m much kinder to myself. I realise that it’s a normal way to feel and there’s nothing wrong with it.
“I’m much more confident in myself and feel blessed with life.”
It’s no wonder, as she’s already lived a life worthy of a Corrie storyline.
But unlike her soap alter-ego, Tina has finally got her happy ending.
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