‘Coronation Street’ bosses were "worried" about finding ways to write Jennie McAlpine out of the soap when she first told them she was pregnant.
The 34-year-old actress is expecting her second child – a sibling for her and husband Chris Farr’s three-year-old son Albert – and she has revealed producers were concerned when she delivered the news about her first pregnancy, because Catherine Tyldesley (Eva Price) and Paula Lane (Kylie Platt) had announced they were expecting days earlier.
Jennie – who plays Fiz Stape in the soap – said: "When I was pregnant the first time around I told the bosses within days of Catherine Tyldesley and Paula Lane also telling the bosses they were pregnant.
"This time it’s just me so they weren’t as worried about finding ways to write me out."
The former ‘I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!’ on-screen partner Alan Halsall (Tyrone Dobbs) was the first person on set she told about her news, and he was "really happy" for his co-star.
While Jennie loves being on ‘Corrie’, she would also like to be at home with Albert "full time".
Speaking to OK! magazine, she added: "Being a mum is the best thing in the world. It’s better than I ever imagined it would be. Now I’m a mum I find myself wishing I could live in some kind of parallel universe where I could work and also be at home full time.
"I choose to work because I love my job and it feels like the right thing for us as a family but I do hate missing out on things with Albert.
"I honestly love being pregnant. I love the planning that’s involved and guessing what the baby is going to be like.
"This time around I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about how the baby will fit into our lives and how Albert will feel about it."
Jennie took to Twitter in April to announce her pregnancy but was forced to clarify her message afterwards when some fans thought she was referring to her cat.
She wrote: "We’ve got a bit of news. Pur baby boy is going to be a big brother later this year. We can’t wait to meet you precious one x (sic)"
But Jennie later tweeted: "Thanks for all your lovely messages. Obviously my baby brain is in full force again. Our baby boy. Not pur. Sorry to people who got confused it was about the cat x (sic)"