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Natasha Blakeman was the owner of a chain of salons named Blakeman's, as well as the mother to Nick Tilsley's son Sam.

Taken on at Audrey's salon in 2008, Natasha had eventful relationships with Tony Gordon and Nick Tilsley, the latter of which was doomed from the start as Nick was still in love with his ex-wife Leanne Battersby. When Natasha revealed that she was pregnant, Nick dismissed her, ultimately leading to her aborting the child. However, he eventually came round to the idea of becoming a father, leading Natasha to pretend that she was still pregnant in order to hold onto him. When Nick's mother Gail McIntyre exposed her as a liar, Natasha attempted suicide but recovered and left Weatherfield for pastures new.

A decade later, Natasha bumped into Nick again and revealed that she had given birth to his son, Sam, in 2011. Now back with Leanne, Nick was conflicted about having contact with Natasha and his son, but eventually formed a close bond with Sam. He also turned to Natasha when his and Leanne's relationship was on the rocks after the tragic death of her son Oliver. Natasha became uneasy with Sam having contact with Nick when Leanne and her stepson Simon became involved with drug lord Harvey Gaskell, and later that year, Natasha was shot by Harvey who thought she was Leanne. She passed away from internal bleeding shortly after.

Biography[]

2008-2011: Looking for love[]

Natasha was born in Worsley on 16th February 1981. In 2008, she was taken on as a stylist at Audrey's salon in Coronation Street.

In December 2008, she informed Audrey Roberts that her sister-in-law had just given birth to her niece, Electra. She spotted a good business opportunity in opening the salon for late night trading hours during the week, an idea to which Audrey agreed.

Natasha was drafted in to style Molly Compton's hair for her wedding day in January 2009. In February, she flirted with Steve McDonald in the Rovers and later asked him out on a date. Steve was jealous of Jason Grimshaw and Becky Granger's relationship, but reluctantly agreed to go out with Natasha. Although Natasha wasn't impressed with Steve, for their date they sat in to eat a takeaway and told him that there were no hard feelings.

In March, Natasha paid Tony Gordon a visit. The two kissed passionately at first, Natasha did most of the talking, while Tony sat silently. Towards the end of the visit he began to soften towards her; as she left he told her to stop and take her coat off, the pair subsequently had sex. Natasha was in good spirits following her passion with Tony and gloated about it to colleague Maria Connor who was beginning to secretly harbour feelings for Tony. Maria tried to warn Natasha away from him claiming that he would treat her badly and even tried setting her up with Tom Kerrigan but to no avail as Natasha had set her sights firmly on Tony.

Some months later, Natasha began to become suspicious of the amount of time that Tony was spending with Maria. Consumed by jealousy, Natasha told Maria that he was only paying her attention because he was feeling sorry for her. Tony was furious when he discovered what Natasha had said which led to a heated showdown between the couple. they subsequently separated.

Natasha began a relationship with Nick Tilsley in 2010. He later dumped her, but when she discovered she was pregnant with his child, she tried to ask him back, but he refused. Upset, she went and had an abortion, but then Nick started liking the idea of becoming a dad and asked her back. Natasha went back with him without telling him about the abortion, and hoped to get pregnant again. Nick's mother Gail McIntyre got suspicious when Natasha kept visiting the doctor, and wasn't happy when Natasha and Nick got engaged, so decided to look through her medical records and was shocked to see what Natasha was hiding. Gail then told Nick about the abortion, which resulted in him leaving her. Distressed, Natasha took an overdose and was found by Nick when he arrived to talk things over. She was later saved and Audrey decided to put her up at her house. However, Natasha decided to leave Weatherfield. After some home truths to Nick and also getting Gail the sack for looking through her medical files, Natasha got into the back of a taxi and it drove off as Nick watched on.

Natasha later discovered that she was pregnant with Nick's child but chose not to tell him the news, and she gave birth to their son Sam in 2011. Natasha began to pull her life together after her split from Nick and started to run her own salon business, and by 2020 was ready to open up a third shop.

2020-2021: Back in Nick's life[]

In September 2020 Sam attended an appointment at Weatherfield General with a sprain. Natasha bumped into Nick in the hospital car park, the first time that the pair had set eyes on each other in ten years. They caught up briefly, although Nick was going through troubles due to his stepson Oliver being seriously ill in hospital. Natasha was sympathetic and chose not to immediately tell Nick the reason she was at the hospital. Later on she was relieved to find that Sam had only suffered a mild sprain.

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In October 2021, Natasha was going to dress up in a Morticia Addams outfit for Halloween, but was unable to get to Weatherfield after providing a lift for Audrey and Gail, so Leanne dressed up in her stead. On arriving at Leanne's flat for revenge, Harvey shot who he believed to be Leanne, only for Nick and the real Leanne to find that the person injured was Natasha. Natasha was rushed to hospital requiring emergency surgery. Nick and Sam had a final moment with Natasha before she was taken to the operating theatre, only to pass away from internal bleeding shortly after.

Personality[]

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Relationships[]

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Background information[]

Character creation and role[]

Natasha Blakeman 2008 promo

2008: Publicity shot of Rachel Leskovac as Natasha Blakeman

Natasha first appeared in Episode 6815 in May 2008. Rachel Leskovac's casting was announced on 24th April 2008, with a Coronation Street spokesman commenting "Rachel's very well known in TV land as she has been in countless series and dramas. To have her new character in the salon is a smashing coup." The character initially appeared as a recurring presence at Audrey's salon, but made more appearances throughout 2009 with a short-lived love triangle between villain Tony Gordon (Gray O'Brien) and colleague Maria Connor (Samia Smith). With the character receiving more screen-time, Leskovac commented "Last year, it was a bit sporadic because I wasn't in for weeks on end, so every time I came back it felt like my first day again. It's only now in the new year that it's started to feel like I'm part of the family!". Following an absence between September 2009 and January 2010 the character began receiving her own storylines including a relationship with Nick Tilsley (Ben Price).

Leskovac was born in Bradford and studied at the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts where she graduated in 1998. Leskovac made her television debut in Channel 4's drama North Square, she also appeared in small roles in Peak Practice, Heartbeat and Casualty, before securing a regular role as murderous nurse Kelly Yorke on Holby City between 2003 and 2004.

Initial departure[]

On 29th April 2010, it was announced that Leskovac was one of several characters being axed by new producer Phil Collinson. Her character was said to depart in "an exciting and dramatic storyline which will be an integral part of the build-up to Coronation Street's 50th anniversary". Natasha's final scenes aired in September 2010 when she decided to leave Weatherfield following a failed suicide attempt after being exposed by Nick's mother Gail McIntyre (Helen Worth) for faking her pregnancy. Natasha's departure acted as the catalyst for Nick and Leanne Battersby (Jane Danson)'s affair which was one of the major storylines during the 50th anniversary.

Return[]

Natasha Blakeman 2020

2020: Promotional image of Natasha Blakeman's return to Nick Tilsley's life

Almost ten years later, Natasha's return was announced on 16th July 2020. Leskovac said "I am very excited and proud to be welcomed back to Coronation Street, especially as so many old friends are still there. It's always great to be able to return to a character to explore a whole new path for them."

Notes[]

  • Several of Natasha's family members have been mentioned on-screen. Her sister-in-law, Yvonne, was said to have given birth to a baby girl named Electra in December 2008. She was also said to have an aunt Shirley in January 2009, and her sister was said to have two children in October 2020.

First and last lines[]

"It burned down." (First line, to Audrey Roberts)

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"I love you, Sam... so, so much." (Final line)

Appendices[]

Duckworths 1983
"If you've owt to say, spit it out before it flamin' well chokes yer"
This article or section is unfinished.
Please edit this article to fill in the missing parts and remove this message when done.

List of addresses[]

Address Duration
8 Coronation Street May 2010 to 23rd August 2010
9 Victoria Court 23rd August 2010 to 24th September 2010

Employment history[]

Role Institution Duration
Hairdresser Audrey's 12th May 2008 to 24th September 2010
Owner Blakeman's early 2010s to 25th October 2021

See also[]

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