Coronation Street star Nicola Thorp slams anti-gay protesters at Manchester Pride
The actress was attending the Manchester Pride Parade when she called out the anti-gay protesters.
Coronation Street stars Nicola Thorp and Antony Cotton slammed a group of anti-gay protesters at the Manchester Pride Parade.
The pair were some of the soap stars attending the parade with a special Coronation Street theme float.
As the float drove past a group of anti-gay protesters waving homophobic placards, Thorp shouted out to them: “It’s a shame that you felt you needed to show your presence here today.
“You and your beliefs are not welcome here. You are not welcome to come and judge our sexuality. We will not come to preach at your church. This is our church. Show some respect.”
According to Manchester Evening News, Thorp, who played Nicola Rubinstein until last June, was applauded by Pride-goers.
Meanwhile, Antony Cotton, who plays Sean Tully in the ITV soap, jumped down from the Corrie float and kissed his boyfriend Peter in front of the protesters, who were lined up beside the Impossible Bar on Peter Street.
Manchester Evening News reports that the protesters’ placards included messages such as “Pride goes before destruction”, “Be sure your sin will find you out” and quotes from the Bible about sin.
Speaking to Manchester Evening News about how important Pride is and how proud Coronation Street is to be involved in it, Thorp said: “The thing with Pride is it started off as a statement of activism and now it’s seen as a celebration – but it’s both of those things.
“It’s a celebration of Pride for the LGBT community but also it’s a statement of activism to say actually there’s still so much further to go in terms of rights for the gay and trans community.”