Faye Brookes

Faye Alicia Brookes (born 3 September 1987) is an English actress. She is known for portraying the role of Kate Connor on the ITV soap opera Coronation Street. In 2021, she competed in the thirteenth series of Dancing on Ice, where she finished in second place.

Faye Lewis
Brookes in 2019
Born	Faye Alicia Brookes (1987-09-03) 3 September 1987 (age 37) Stretford, Trafford, England
Education	Flixton Junior School Knutsford High School Pendleton College Guildford School of Acting
Occupation	Actress
Years active	2011–present
Television	Coronation Street Dancing on Ice
Spouse	Iwan Lewis (m. 2023)

Early life

Brookes was born on 3 September 1987^[1] in Stretford, Trafford.^[2] Whilst growing up, Brookes attended Flixton Junior School and Knutsford High School.^[2] She then expressed an interest in musical theatre, initially studying performing arts at Pendleton College from 2004 onwards, before later attending Guildford School of Acting. She graduated in 2010, after completing a Bachelor of Arts degree in Musical Theatre and being awarded the Principal’s Choice Award.^[3]

Career

Prior to appearing on television, Brookes starred in various theatre productions, including Grease, Shrek, Legally Blonde and The Sound of Music.^[4] In mid-2015, it was announced that the Connor family in Coronation Street was being extended. The family first appeared in the street in 2006 and have featured in many storylines.^[5] Brookes was cast as Kate Connor and after her on-screen brother Aidan Connor made his first appearance, played by The X Factor winner Shayne Ward, Brookes first appeared as Kate in October 2015. She won Best Newcomer for her portrayal of Kate in January 2017 at the 22nd National Television Awards. In April 2019, it was announced that Brookes had decided to leave Coronation Street. Her final scenes were to air later in 2019.^[6]

On 24 September 2020, Brookes was announced as a contestant for the 2021 series of Dancing on Ice.^[7] Brookes was originally partnered with Hamish Gaman; however, after he withdrew due to an injury in week 6, Brookes was re-partnered with Matt Evers.^[8] She finished the competition in second place.^[9]

In November 2021, it was announced that in 2022 Brookes would take over as Roxie Hart in the UK tour of the musical Chicago.^[10]

Personal life

In 2012, while appearing in a production of Legally Blonde, Brookes met Gareth Gates, who was portraying the role of her character's boyfriend. The pair began a relationship, and became engaged. The pair split in 2018.^[11] While together, the pair set up a stage school, Fates Academy.^[12]

In August 2023, Brookes married Legally Blonde co-star Iwan Lewis.^{[citation needed]}

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2013	Atlantis	Helena	1 episode
2014	Our Zoo	Frankie	1 episode
2015–2019	Coronation Street	Kate Connor	Series regular; 433 episodes
2016	The Chase	Herself	Celebrity special
2018	Coronation Street's DNA Secrets	Herself	One-off documentary
2021	Dancing on Ice	Herself	Contestant
2022	Celebrity Bridge of Lies	Herself	Celebrity Contestant

Stage

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2010–2011	Grease	Frenchy and Sandy	Piccadilly Theatre
2011	Legally Blonde	Elle Woods	The Grand Opera House
2013	The Sound of Music	Liesl Von Trapp	Regent's Park Theatre
2013-2014	That Day We Sang	Ann/Edna	Royal Exchange Theatre
2014-2015	Shrek: The Musical	Princess Fiona	UK Tour
2021-2022	Chicago	Roxie Hart	UK Tour
2023	Strictly Ballroom	Fran	UK Tour
2024	Constellations	Marianne	The Barn Theatre
2024-2025	Chicago	Roxie Hart	UK Tour

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Result	Ref.
2016	TV Choice Awards	Best Soap Newcomer	Nominated	[13]
2016	Inside Soap Awards	Sexiest Female	Nominated	[14]
2017	22nd National Television Awards	Newcomer	Won	[15]
2017	Digital Spy Reader Awards	Best Soap Relationship (with Bhavna Limbachia)	Second	[16]
2018	The British Soap Awards	Best On-Screen Partnership (with Limbachia)	Nominated	[17]
2018	Inside Soap Awards	Best Partnership (with Limbachia)	Nominated	[18]
2018	I Talk Telly Awards	Best Soap Partnership (with Limbachia)	Nominated	[19]