Overview
- On Tuesday, June 30, 2026, Matthews said she learned she is distantly related to Amanda Barrie after working with Ancestry and consulting a local historian in Ashton-under-Lyne.
- Matthews told Radio Times she felt ‘overwhelming’ joy at the match and described anxiously waiting to see which Corrie colleague would emerge as her cousin.
- She highlighted a long-held personal memento from Barrie — a jug given to her at age 18 — as a treasured object that now feels more meaningful in light of the discovery.
- The finding is framed against Matthews’s long run as Jenny Bradley on Coronation Street and her October 2025 exit, which she told the Mirror she made because she no longer enjoyed the role.
- The story ties a private genealogy result to public nostalgia for Coronation Street and shows how ancestry searches and local historical research can reveal unexpected personal links between working colleagues and fans.