“I’ve played a lot of mums but this is the first time I’ve played a mum as an actual mother myself.

“It’s so different. You can act being a mum but there’s something very different when you are a parent yourself with a child of your own.

“All I kept thinking of was Billy. Every time that would just set me off.

“I didn’t have to act too much in the crying scenes because you just imagine this mother going through this hell and thinking if it was my little boy.

“So I could totally relate to this.”

Sheridan Smith talking to me about her role as Kathy in new four part ITV drama No Return, which begins at 9pm on Monday (Feb 7).

With all four episodes produced by RED Production Company then available on the ITV Hub and BritBox if you can’t wait to see them week by week.

You can read my interviews for ITV with writer and executive producer Danny Brocklehurst, Sheridan Smith (Kathy), Michael Jibson (Martin) and Louis Ashbourne Serkis (Noah) at the link below.

With the drama also starring Sian Brooke (Megan), David Mumeni (Steve), Lily Sutcliffe (Jessica), Jack Chorley (Fred), Murat Seven (Ismail) and Philip Arditti (Rico).

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Click / tap on the gallery below to enlarge more production photos.