Samia Smith

It seems as though real life is imitating art, as Coronation Street stars Samia Ghadia and Will Thorp have called time on their relationship, just as their characters did on the show last year.

Samia (who plays Maria Connor) and Will (who played Chris Gray before leaving last November) began dating each other in 2011 shortly after their own, real life, marriages broke down. The two have been an item ever since, that is until Samia began her training for the upcoming season of Dancing On Ice, when the actress decided enough was enough and it was time to call it quits. Earlier this week, it was revealed in the Sunday Mirror that the pair had split up, with a source revealing: "the relationship just fizzled out and ran its course."

However, things may not be as black and white as they seem, as Samia is reported to have been getting rather close to her skating instructor Sylvain Longchambon, who earlier this week split from his girlfriend of two years, Jennifer Metcalfe. Jennifer, who stars in the soap Hollyoakes, was Sylvian's partner in a previous series of the show, with the two striking a chord and beginning a relationship during the show's running. Now it looks like history is repeating itself to the expense of Metcalfe and Thorp, with Samia absolutely gushing about Sylvian in a recent interview with the Sunday Mirror. She said: “Sylvain is brilliant. He is so patient, kind and thoughtful. I can see how you’d end up in a relationship with your partner. You get to know each other intensely and there is a lot of trust.”

Continue reading: Coronation Street Couple Call It Quits