After more than a decade bringing Coronation Street’s fiery Beth Tinker to life, actress Lisa George has shared how a devastating health diagnosis left her fearing for her career — and how she’s determined to turn adversity into strength.

A Life-Changing Diagnosis

Lisa, who spent 13 years lighting up the cobbles as the leopard-print-loving Beth, revealed that she was diagnosed with non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION), a rare condition that causes sudden vision loss. The illness has left her partially blind in one eye and with no peripheral vision in the other.

Speaking to OK! Magazine, the actress explained, “I feel like my eyes have stabilised at the moment. I can still see distances clearly, but reading is really hard. All writing and numbers are blurred, so I need glasses for reading. For driving, I use varifocals so I can see the SatNav.”

Lisa’s first experience with sight loss came in 2016, but a frightening recurrence in 2022 confirmed the diagnosis. While celebrating former co-star Katie McGlynn’s birthday, she realised something was seriously wrong. “I looked at the menu and it was all blurry. I remember thinking, ‘Something is really wrong.’”

Doctors later linked the incident to her diabetes, and she spent a week in hospital adjusting to the reality of her new condition.

Fear of Losing Her Career

The diagnosis was not only frightening but also career-defining. “When it first happened, one of my fears was, ‘How am I going to work in a theatre if the stage is dark?’” Lisa admitted. On Coronation Street, she had already begun making small adjustments, asking to stand on the inside of the pavement during night scenes to avoid tripping.

Her biggest worry came when she was officially listed as “visually impaired” on her acting profile. “That did make me wonder if people maybe wouldn’t want to cast me,” she confessed. “But there’s better access now for people with all sorts of disabilities, so I don’t let it worry me anymore.”

Becoming an Advocate for Accessibility

Lisa has since become a passionate advocate for inclusivity in the arts, highlighting simple changes that make a huge difference. “When you get asked to do a self-tape, the scripts usually come as PDFs in tiny font. I can’t read them properly, and I can’t copy and paste to enlarge them,” she said.

Her openness has inspired many, and she continues to work actively in theatre and public speaking. Recently, she appeared on the cover of Vista magazine for National Eye Health Week and was honoured by the Royal National Institute of Blind People, recording a section of literature for their 90th anniversary celebrations.

Rediscovering Passion Beyond the Cobbles

Since leaving Coronation Street in 2024, Lisa has thrown herself into new opportunities. She’s joined Acting Lincs as a board member, presented awards at the National Diversity Awards, and returned to her love of music and history.

“I stopped singing when I joined Corrie, but before that, I was performing with a big band,” she said. “I want to get back to singing again.” She’s also completed diplomas in Tudor history, the six wives of Henry VIII, and Native American studies, and dreams of acting in a historical drama — particularly one set in the Second World War.

A Future Full of Possibility

Despite her diagnosis, Lisa continues to perform on stage. “During a pantomime, I had to walk off in thick smoke, and I couldn’t see where I was going,” she recalled. “Two dancers led me off stage. It was such a small thing, but it made it possible. They were brilliant.”

Though she knows many viewers still see her as Beth Tinker, Lisa is embracing the next chapter with optimism. “I guess a lot of people think of me as Beth, but I’m not a one-trick pony. I’d love to do something different now.”

With resilience, humour, and unshakable drive, Lisa George is proving that her story is far from over — it’s just changing direction.