Corrie's Sue Cleaver is making gin in lockdown

\'Coronation Street\' star Sue Cleaver is making rhubarb gin in lockdown.

The 56-year-old actress has been using her time at home during the coronavirus crisis - which has caused production on the ITV soap to be stopped - to tend to her vegetable garden as she plans to turn her rhubarb plants into her own signature alcoholic drink.

Speaking to Woman\'s Own magazine: "I\'ve just ordered some seeds for our veg garden. I am carefully tending my rhubarb because it\'ll soon be turned into rhubarb gin, which we make every year."

However, Sue - who has played Eileen Grimshaw on the ITV soap since 2000 - has kindly let her husband take charge of the gardening as she prefers to take sole responsibility of the gin.

Asked if she has green fingers, she replied: "No, I have a land husband. He\'s the green-fingered one. We found some old runner bean pods in the shed the other day and they\'ve sprouted into about 30 runner bean plants - so all the more for the neighbours."

With work currently on pause, Sue and her cast mates have turned to FaceTime to stay in touch.

She and her husband have been part of the group with Daniel Brocklebank (Billy Mayhew), \'Coronation Street\' floor manager Woody Wade, Julia Goulding (Shona Ramsey) and her husband.

Sue added: "When lockdown started, we just FaceTimed each other in our little group, which is Dan Brocklebank, Woody Wade, Julia Goulding and her husband Ben and me and my husband.

"After a while, we called it \'Dan\'s Bar\' and gave it a theme each time.

"Dan and Woody are isolating alone, so we just sit down and have dinner together, or a pub quiz and catch-up.

"We\'ve also started to welcome surprise guests like Sally-Ann Matthews (Jenny). A theme coming up is \'Dan\'s Bar: Eileen,\' so everyone has to dress up as Eileen."