Sue Johnston 'had to fight for her life' after actress attacked in terrifying assault

Sue Johnston, the actress who portrayed Sheila Grant in Channel 4's Brookside, has opened up about how a harrowing rape storyline on the show helped her cope with her own real-life sex attack.

The Liverpudlian matriarch was one of the original characters in the soap, which aired from 1982 to 2003, and was involved in several major storylines during her tenure.

One such storyline in 1986 saw Sheila brutally attacked and raped by a taxi driver, a plot that explored the emotional aftermath for Sheila and her family, as well as the pursuit of her attacker.

Tragically, Sue herself had been the victim of a sex attack years before this storyline aired on Brookside.

Now, ahead of a crossover episode between Brookside and Hollyoaks - where Sue will reprise her role as Sheila - the actress has revealed how the rape storyline "helped" her process her own traumatic experience, reports the Liverpool Echo.

"I was very nervous to do it [the storyline] because I'd been attacked myself in London a few years earlier, coming home on the tube in the early evening in Gunnersbury," Sue confessed.

She continued: "I had to fight for my life. I'd never really spoken about it. When they marked out the scene of this guy coming out behind Sheila, which is exactly what happened to me in real life, I was worried how I'd react and thought I might lose control."

However, Sue found the experience cathartic, saying: "But it was like drama therapy, I released something. Then I started to talk about it openly. We got involved with Rape Crisis who were very helpful, I later wrote about it in my book. It helped me".

Sue bravely opened up about a terrifying sexual assault she experienced in 1970, which she detailed in her autobiography. She recalled the harrowing incident, saying: "It was November 7, 1970. I was 27. I'll always remember the date. I got off at my Tube stop and took the path I usually took – along a lane and under the bridge. I heard a noise behind me and turned around,".

She continued: "A young man was leaning against the fence... and I realised he was masturbating. I stopped, shocked by what I was witnessing, then I began to run.

"I heard him thundering along behind me and I was panic-stricken. I knew he was going to try to attack me. I threw down my bag, thinking he might take it and leave me alone. But he lunged for me, grabbing my throat. He punched me in the side as his fingers squeezed into my neck.

"Everything went into slow motion. 'I'm going to die now,' I thought. I heard screaming, it seemed to be coming from far away but then I realised it was me. I was screaming for my life. I suddenly began to fight back with every bit of strength in me. I was kicking and clawing at him.

"At that moment the fact that he might be about to rape me hadn't crossed my mind: I was simply fighting for survival. He stopped and hovered over me, staring straight at me, spitting bile."

Sue then disclosed that the assailant "ran off" and she picked up her bag and fled. She said: "He'd punched me everywhere but I didn't feel any pain. I was too terrified he might be waiting around the corner."

*If you've been the victim of sexual assault, you can access help and resources via www.rapecrisis.org.uk or calling the national telephone helpline on 0808 802 9999.

The Hollyoaks and Brookside crossover episode will air on E4 at 7pm on 22 October