Sarah Lancashire (born 10 October 1964) is an English television, film and theatre actress, from Oldham. Lancashire was cast as Raquel Wolstenhulme in the long-running ITV soap opera Coronation Street in 1991. After leaving the series in 1996, Lancashire found further success with roles in Where the Heart Is (1997–1999), Clocking Off (2000) and the television film Seeing Red (2000). In the summer of 2000, Lancashire signed a two-year golden handcuffs contract with ITV, making her the highest paid actress in UK television.