IT'S a story that has gripped Coronation Street fans for months as gay teenager Todd Grimshaw finally came clean about his sexuality to his sweetheart Sarah Platt.

But just how realistic is the soap's first portrayal of a gay character. . ?

THE past week has seen him break the heart of his pregnant fiancee, fall out with his brother and watch his mother fight an undignified brawl on the cobbles of Coronation Street.

As announcements go, Todd Grimshaw's emergence from the closet has been a little fraught, to say the least.

But just how realistic are such soap-opera portrayals of the traumas endured by young people who are coming to terms with being gay?

While 19-year-old Chris, from Blackburn, doesn't recognise the scale of the melodrama that accompanied Todd's revelation, he can certainly understand the feelings of confusion and isolation that have beset the character in recent months.

The fact that Chris wishes to remain anonymous, because some of his family do not know he is gay, is testament to that.

And he said that like the Coronation Street character, realising and understanding his sexuality was a long and difficult process.

"It took me over a year to realise how I felt," he said. "I had to understand and accept myself. I was about 13 and it was a very confusing time."

And just as Todd has experienced bigotry and prejudice, so too was Chris subjected to taunts and intimidation from pupils at his Darwen school.

"There was a lot of bullying when I was younger," he said. "Even if the other kids suspected you were gay, it really caused trouble. I came out six months before I finished school and at first a lot of people didn't believe it was true."

In light of the bullying he'd experienced it must have been tempting for Chris to keep his head down and see out his schooldays without risk of further harassment.

"Telling people was quite a big thing to do," he agreed. "But I'd had enough of keeping it a secret. You end up hiding things about yourself and you're frightened of saying or doing something because people might suspect."

Equally difficult for Chris was the prospect of telling his family the truth about who he was.

"I first told my mum when I was 16," he recalled. "She was quite upset at the time, but she's been really supportive since then."

That's not to say there haven't been some difficulties - such as when Chris began going out with his boyfriend, two years ago.

"Things like that have been a bit awkward for my family to deal with," he said. "That's probably what prompted me to move into my own flat last year."

Coronation Street viewers have seen Todd make a lot of erratic decisions over the past few years - such as walking out on his A-level exams and his hopes of a place at Oxford to throw himself into an apparent domestic idyll with his girlfriend.

Can Chris understand Todd's determination to appear the stereotypical family man?

"Personally, I've never had a girlfriend or been attracted to women," he said. "But society expects you to be straight and gay people can strive to do what seems 'normal'."

But, according to Chris, no matter how bad the initial aftermath of Todd's announcement may be, he's done the right thing in telling people the truth about his sexuality.

"From my experience, once you've come out, it's far better," he said. "You're not keeping secrets, you have more confidence and you're a lot happier."

Of course, this being soapland, there's no doubt Todd's adjustment to life as an openly gay man will cause a few more sparks to fly in weeks to come.

Despite such melodrama, Chris would like to see more programmes following in Coronation Street's footsteps and include realistic depictions of gay characters in their plotlines.

Friends make the way ahead simpler

"THERE'S not a great deal of difference between gay men and straight men, except we're far better dressed!" jokes Jeremy Sharples.

Jeremy, 42, from Cherry Tree, is keen to play down any perceived gulf between gay and straight communities.

As chairman of Lancashire Friend, the county's only free support service for gay and lesbian people, Jeremy's mission is to ease the path for people who are perhaps confronting their sexuality for the first time.

He is one of five counsellors on the team which offers a befriending service to those who are taking their first steps into the gay community.

"If you're new to the scene, it can be quite daunting," he said. "It's far less scary walking into a gay club for the first time if you're there with somebody you know and trust."

A Blackburn-based charity, Lancashire Friend has been running for 14 years and offers one-to-one help and telephone counselling.

"Somebody like Todd may want to ring up and talk about the feelings he's been getting," said Jeremy, who himself came out 20 years ago and well understands the anguish and confusion the character has experienced.

"The thought is, 'I don't want to be gay', but our message is that there's nothing wrong with it."

The Lancashire Friend service is all the more vital because coming out in a fairly traditional community like East Lancashire can be an intimidating experience.

"There are areas of East Lancashire that have quite traditional values which can cause problems," said Jeremy.

Lancashire Friend's free helpline is (0800) 052 0151.