Two soap stars have revealed their unlikely friendship in a touching Instagram post.

Sydney Martin, who plays Betsy Swain in Coronation Street, and Isabelle Smith, who plays Frankie

Osborne in Hollyoaks, were all smiles in a photo shared on Sydney’s page.

She captioned the post: “In another universe, Betsy and Frankie would be friends”, to which Isabelle replied in the comments: “I love you so much ❤❤❤.”

Related: Coronation Street airs sinister cliffhanger for Joel and Lauren

Betsy, the daughter of DS Lisa Swain, arrived in Weatherfield earlier this year and has become involved in Joel Deering’s storyline.

She has been targeting Joel for money, promising to keep quiet about their encounter if he pays her off.

Betsy continued to badger Joel until he threw her out of his car in a dangerous part of town, an action which blew up in his face and saw Betsy demand even more money.

It’s not the first time blackmail has landed Betsy in hot water, after she manipulated boss Carla Connor into giving her a summer job.

Meanwhile, over in Hollyoaks Village, Frankie is in the midst of a harrowing storyline in which it has been revealed she had been sexually abused by her twin brother JJ when they were children, something which the rest of her family are unaware of.

The sinister crimes came to light after JJ snuck into Frankie’s room at night demanding that she help him celebrate after a successful football trial.

Related: Hollyoaks teases new blackmail drama for Dillon and Tom

As a means to escape his abuse, Frankie travelled to Manchester for a dance audition which, if successful, would require a move to London, but Darren Osborne and Suzanne Ashworth weren’t pleased that she went without their consent.

They even went as far as to blame Frankie for JJ missing his football practice after he travelled to Manchester to intimidate his sister during her big moment. But Darren eventually came around, promising to support Frankie in her dancing passion.