Kym Ryder spends night with Lee Sharpe

Coronation Street star Kym Ryder has sparked rumours that she is dating ex-footballer Lee Sharpe.

The actress, who plays Michelle Connor on the ITV1 soap, appeared on the judging panel at the Miss Manchester final with Sharpe on Thursday evening. She then hit a number of the city's nightclubs with the former Man United player, before finally spending the night in his room at the Palace Hotel.

"It was electric between Lee and Kym from the start," an onlooker at the beauty contest told the News of the World. "The best-looking girls in the city were parading in front of Lee yet he only had eyes for Kym."

The source added: "Kym stuck to Lee like glue throughout the evening and there was a real chemistry between them. Kym looked like a million dollars. There is no way a man like Lee could have resisted her."

Kym announced that she was ending her six-year marriage to former EastEnders actor Jack Ryder in March this year.

A spokesman for the actress insisted: "She and Lee are just good mates."