‘Coronation Street’ veteran Bill Roache has admitted he feared his days on the soap could have been numbered, when his character Ken Barlow suffered a stroke last year.
Back in October, the Barlow family were put firmly back in the spotlight, when two family members returned to Weatherfield to return to care for Ken, after he was taken into hospital.
However, the long-serving actor has now admitted he feared for his character’s future when he first heard about the storyline, even growing concerned he could be written out completely.
Speaking to The Mirror, Bill said: “When Ken had a stroke it made me think about his mortality.
Before the storyline aired, Bill told HuffPost UK: “The only thing I said when I first heard about it was that I wanted to speak to somebody on the medical side to make sure that what I was doing was right.”
Far from being written out in the aftermath, Ken’s illness and recovery meant the Barlows could take centre stage in the weeks that followed, with the return of both Adam and Daniel Barlow serving as big plot devices in the past few months.
While Adam has already taken a shine to Maria Connor, Daniel was at the centre of a drama when he slept with Sinead Tinker, resultingly ending her engagement to Chesney Brown.
Bill is the longest-serving actor in ‘Coronation Street’, having appeared in the show since its first episode aired on ITV in 1960.
