William Roache: Why I thought about quitting Corrie in my 40s

Coronation Street star William Roache has said he considered leaving the soap when he was in his 40s.

The actor, who plays Ken Barlow in the ITV show, has been a part of the cast since its inception.

The 88-year-old said he had thought about quitting the soap, now celebrating its 60th anniversary, but decided he loved being on the cobbles.

Roache told BBC Breakfast: “When I was about 40 and Ken moved from being a bit of a Jack the Lad and the writers didn’t quite know what to do with him, I did consider, I thought about it for a bit, but not seriously and very quickly came to the conclusion that this is what I love…

“I did think about it but not for long and not too seriously.”

He added: “I remember a director once saying that you get some scenes in Coronation Street that are just as good as any film or play that’s going anywhere.

“And that is true. It’s a happy place to be. I love going to work. You get job satisfaction and you get continuity, which is not usual for actors.”

Asked about the soap’s enduring appeal, he said: “The programme has been changing with the times – had we not, we’d have become dinosaurs.”

And he added: “There’s no reason why it shouldn’t go on forever.”

Roache, who has previously explained why he does not like the term ‘soap’, said: “It was this day 60 years ago we were all getting a bit nervous to do the first live episode.

“It was unbelievable … because we were all part of this new realism…

“We were the cutting-edge drama – that’s why I don’t like the word soap very much. But we have to accept that’s what it is now.”