Coronation Street fans were stunned to make a 'rare sighting' just minutes into the latest episode on Wednesday night, April 27, Manchester Evening News reports.
18.04.2022 - 14:35 / manchestereveningnews.co.uk
He's just days away from celebrating a huge milestone and in celebration, Bill Roache has been reunited with his first on-screen wife. The Coronation Street legend is set to have a programme dedicated to him on Tuesday (April 19) ahead of his 90th birthday on April 25.
The documentary, Happy Birthday Bill, will air on ITV and celebrate Bill's life and career by looking back on his legacy and achievements as he reaches his big birthday as the current Guinness World Record holder for the longest-running TV soap star.
It will feature special appearances from past and present Corrie cast members, as well as his own family as they help him look back on the moments and the people that have helped shape both Bill himself and his patriarchal character Ken.
READ MORE: ITV Coronation Street fans' delight over Tinker family reunion
Speaking about the special programme when it was announced last month, Bill said: "I don’t feel nearly 90 at all. The Coronation Street cast are like a second family to me and I can’t quite believe I’ve been lucky enough to play Ken Barlow for over 60 years. "It’s also been lovely revisiting past memories and remembering all the wonderful things I have seen and done over the years. I hope the viewers enjoy watching the documentary as much as I did making it."
And a first look at the hour-long show has revealed a special reunion for Bill and actress Anne Reid, who played Ken’s first wife Valerie in the early years of the ITV soap back in the sixties.
"I was surprised — she told me she used to dream about me and I laughed and said, ‘Don’t you mean nightmares?’ And then she told me she had a crush on me, but she never told me at the time," the Corrie stalwart cheekily reveals.
Avid fans will remember
Coronation Street fans were stunned to make a 'rare sighting' just minutes into the latest episode on Wednesday night, April 27, Manchester Evening News reports.
Coronation Street icon Bill Roache has celebrated his 90th birthday today. Bill is renowned for being the longest-running soap actor, playing Ken Barlow on the ITV show since it first began in December 1960. In order to mark the impressive milestone, his family have released new portraits of the 90 year old taken by his son Will at their family home in Cheshire.
Wedding bells may be beckoning for Toyah Battersby this week but the actual day itself looks set to hit by disaster if first-look Coronation Street pictures are anything to go by.
Richard Madeley has told Martin Roberts that he and Susanna Reid were 'concerned' about him weeks before he fell ill and ended up hours from death. The Homes Under the Hammer star appeared on Monday's Good Morning Britain from his hospital room after being admitted last week.
Coronation Street has been flooded with messages about its legendary star as he marks his 90th birthday. William Roache, who has played Barlow patriarch Ken since the very first episode of the ITV soap, is celebrating the big milestone on Monday (April 25).
Coronation Street's William Roache - known as Bill - was welcomed onto the This Morning sofa to talk to Phil and Holly about his new book, Life and Soul, and upcoming 90th birthday next Monday. And the soap icon - who has played Weatherfield icon Ken Barlow since the show’s very first episode in December 1960 admitted that despite romances with dozens of women as the bookish on-screen lothario, it’s the Queen he has a crush on in real life, dating back to a meeting in 1953. After discussing his life, work and ways he stays young in outlook as his milestone birthday approaches, Holly Willoughby turned the conversation round to the Queen, who celebrated her 96th birthday this week.
His upcoming big birthday may have been widely publicised on ITV this week but William Roache's youthful appearance is still continuing to stun fans. The Coronation Street actor is just days away from marking his 90th birthday, on April 25.
Coronation Street fans were left in awe on Monday as the ITV soap shared a picture of Bill Roache's "incredible" 90th cake.Taking to Instagram, the ITV soap shared a picture of the Ken Barlow star, whose birthday is on 25 April, posing with his birthday cake, which is a replica of his character on the famous cobbles.The cake sees a fondant version of Ken Barlow sitting outside the Rovers Return Inn complete with the cobbles and a Coronation Street sign. Corrie penned alongside the snap: "Bill turns 90! Join us tonight for a special documentary celebrating the 90th birthday of the man behind Ken Barlow.
Coronation Street fans were left making the same demand after watching one of the show's biggest star's life and career celebrated. Happy Birthday Bill aired on ITV on Tuesday night and paid homage to William Roache ahead of his 90th birthday.
William "Bill" Roache admitted he "fancied" the Queen and grew fonder and fonder of the 95 year old monarch every time he met her. The Coronation Street actor, who celebrates his 90th birthday this month and was named in the New Year's Honours list, has met Her Majesty an incredible eight times. And from their very first meeting, the Ken Barlow icon was attracted to her.