On 3 December, two new characters arrive in Coronation Street, and ITV.com profiles them in its Arrivals Lounge feature. Jack Ellis and Matthew Crompton play father and son Harry and Dan Mason, who will be taking over the long-neglected bookies.' In a video interview, they discuss their new roles.
Jack says of his character, "The father is on his third divorce. He needs to hide his assets, so he buys the bookies." Matthew adds, "The son is a total failure at running a business, so he ends up working with his dad." Living with him, too, as they end up sharing a very small flat - with one bed!
Jack continues, "Harry's from Harrow, somewhere like that. He's not East End, he's a bit Estuary in terms of accent, with lower middle class/working class roots. He ended up on the fringes of the criminal fraternity in London, ended up with a bit of cash, so now he's gone legit really."
Matthew says, "Theres a Mrs Mason for Harry. Dan doesn't have a missus because he's young and he's watched his dad go through all these divroces, so he wants to stay footloose and fancy free. They'll go for the same woman, definitely - they're sharks." Uh-oh - do we sense a Jamie/Leanne/Danny love triangle type thing in the air?
Jack predicts a bit of wheeling a dealing for Harry, but he says, "Harry likes to take the long view. He's learned from his early days. There will be scams on the horizon!"
Both of them are delighted to be working on the world's favourite soap. Matthew says that, "Working on Corrie is amazing. It's a legendary show, I'm honoured to be in it." Jack adds, "I was a bit scared to start with, but I'm really loving it and they're great people. It's a good show, it's a funny show." He admits that he's had to adapt to a new way of working: "It's totally different to anything I've done before. It's interesting, it's a learning curve, but it's made so much easier by the people in it." Both of them are slightly star struck by the iconic set: "You walk in the Rovers and you think, 'Ena Sharples sat here. It's very special," Jack says, and Matthew adds, "It's quite surreal. I'm still looking around going 'Wow!'"
Read more about Corrie characters and future plot secrets
Join Corrieblog on Facebook for exclusive competitions and gossip
Go to TV Scoop for all the latest TV entertainment news, reviews and gossip
good casting again, they look like real father & son
Finally, a small flat which is the same size on the inside as outside. Often wondered why the size of the street homes where not used more in storylines. The one bed senario could lead to many a comic scene.
They do look like father and son! Should be interesting.
Pearl, i don't know if this is whta you were talking about, but there was a storyline about a house in 1965. No.5 I think collapsed and the street evacuated their house. Maybe I can put it on one of Corrieblog's trivia pages. Sue and Tvor if you're reading this...