10 Facts: Chris Bisson (Emmerdale’s Jai)
lnsidesoap YOUR BRIEFING ON THE MAN BEHIND EMMERDALE ’S JAI…
1 Christopher Paul Bisson was born to his Trinidadian parents on
21 July 1975 in Wythenshawe, Manchester. As a teenager, Chris made his television debut as JJ in the ITV kids’ drama
Children’s Ward in 1990. However, he didn’t take part in school plays or go to stage school, claiming that he was always too shy! “I completely fell into [acting] by chance,” he explains. “I got offered a job on telly when I was 12 and started from there.” After his early TV success, he went on to make his name at the box office too, playing Saleem Khan in the 1999 film adaptation of East Is
East, and the lead role of Jimi Chopra in 2005 flick Chicken Tikka Masala.
2 Before his move to Emmerdale, Chris made his soap debut in Corrie in
1999, playing the regular role of shopkeeper Vikram Desai. Chris stayed in Weatherfield until 2002, when Vikram was forced to flee after trying to set up Steve and Karen Mcdonald for drugsmuggling! Vikram is still alive and well and living in India, so there’s always the possibility for a cobbles return…
3 Chris joined the Emmerdale cast in 2009 as Jai, part of the Sharma
family, introduced with his siblings Nikhil (Rik Makarem) and Priya (Effie Woods). During his time on the soap, Jai has had two wives (Charity and Megan), and fathered two kids (Archie and Eliza), and found out about another daughter he’d never known about (Mia). He’s also been the engineer of many a scheme and villianous plot. 4 Outside of soap, Chris is perhaps best known for playing Kash Karib in four series of Channel 4’s comedy drama Shameless. Kash was revealed to be secretly gay, and was seen to cheat on his wife with underage employee Ian – before later being killed off in a fire. Chris has also guest starred in episodes of
Casualty, Holby
City, Prime
Suspect and
Hotel Babylon. 5 Although he’s appeared in plenty of television dramas, Chris says he would much rather watch sport or documentaries whenever he’s in front of the box. “I mainly watch sport – especially football or cricket,” confirms the star. “I love football and support Manchester United. My uncle took me to a United game when I was young and I was hooked!”
6 Chris also admits to being a huge golf fanatic – and whenever he has free time and the weather is good, he enjoys playing a few rounds with his pals. “It’s a fairly organic thing to do,” he shares. “I turn off my mobile, meet a few friends, and go for a walk round the countryside – and hit a ball as we go round!” 7 Chris is engaged to his long-term partner Rowena Finn, having been in a relationship with her since 2006. The pair have a couple of children – five-year-old son, Harry, and daughter Ella Rose, who’s two. Chris asked Rowena to marry him after they celebrated their first 10 years together, and he announced her response by tweeting ‘SHE SAID YES’ in Scrabble pieces. Awww! 8
Way back when Chris was just a teenager, he stood up future Brookside actress and film star Anna Friel! Appearing on the CBBC show
12 Again, Chris confessed that he had been due to meet her at a cinema, but left her waiting. We hope she got over her disappointment!
9 One of Chris’ best mates is former Boyzone singer
Keith Duffy. The pair met when they were both on Corrie, and they even lived together in Manchester. “When he first came to Coronation Street,
Keith stayed at my house while he was flat-hunting,” explains Chris. “Keith is
Irish, and I go to Ireland a lot – I love it. My Irish accent is actually a replica of Keith’s!” 10 Along with
Corrie’s Nicola Thorp (Nicola) and other celebs, Chris took part in Sport Relief’s ‘Clash Of The Channels’ boat race earlier this year. Chris and his friends on the ITV team were coached by Olympic champion Steve Redgrave, and after much practicing on a rowing machine, they were ready to take on their rivals from the BBC. It was a closerun race, but sadly
Chris and co were beaten to the finish line. Maybe it’s time he thought about giving Strictly a call instead…