KEN BARLOW TV I’llkeep calm&
William Roache still loves his ‘dysfunctional’ family after 60 years and has no plans to retire from soap
HE’S been there from the very first episode and, 60 years later, William Roache is happiest when he’s at the centre of Coronation Street action.
While his character Ken Barlow has been called boring from time to time, the 88-year-old is anything but and, while a pensioner, isn’t ready to see his alter-ego doing nothing.
William said: “I love being at the centre of the drama, my dysfunctional family are my bread and butter, no one wants to see Ken with his feet up, least of all me.”
Both he and Corrie got Guinness World Records awards last year – the actor for being the longest-serving TV soap star in the world and Corrie for being the longest-running TV soap in the world.
But the actor didn’t want to take the part at first. Then 28, he lived in London and was already in a play but his agent talked him round and he’s never wanted to leave.
So much so that even though he’s a couple of years off 90, William, who has five children, doesn’t want to retire, especially as he sees the soap running on and on.
He said: “Coronation Street has been a massive part of my life and if it continues to adapt to what is happening, I see no reason why it cannot go on forever.
“And I see my future of more of the same and more enjoyment.”
Last year, Corrie had to make the unprecedented decision to stop filming during lockdown as the Covid pandemic took hold. In June, most of the cast and crew returned. But not the older cast members, including William, Barbara Knox, who plays Rita Tanner, Sue Nicholls, who plays Audrey Roberts, and Malcolm Hebden, who plays Norris Cole.
As they were all in their 70s or 80s, they were classified as vulnerable and it wasn’t until October that William was allowed back on set ahead of the soap’s 60th anniversary episodes, which aired in December. The actor said: “Being an actor in an ongoing drama is very demanding.
“Some of the older cast, including myself, took time off for a few months as a precaution because of Covid-19 but it’s wonderful to be back on screen with my dysfunctional family.”
The Weatherfield patriarch is currently trying to deal with something many families have to – alcoholism. His son Peter, played by Chris Gascoyne, is drinking himself to death.
From teen pregnancy, suicide, murder, grooming, transgender issues and disasters – Coronation Street has never shied away from the darkest or most difficult places in our communities.
With lockdown seeing more people hitting the bottle, Peter’s problem with drink is a current issue that will be affecting many households.
William argued: “It is really important to show the devastating effect of alcoholism on the whole family. Families can be torn apart by it.
“They have the distress of trying to help and feeling helpless.
“The storylines and writers are handling it very well and showing how it can cause dissent among families, people around the alcoholic may have different views on how to handle the situation – that can cause problems.
“Coronation Street has family at its heart, so to explore a story like this with a family that people have invested in for so long is a great way to educate people about the effects of this sort
of addiction. Hopefully it might help people realise that there are a lot of people going through this.” Peter has had a long problem with alcohol but over the last few weeks, it looks like the demon drink might finally take the wayward Barlow. Peter, who has been told he’s dying from liver failure, returned from a break in Scotland claiming he hadn’t touched a drop of alcohol. He needs a liver transplant to survive and his brother Daniel (Rob Mallard) offered to be a donor. Embarrassed he might get a transplant before others who haven’t been drinkers, he refused, leaving his family in bits as he hit the bottle again. Ken told him he could move back in to No1 Coronation Street if he stopped drinking but Peter refused and looks like he’s going to drink himself to death. William said: “It is a very good storyline. “I have had friends who have been alcoholics and it is true what they say, you can’t do anything until they turn round and say, ‘Help me’.” Last night, Ken tried to stop his son from getting booze by circulating a photo of Peter to all local pubs and shops explaining he’s ill and requesting they don’t serve him. Even Peter’s nephew Adam (Sam Robertson), who Peter blames for his hitting the bottle after he slept with his uncle’s on/off girlfriend Carla (Alison King), joins in to try and help, following Peter to keep an eye on him. But it seems Peter is a lost cause who, next week, even writes a farewell letter to his son Simon which Carla sees and thinks is a suicide note.
Then on January 27, Ken finds his son drunk in a hotel bar but when he tries to take the drink off him, Peter lashes out.
William revealed: “Ken is the person Peter lashes out at. The person that is closest to them, that is trying to help them, is seen as the enemy as they are stopping them doing what they want to do.”
Peter still hasn’t sunk to the bottom and on January 29 he has a seizure. At the hospital, Ken is told he needs to start giving his son measured units of whisky to avoid sudden death.
William said: “It is a strange predicament to be in – in order to help Peter, they have to manage his withdrawal from alcohol which means he has to have some every day.
“It really does bring it home to them that weaning him off gradually is the only way forward, however strange and difficult that might feel for the family to actually let him drink. Ken is in despair and he knows Peter is heading towards killing himself and he feels desperate and helpless.”
While it’s another black hole for Ken, William loves being in the thick of it.
He said: “Everyone can identify with some part of Ken’s family, if the Peter story doesn’t resonate, they can see something of themselves in Ken’s relationship with Tracy and Steve or his grandchildren. This is what the Street does best.” Coronation Street is on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays on STV.
It really is important to show the devastating effects of alcoholism WILLIAM ROACHE ON PETER BARLOW STORYLINE