A new face for Corrie
Former Watching star Paul Bown on his new role playing Roy’s long-lost brother in Corrie…
It’s funny, I think Roy and Malcolm have a lot in common
Paul Bown has carved out a long and impressive career as a character actor. But he has never starred in a prime-time soap... until now.
This week, Paul, 62, who shot to fame in the 1980s as mummy’s boy Malcolm Stoneway in ITV sitcom Watching, will make his debut in Coronation Street, playing Roy Cropper’s long-lost brother.
‘There was the possibility of a role in Eastenders about five or 10 years ago, as a vicar,’ recalls Paul, whose recent credits include
A Confession and Endeavour, ‘but I didn’t fancy it. They sold this to me because it meant working with David Neilson, who is a legend!’
Richard is the product of Roy’s mum Sylvia having an affair with a man called Raymond. After finding an address for his secret sibling, Roy heads to Richard’s flat to introduce himself, and is in for two big shocks. Firstly, Richard has a teenage daughter, Nina – Roy’s niece. Secondly, he’s suffering from terminal pulmonary fibrosis, meaning the brothers’ relationship is set to be cruelly cut short.
‘It sounds like a morbid storyline,’ says Paul, ‘but Richard and Roy hit it off, and there are quite a few funny moments. Richard was a good footballer in his day, so Roy tries to show an interest in football to bond with him. The DNA is there, but the common interests definitely aren’t!
‘It’s a short guest role, but I totally enjoyed working with David. He’s a great listener and a proper good actor. We’ve both worked with [film director]
Mike Leigh, and are fans of the playwright Samuel Beckett so we had lots to talk about.’
It wasn’t just the lure of David Neilson that prompted Paul to take on the role. His late mother, Margaret, was a huge Corrie fan.
‘It was a big factor to take it in memory of Mum,’ he smiles. ‘She and my dad, Raymond, used to see Watching being filmed, and it was next door to the old studios where they made Coronation Street, so they met a lot of the Corrie cast.’
Aah, Watching. Who could forget the adorable relationship of mismatched couple Malcolm and Brenda? Paul, who began his acting career in his late teens by setting up a theatre company with actor pal Adrian Rawlins, became one of
TV’S most familiar faces courtesy of the sitcom, which had seven series and four Christmas specials between 1987 and 1993.
‘I’ve got nothing but good to say about Watching,’ says Paul, ‘because it enabled me to do other stuff. It’s funny, I think Roy and Malcolm have a lot in common. Roy can sometimes talk in circles, in the same way Malcolm did.’
Paul will also soon be seen in the second series of ITV’S Bancroft as well as the new Julian Fellowes costume drama Belgravia.
The parts aren’t on the same scale as Watching’s Malcolm – but that’s just how Paul likes it.
‘I couldn’t really go out back then without being recognised,’ he says. ‘It was manageable, but I prefer how it is now.
‘People point, but they don’t know where they know me from. I’m just “the bloke off the telly!”’