Bill Roache nearly quit Corrie

Coronation Street's longest-serving cast member Bill Roache has revealed that he nearly quit the soap.

The Mirror quotes him as saying that he was unhappy with his alter ego Ken Barlow's storylines during the early 1980s.

However, due to the popularity of Mike Baldwin's affair with Ken's wife Deirdre, Roache decided to stay on the serial.

He explained: "I wondered if Ken wasn't being written for properly and I toyed with leaving. Then the Ken, Deirdre (Anne Kirkbride) and Mike (Johnny Briggs) story came along and it was massive."

Ken, Deirdre and Mike's love triangle attracted the show's highest ever viewing figures of over 27 million.