After an impressive 11-year tenure on Britain's most famous street, Daniel Brocklebank has officially hung up his vicar's collar and left his role as Billy Mayhew on Coronation Street.
The actor revealed his departure was marked by an emotional farewell from the cast and crew, but he didn't have time to dwell on the goodbye. Just forty minutes after his final scene, he was already in rehearsals for his next project.
From Cobbles to Comedy Horror
Brocklebank's transition from soap star to stage performer happened literally overnight. He finished filming on Coronation Street at 12:50 PM on a Tuesday and was in rehearsals for Young Frankenstein the Musical by 1:30 PM the same day.
"I don't think I've ever finished one job and started another one on the same day," the actor laughed during an interview. "My feet literally didn't touch the ground."
He's taken on the lead role of Dr Frederick Frankenstein in the musical adaptation of the classic Mel Brooks comedy, which will run for five weeks at Liverpool Playhouse during the festive period.
Eleven Colourful Years in Weatherfield
Brocklebank reflected on his decade-plus playing Billy Mayhew, noting the character had experienced numerous major storylines. Billy had been a drug addict, adopted a child, been part of the show's first same-sex wedding, and tragically lost his husband to Motor Neurone Disease.
"The MND storyline is probably the thing I'm most proud of," Brocklebank admitted. "After that, I wondered really what was left for Billy. He could drift into another relationship, his daughter Summer could get married and he could become a grandfather. But that MND storyline with his husband Paul had such an impact."
The decision to leave wasn't entirely his own. In June, Coronation Street producers informed him they were writing Billy out of the show for storyline reasons.
Looking Toward the Future
Rather than being nervous about life after the soap, the 45-year-old actor is embracing new challenges. He deliberately chose Young Frankenstein over more conventional post-soap career moves like pantomime or reality television.
"I'm not particularly interested in going and chewing on a kangaroo's b******* in the jungle!" he joked. "I wanted to do something that would terrify me and really stretch me."
Beyond his stage role, Brocklebank already has other projects lined up, including a horror movie and a short film in Jersey. He credits his pre-Coronation Street career, which included roles in Shakespeare in Love and The Hours alongside Meryl Streep, with giving him confidence about his future.
Outside of acting, the star enjoys life in Manchester with his partner of two years, singer Jordan Coulthard, their three sausage dogs, and his allotment.
As for his final moments on the cobbles, approximately 150 cast and crew members gathered to wave him off. While his on-screen daughter Harriet Bibby became emotional, Brocklebank himself held back tears.
"I didn't shed any tears myself," he explained, "mainly because I didn't want the cast of Young Frankenstein to have a first impression of me as a blubbering wreck!"
