Coronation Street legend Bill Roache 'renews contract again' after playing Ken Barlow since 1960
Bill Roache has penned a new one-year deal to remain on 'Coronation Street'.
The 91-year-old actor - who has played Ken Barlow in the ITV1 soap since it was first broadcast on 9 December 1960 - has signed up for a 64th year on the famous cobbles.
It comes as Chris Gascoyne, who played Ken's son Peter Barlow, departed 'Corrie' this week after 23 years on the show, and Alex Bain, who plays Ken's grandson Simon Barlow, is also expected to leave the programme.
But an insider told The Sun newspaper: "There are big plans for the Barlows over the next 12 months."
Last year, Bill admitted he wants to still be working in Weatherfield when he is 100 years old.
He told the Daily Mirror newspaper: "Someone said to me, ‘Look, Bill, you’re in the Guinness Book of Records, you’ve got the MBE, you’ve been in Coronation Street for over 60 years, what else is there?
"I said to him, ‘I would like to be the first centenarian who is still cast in an ongoing drama’.
"That’s my aim, to be 100 and still working on Coronation Street.
"While they want me and while I can do it I’ll continue to do it."
In December 2022, Bill put pen to paper on a new deal to stay on 'Corrie', which was worth a reported £250,000.
A source told The Sun on Sunday newspaper at the time: "Ken Barlow has been at the heart of Coronation Street since it started 62 years ago and that's not changing any time soon.
"And as we've seen with his recent love triangle storyline, he's no plans to slow down."
The news came just days after Bill - who holds the world record for the longest-serving actor in a continuous role - received an OBE from King Charles for services to acting, and revealed the pair shared a joke about just how long he has been in the soap.
Bill said: "Charles was lovely - very friendly. He said, 'Not still working are you?' I said, 'Yes, I just had two ex-girlfriends on the show'. He said, 'Oh, that must have been work', and I said, 'May I wish you a long and joyful reign, sir?' And he said, 'Thank you, that will be a lot of work, too.' "
