Daniel Brocklebank has hit back at a Coronation Street-watching grandad who criticised him for his same-sex soap smooches.
The guy’s granddaughter apparently questioned what was happening, and Daniel has said the man may have affected his relative’s “psyche”.
The 39-year-old actor has faced a “backlash” after his alter-ego Billy Mayhew recently got up close and personal with Weatherfield newcomer Paul Foreman – played by Peter Ash – and one man was so “disgusted” about the soap snogging he sent Daniel a message airing his frustrations.
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But the actor insists seeing such a scene was the grandad’s “opportunity” to educate his granddaughter about relationships.
The cobbles star said: “He was watching with his granddaughter and was disgusted that she’d asked him questions.
“But that was his opportunity to explain to his granddaughter that relationships come in all forms.
“What if she grows up to be gay? He’s affected her psyche by not explaining to her that some men have relationships with men and some women have relationships with women.”
Peter admitted he felt “a little nervous” about the same-sex smooch because he had never kissed a man before, but he was pleased Dan made him feel “very welcome”.
Speaking in a joint interview with the Daily Star newspaper, he added: “Before doing this job I’d never kissed a guy. I spoke to Dan about it and since day one he’s made me feel very welcome.
“We had a little chat about it and, because Paul is the confident one, I knew it was all on me. Of course, I was a little nervous.”
In October, Daniel admitted he experiences homophobia on a weekly basis.
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He said: “Sadly, I still experience homophobia every week, often via social media. The other week, a woman was horrified they’d brought a bisexual character into the show and tweeted saying it was bad enough Corrie kept bringing in gay characters, but to ‘add insult to injury we’ve got a bi’.
“I replied, ‘Get used to your injury being insulted,’ because we’re not going anywhere.
“We’ve come so far and that’s wonderful, but there’s still a long way to go. As long as you’re a nice, decent person, what does it matter?”
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