Eagle-eyed viewers of Four Lives on BBC One spotted a raft of Coronation Street actors in the emotional and harrowing true-crime drama.
Starting last night (Monday January 3) and continuing until tomorrow, the drama told the story of how ‘Grindr Killer’ Stephen Port was brought to justice.
However, among the cast viewers spotted several familiar faces… all from soaps like Corrie and Emmerdale.
Which ex-Corrie actors appeared in Four Lives on BBC One?
The three-part drama stars the likes of Sheridan Smith as the mother of one of Port’s victims, as well as Stephen Merchant as Port himself.
But there were more familiar faces.
Ben Cartwright (who played Neil Clifton in Corrie for two years) popped up as investigating officer Detective Sergeant Martin O’Donnell.
Read more: Four Lives cast: Alongside Stephen Merchant and Sheridan Smith, who else stars?
But it wasn’t just Ben. Dean Fagan (Luke Britton in the soap) played a police officer.
And then Kate Layden (who played Jean Walters) was also involved.
Also appearing towards the end of episode one was veteran character actor Ian Puleston-Davies.
He played a local MP, who vowed to help Sarah Sak in her inquiries into the death of her son, Anthony.
Ian was a hugely popular figure in Corrie, playing Owen Armstrong for five years in the 2010s.
Who else appeared in Four Lives?
And there’s more.
In episode two (airing tonight, January 4, and already on iPlayer) Mollie Winnard plays Demi.
In Corrie, she played Kayla Westbrook in 2018.
And then, in the final, third episode, Saira Choudhry pops up as a police officer. In Corrie, Saira played Naila Badal for six years between 2013 and 2019.
But it wasn’t just Corrie actors – viewers spotted Shaun Thomas, who played grief-stricken Paul in the drama.
Shaun, 24, played Gerry Roberts in Emmerdale.
https://twitter.com/MJ_JJ061215/status/1478127681271181321
Is there a reason a show about an Essex murder case and Essex police has a cast of Northern actors? Not disrespecting, just didn't expect to see old Corrie faces. #FourLives
— Tina (@ElloTeenah) January 3, 2022
That copper was the pervy copper in Coronation Street in the Bethany Platt storyline #FourLives
— ASuperGav (@ASuperGav) January 3, 2022
How did viewers react?
Noticing the Corrie theme throughout the cast, viewers took to Twitter to share their star-spotting.
One wrote: “#FourLives is full of ex-#Corrie actors: Ian Puleston-Davies (Owen Armstrong), Ben Cartwright (Neil Clifton) and Dean Fagan (Luke Britton).
“Apart from that…it is brilliant – Sheridan Smith and Stephen Merchant excelling in their roles.”
Read more: Four Lives on the BBC: Where is Stephen Port now and will the ‘Grindr killer’ ever be released?
Another asked: “Is there a reason a show about an Essex murder case and Essex police has a cast of Northern actors?
“Not disrespecting, just didn’t expect to see old Corrie faces. #FourLives.”
Third made reference to Ben Cartwright’s character in Corrie: “That copper was the pervy copper in Coronation Street in the Bethany Platt storyline #FourLives.”
Four Lives continues tonight (January 4) on BBC One at 9pm, and all episodes are available on iPlayer.
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