‘I fear a paper will destroy me again’: Coronation Street’s Bruce Jones on murder, trauma and tabloid intrusion

‘I’ve seen stuff that people shouldn’t see … Bruce Jones. Photograph: Rebecca Lupton/The Guardian

Bruce Jones has been a lot of things in life. A Ken Loach protege, Coronation Street’s Les Battersby, a dejected wannabe stripper in The Full Monty, a tabloid regular – and now, aged 71, a professional wrestler.

So why is he stepping into the ring for Sovereign Pro Wrestling this month? “It’s a good question,” he laughs as we sit in a Premier Inn at Melton Mowbray, where he is performing in Christmas panto. Jones’s role in the wrestling was originally a cameo – being billed as Les Battersby to promote another match – “but it got out of hand”, he says, referring to the attention his announcement got. “So, they were like: ‘You don’t mind getting knocked about in the ring a bit, do you?’”