Coronation Street star Jude Riordan melted the hearts of his followers as he shared a look back at his first job. The actor is known to viewers for playing plucky chess-loving schoolboy Sam Blakeman in the ITV soap. On-screen, the youngster suffered heartbreak when his mum was killed by drug lord Harvey Gaskell, played by Will Mellor.
Hairdressing tycoon Natasha Blakeman was shot dead by the baddie in a case of mistaken identity. The out-and-out baddie was actually looking to get revenge on Leanne Battersby after she became a police informant in order to get Simon Barlow out of the drug gang he had got himself into.
But a year on from her death, it was revealed to Sam's dad Nick and step-mum Leanne that Sam had been writing to Harvey in prison. After initially agreeing to ignore visiting orders from the soap baddie, earlier this month Corrie viewers saw Leanne say she was going to the cash and carry but secretly headed off to visit Harvey in prison.
Leanne was then shocked when Harvey told her that Sam has been writing to him and he wants Leanne and Nick to stop him. Back at home, the pair confronted Sam who got upset and said he just wants to know why Harvey killed his mum. When Sam said he’ll stop writing to Harvey if he can visit him instead, Nick and Leanne were horrified and put their foot down.
With help from great-grandmother Audrey, Sam agreed to stop writing to the man who killed his mum. However, when talking to Hope Stape later that day, he revealed he had lied and that he was still determined to get an answer to his questions. Sam made his Weatherfield debut played by Jude in 2020.
While many will know Jude from Corrie, his rise to fame began actually began in 2017 when he appeared on the Channel 4 documentary, The Secret Life of 4, 5 and 6-Year-Olds. And the youngster, who proudly hails from St Helens, Merseyside, comes from a talented family as his dad has forged a successful career in showbusiness as a television director.
And as well as Corrie, Jude also stars in Sky comedy, Brassic, in which he appears as Tyler Croft, the son of Erin played by former Corrie star Michelle Keegan. But the young actor's first acting job came in 2017 when he starred in CBBC's Katy. Taking to Instagram earlier this week, Jude shared a look at his cast card from the show.
"5 years ago today I wrapped on my first ever acting job," he typed on the Instagram account run by his parents. "CBBC Katy. Loved that role playing Little Phil. Where I met @chloelea_19 who is smashing telly land. Cast and crew were awesome. Lucky me." And fans were quick to respond.
@tcw_01900 said: "And look how much you have achieved in the past 5 yrs! You are a SUPER STAR." @maureenbaynham wrote: "You are one of the most talented young actors. I am sure you will eventually go on to bigger things." @chockies56 posted: "Fabulous young actor, going to go a long way."
Jude has since returned to Instagram with a behind-the-scenes snap from the Corrie set where his is busy working during the half-term break. He was snapped with actress Brooke Malonie, who plays Lily Platt in the ITV soap. The pair could be seen taking a seat on the set, with Jude donning a paper Christmas hat and Brooke in a reindeer headband.
"Christmas day filming with cousin Lily @brookeisabellamalonieofficial," Jude captioned the snap. Brooke was quick to reply, writing: "Well good day." But the image did come as a surprise to some fans. @lydiaalty said: "Wow already your filming for Christmas cannot believe it!! Hope you had a fantastic day."
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