Craig Charles spent a decade on Coronation Street before leaving in tragic circumstances.
The 57-year-old, who first rose to fame in sci-fi sitcom Red Dwarf, joined the Corrie cast in 2005 as loveable taxi driver Lloyd Mullaney.
The best pal of Steve McDonald, Lloyd was known for trying it on with a lot of Weatherfield ladies and even had a fling with Liz McDonald.
Craig took a sabbatical from the soap in 2011 when he first rejoined Red Dwarf as Dave Listner - but went back on the ITV soap until 2015.
"I have had an absolutely fantastic 10 years on Coronation Street and I will be very sad to leave," announced the actor when he revealed he was heading back into outer space.
"Lloyd has become a huge part of my life and I have made some amazing friends with whom I will always keep in touch.
"But I feel I owe it to my colleagues on Red Dwarf to join them in filming the new series and finding out what is in store."
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But Craig would later reveal that the tragic death of his brother, Dean, had also prompted his exit from Corrie.
Craig's brother sadly died while he was in the I'm A Celebrity jungle back in 2014 - and he left Australia after being tolf the heartbreaking news.
He told OK Magazine : "My brother died when I was on I'm a Celeb. He was only 52. I thought, 'If I died suddenly, would I be happy with what I'd achieved?'
"The honest answer was no. So I promised myself I'd have new adventures. I wouldn't have been able to do half the stuff i've done if I'd stayed in Coronation Street."
In November last year, Craig opened up on his Corrie departure and was critical of how much he got paid.
"They make it really difficult for you to leave Coronation Street. It was a great job. The pay isn’t amazing but it’s better than digging ditches in the cold," he told the Metro.
"But I wanted new adventures so I left and started doing The Gadget Show, which I loved. I’ve just started doing this new daytime game show on Channel 4 called Moneybags, where you can win a million quid a week!"
Craig admitted he loved the role and was able to inject various aspects of his own personality into his character.
"They let me add so much of myself to the role that it didn’t feel like acting, to be honest," he said. "Me and Simon Gregson [Steve McDonald] were such good pals.
"At least once a month the producer would have us up to the office, begging us not to use the script as a template because we’d just make it all up like mates chatting in a pub."
But he didn't want to be "typecast" and decided to leave to go away and make more episodes of Red Dwarf.
Probed on whether he'd ever return to the famous cobbles, Craig said: "I suppose you never say never but when I was in the jungle [for I’m a Celebrity…] my brother died and I thought, ‘If I died, would I be happy with the way my career’s gone?’ And I said to myself, ‘No, I wouldn’t.’
Craig's focus has now switched from acting to radio, presenting his House Party on BBC Radio 2 and two shows on BBC Radio 6 Music.
He can be heard on BBC Radio 6 Music each weekday, from 1-4pm, and The Craig Charles Funk and Soul Show which airs Saturday nights, 6-9pm.
However, the curtain is coming down on Craig Charles' House Party, which currently airs Saturday, 10pm–midnight, as it's being scrapped as part of a Radio 2 shake-up.
The broadcaster's new look line up sees Drag Race star Michelle Visage permanently joining the station in a Friday night slot, long-serving presenter Tony Blackburn's Golden Hour is now going to air at a new time of 7-8pm on Sundays.
Speaking after the announcement, Charles said: "Every party must come to an end and although I'm packing up my Trunk of Funk on Radio 2, I've loved bringing the party to its funky listeners each Saturday night."
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