Ex-EastEnders star confirms move to Corrie with first look at character outside Rovers

Aidan O'Callaghan has confirmed his previously reported move to Coronation Street with a new social media post, which shows the actor hanging around outside the Rovers Return.

The actor will be well known to soap fans for his brief but impactful stint on EastEnders, where he played Lewis Butler – a colleague to Ben Mitchell, who initially appeared to be a potential love interest.

However, the storyline took a horrific turn when Lewis raped Ben, which led to his exile from Walford; a later reference to the character suggested that he had been arrested off-screen for a separate assault.

O'Callaghan went on to land roles in Sky police drama Wolfe and Netflix fantasy series The Witcher: Blood Origin; previously, he'd appeared as Mike in two episodes of ITV's Emmerdale.

That means his addition to Coronation Street is a soap hat-trick, with the actor reported to appear in flashback as an unknown figure named Alan, whose past is tied into the incoming Driscoll family.

Check out a first look at O'Callaghan on the Coronation Street set below.

The Irish mother-son duo Maggie (Pauline McLynn) and Ben Driscoll (Aaron McCusker) will debut in the coming weeks, with McLynn teasing a "fierce" and "formidable" matriarch.

The actor is best known for Channel 4 comedies Father Ted and Shameless, the latter of which also starred McCusker.

The Driscolls will arrive alongside returning character Eva Price (played again by The Good Ship Murder's Catherine Tyldesley), who will be married to Ben when we see her next.

Recalling the moment she was formally asked back, Tyldesley told RadioTimes.com: "My agent said, 'Kate [Brooks] would like to speak to you about Corrie', and I assumed it was for someone's funeral and they'd want me to rock up.

"Kate said, 'Would you like to be landlady?' and I screamed," she continued. "I was really shocked. It's an absolute dream."

Alas, O'Callaghan didn't give away anything about his own role in the Instagram caption, which simply reads "Who dis?", while the images themselves see him in a black and grey striped shirt, relaxed fit blue jeans and brown boots.

Is this a vintage look in the present day, or are reports of a flashback correct? We'll know soon.

Coronation Street airs on ITV1 and ITVX.

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