A face who may be familiar to some Mancunians is joining the cast of Coronation Street, and will play a role in what is being described as a “shocking storyline”.
The longest-running British soap – which is set in the fictional Manchester town of Weatherfield and has been on our screens for an impressive sixty years – has signed up a former Greater Manchester Police officer-turned actor to appear in some significant scenes this week.
We’ve all heard of life imitating art, but for Oldham-born Daniel Jillings, it’s a case of art imitating life as he takes on the role of PC Brody in Corrie.
He may have been a police officer earlier in his career, but Daniel has been making a name for himself in the world of acting for quite a few years now, and is known for his role as Mick Cooper in the World War Two film Enemy Lines, opposite Ed Westwick and John Hannah, as well as also having appeared in Hollyoaks as Billy Parker, and Doctors and Casualty.
Surprisingly though, assuming the new role of PC Brody won’t actually be the first time Daniel has appeared on Corrie, and it’s also not his first time playing the role of a police officer.
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He also played the role of PC Ashcroft on the ITV soap back in 2012 too.
Away from his television career, Daniel also co-founded the children’s bereavement charity Once Upon a Smile in 2011 with Emmerdale star Danny Miller, and in 2019, the charity opened Manchester’s first dedicated children’s bereavement centre, Sidley House.
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But what can we expect from Daniel’s new Corrie character? And what do we know about the so-called “shocking storyline” he’s set to be a part of?
As some fans may be aware of, it has already been revealed that characters Michael and James Bailey will become victims of an unprovoked racist attack, and viewers will see the siblings test drive a sports car after James is offered £30,000 for his interview after publicly coming out.
A police car then pulls them over and when James questions the officer as to why, the officer arrests James for obstruction and handcuffs him.
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James then trips and injures his leg just as Craig Tinker come rounds the corner to see him in agony.
It’s a case of art imitating life as Daniel Jillings takes on the role of PC Brody / Credit: Twitter (@DJillings) / ITV
Michael’s convinced that they’re victims of an unprovoked racist attack and tries to convince James to make a complaint, yet he refuses – but the pair are then shocked to discover that someone filmed their arrest and posted the video online, leading to James accepting that they should make a formal complaint to the police.
We then see more of PC Brody when he confides in Craig that James and Michael have lodged a formal complaint about the arrest and accused him of racism, and later in the week, PC Brody sidles up to Craig and asks him not to mention the fact that he thought James’s driving was fine and didn’t warrant being pulled over.
But what will Craig do? Viewers will have to keep their eyes peeled as episodes featuring the new storyline begin tonight at 7:30pm.
Featured Image – ITV
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Lola Young shares first public statement since cancellations and stepping away from the spotlight
Danny Jones
UK pop star Lola Young has shared her first public statement since cancelling the remainder of her tour and stepping away from the spotlight.
Lola Young, 24, took a break from her still-burgeoning career after numerous concerning incidents on stage, including throwing up and even passing out in the middle of a performance.
The BRIT School graduate announced the unfortunate cancellation of her upcoming shows “for the foreseeable future”, including a gig here in Manchester, at the end of September.
Breaking her silence after the best part of three months, the London-born singer-songwriter took to social media in a fairly brief but heartwarming statement.
As you can see, the time away from the public eye certainly seems to have been beneficial, telling her followers that “it has helped more than you will ever know”.
In addition to embracing ADHD – even labelling her hit song ‘Messy’ as an “ADHD anthem” in multiple anthems – she was also diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder at just 17.
The latter can include symptoms such as psychosis, hallucinations, intense mood swings, bipolar mania, depression and more.
All that being said, we’re glad to hear that she’s on the mend; we saw her back in March, and you could tell from the crowd that she’s already got a very passionate cult following.
Both conditions and their associated obstacles have obviously affected her, but have equally helped influence her music and lyrical material, certainly, too.
Responding in the comments, fellow artist SZA wrote: “Love you, starfire angel. Your music is FULL of longevity and substance! We’re so grateful for you”.
Joining in support, ‘dark pop’ musician Carter James added, “Your wellbeing comes before anything. So excited for your next chapter whenever it arrives!”
We hope she’ll be doing better enough soon to get back on stage when she’s ready.
Nathan Aspinall urges PDPA to improve mental health support within the sport
Danny Jones
Local sports personality Nathan Aspinall has urged the Professional Darts Players Association (PDPA) to provide better mental health support moving forward.
It’s not the first time ‘The Asp’ has called for more awareness and provision when it comes to player welfare and mental wellbeing, specifically, which remains a prevailing societal problem in general.
The Greater Manchester native has opened up about his own struggles many times in the past and has made a public plea for the PDPA to intervene and offer more help.
Speaking at the 2026 PDC World Darts Championships after his opening round victory, the 34-year-old instead chose to focus on more important issues than his strong start.
As you can see, Aspinall began by stating that “the PDPA now need to step in and help these guys because there’s a lot of guys suffering.”
Having long been an champion for male mental health, in particular – supporting the local Healthy Minds practices in his hometown of Stockport, for instance – he’s been one of the outspoken player on the subject for some time.
Noting that there are at least “two or three people” he refused to name, his message was simple: “There’s a lot of fantastic dart players in our sport, but it’ll be a shame to see so many of them go because of mental health”
The 2019 UK Open and 2023 World Matchplay winner has battled with multiple obstacles, including an ocular condition known as bilateral traumatic Brown’s syndrome, as well bursitis, which causes inflammation around key joints.
But it’s not necessarly injuries and the physical side of things that have been his biggest concern.
𝗛𝗢𝗡𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗡𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗔𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗢𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀 𝗨𝗽 𝗼𝗻 𝗠𝗶𝗻𝗱𝘀𝗲𝘁
"I really do not care anymore.
"I do everything I can to be a good sportsman and you still get s**t. So you know what? I don't care. Say what you want." pic.twitter.com/mCBjQ6kvyj
One of the biggest and most recurring challenges for him has been ‘dartitis’, which many players within the discipline wrestle with the more their careers progress.
Aspinall has confessed to suffering almost chronic panic attacks due to the mental blocks (also commonly known as ‘the yips’) brought about by the intense pressure of playing on stage/live on TV.
With that in mind, it’s great to see him not only back on form and pulling impressive performance such as his ‘big fish’ finish on Friday night, but continuing to draw more attention to the underlying mental health crisis, especially among men. Well played, Nath.
You can watch his post-match interview in full down below.
Emily Sergeant -
26th July 2021 
