Coronation Street star Jack James Ryan has opened up and spoken candidly about how 2022 given him some of the “biggest lows” of his life.
The 24-year-old actor has been a part of the cast of the long-running Manchester-based soap since February 2021, and has gone on to become a popular addition to Weatherfield since returning as the reformed character of Jacob Hay.
Fans of the soap will know that Jack’s character burst onto the scene last year as a drug dealer groomed by Harvey Gaskell who entrapped Simon Barlow into their gang.
Jacob Hay was later revealed to be Amy Barlow’s secret boyfriend.
Since first becoming a couple, Jacob and Amy – who is played by Elle Mulvaney – have notably moved into in a flat-share with Summer Spellman and Aaron Sandford, and Jacob has landed himself work in the sales department at Underworld.
It’s not just the character of Jacob who’s had successful moments this year either, as actor Jack took to social media earlier this week to reflect on the highlights of his 2022 – but he also took a moment to touch on why this year hasn’t been one of his best, and speak out about why it brought with it some of the “biggest lows” of his life.
He also made sure to thank his family, friends, and fans for helping him get to where he is, and sent a message of support to anyone else who may also be struggling with their mental health.
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Reflecting on the highlights of his year, Jack wrote on his Instagram story that he is “continually overwhelmed by the love and support” that Coronation Street fans have shown for the character of Jacob and himself, and that it’s been “mega to see people get behind Jacob’s journey.”
Away from his career and onto his personal life, Jack is also a proud testicular cancer survivor and added that getting the opportunity to share his journey on ITV’s Lorraine, as well as becoming an ambassador for the Teenage Cancer Trust in 2022 was “was one of the proudest moments of my life”, with one of his other stand-out memories of the year being able to walk his fellow actor sister Rebecca Ryan down the aisle with their brother Charlie on her wedding day in September.
Jack James Ryan says 2022 has given him some of his ‘biggest lows’ / Credit: Jack James Ryan (via Instagram)
But the year hasn’t been all a highlight reel for Jack, as he wrote: “Evidently this year has had some amazing highs, but I think it’s also important to share this year has without give me my biggest lows.
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“If I didn’t have the most incredible family and friends, I simply don’t know how I would’ve got through this year.
“I know a lot of people have struggled mentally this year and I just want to say that you’re not alone. I’ve ended the year with some really exciting news and I can’t wait to share with you in the new year so stay tuned for that.”
He signed off his candid message thanking everyone “for the love and the laughs”, and saying an optimistic “here’s to 2023”.
Three tiny ‘chaos potatoes’ have been born at Chester Zoo and they’re so cute
Emily Sergeant
Three tiny ‘chaos potatoes’ have been born at Chester Zoo… and they’re really flipping cute.
Born to parents Maris and Albert in late summer, the three rock hyrax pups – only affectionately known as ‘chaos potatoes’ – have just passed their first vet check with a clean bill of health, and now weigh roughly 350g.
Hyraxes are found across sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East, where they live among rocky landscapes and are most active in daylight.
The litter includes two boys and one girl, and keepers at Chester Zoo have decided to give them potato-themed names – Russ, Spud, and Jackie.
Three tiny ‘chaos potatoes’ have been born at Chester Zoo / Credit: Chester Zoo
Currently, the three pups are a fraction of the size of the adults, which can weigh up to 4kg, but despite their small stature, they have an unlikely relative.
Believe it or not, rock hyraxes are actually a part of the same evolutionary group as elephants, as well as sirenians, which are the family of aquatic mammals that includes dugongs and manatees.
“Hyraxes are one of those species that you have to look for, but once you’ve seen them, they are fascinating to watch,” explained Megan Carpenter, who is a Keeper at Chester Zoo.
“The pups are little chaos potatoes. They are much more energetic than their parents and sometimes get the zoomies, darting about and testing their climbing and parkour skills.
“In contrast, the adults often wedge themselves into corners and grip on to steep rock faces for hours at a time. They’re incredibly well adapted to living among rocks and are much better climbers than you might expect.”
Featured Image – Chester Zoo
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A TV channel playing Christmas films 24/7 is now back on air in the UK
Emily Sergeant
Do you think it’s too early for the ‘C word’? Never mind, you’ve already clicked on this article.
Sure, we may only be into our second full week of September, but given the fact the weather these past couple of days hasn’t exactly screamed summer, it already feels like the festive season is around the corner – but whether or not you think it’s too early to be talking about Christmas, it’ll soon be too tricky to escape from.
Especially not when the famous TV channel showing festive film favourites non-stop is now back on air in the UK.
Yes, you heard that right – Christmas films, 24-hours a day, seven days a week.
If you’re ready to wave goodbye to summer, and in welcome autumn and winter with open arms, then there’s arguably no better way of getting into the festive spirit than with the long-awaited and highly-anticipated return of the TV channel that’s charmed audiences for over half a decade now.
GREAT! Christmas the UK’s biggest seasonal channel, and it’s now live on Sky, Freesat, Freeview and Virgin Media.
You can expect almost four months of back-to-back seasonal movies.
The 24-hour feel-good and free-to-air channel will be bursting with non-stop Christmas spirit, and will be showing a heartwarming lineup of festive films – including some absolute fan-favourite classics that make it to screens every year without fail, alongside some cheesy Hallmark classics, new channel premieres, and so much more.