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Former GMP officer joins Coronation Street cast for ‘shocking storyline’

It's a case of art imitating life as Oldham-born actor Daniel Jillings takes on the role of PC Brody in the ITV soap.

Emily Sergeant - 26th July 2021

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.

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.

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.

James then trips and injures his leg just as Craig Tinker come rounds the corner to see him in agony.

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