Coronation Street stars have been among those paying tribute to theatre legend David Johnson.
David founded the Oldham Theatre Workshop, which has launched the careers of some of the best-known stars of TV and film.
His fellow tutor Jakki confirmed the news with a Tweet that read: “Sorry for the delay in posting but it’s all very overwhelming.
“Yesterday we lost our founder, figurehead but most of all our friend David. We’re heartbroken. I will endeavour to reply to everyone’s kind messages as soon as I can.”
Stars including Antony Cotton and Kelvin Fletcher have all rushed to pay touching tributes to the influential figure, describing him as a ‘hero’ and ‘the best’.
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Antony Cotton said: “Just heard the saddest news. David Johnson who was the director of the phenomena that was Oldham Theatre Workshop, has died.
“He put so many of us on the map, and kick started so many careers, both on stage and off. So many of us owe him so much. I’m absolutely gutted.
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“He formed my childhood so profoundly, and in turn – my adult life too. Those years were the best years of my life. Rest in Power David. You were the best.”
Emmerdale star Kelvin Fletcher wrote: “Singlehandedly the biggest influence on my career and arguably, the reason behind my career. I know I speak for so many. Thank you David Johnson. What a legacy.”
Lisa Riley added: “For all of us whom were taught by David Johnson….today is a very sad day, I know I speak for many of my fellow actors in the industry, we wouldn’t be where we are today without this LEGEND of a man. I owe so much to you David…..you know how much I loved you…
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“Heaven is lit today as it welcomes a creative master, who will be missed by us ALL!!! Oldham Theatre Workshop the north’s PROUDEST school.”
Emmerdale’s Lisa Riley has also paid tribute to David Johnson.
Alison King, who plays Carla Connor in the soap, said: “R.I.P my absolute hero! My maker of all things that I am, and where I am today, my teacher, of who I was 27 years ago, years that taught me things about myself I never knew, but have carried with me to this date.
“You were strict and yet the kindest man to me I have ever known. You were intuitive, and insightful, and gave me and so many others I’ve loved and adored working with over the years, the opportunity to shine. You gave me my best friend Emma.
“If it wasn’t for you I would never have had my beautiful daughter Daisy who is filled with love for the arts, a response of your teachings. And so many of us.
“David Johnson. From the day you started a term, with a good haircut and new shiny leather shoes, until the end of term, when they’d be curled up And your hair in a beautiful bouffant!!! Bigger than we all could cope with on a Monday morning.
“You were the sharpest, most aware human being of others creatively, and how to teach them to show it, I have ever known. Thank you so much.”
Joseph Houston, of Hope Mill Theatre, said: “So sad to hear about the passing of David Johnson. Many of us know the incredible work he did for young people across the region. His support for myself & @WilliamWhelton & @hopemilltheatr1 from the start was amazing & we love having @DJohnsonDrama part of our story. RIP david!”
Julie Hesmonhalgh said: “Sending love and condolences to all the Oldham Theatre Workshop gang who owe so much to the inimitable David Johnson. That talent for teaching: a rare and beautiful thing. He must have been so proud of you all xxx”
Featured image: Twitter
TV & Showbiz
Blue Planet III live in concert is coming to Manchester next year
Daisy Jackson
The spectacular Blue Planet III will come to Manchester live in concert next year, bringing the hit BBC nature documentary to life with a live orchestra.
The new arena tour will pull together the most breathtaking footage beneath the waves from across the series, curated for a giant Ultra HD LED screen.
Blue Planet III will hit screens later this year, narrated once again by the legendary Sir David Attenborough.
Filmed across four years, it will take audiences everywhere from tropical coral reefs to the darkest depths of the ocean.
When the Blue Planet III Live In Concert show arrives in Manchester, it will be hosted by series executive producer Elizabeth White, who’ll share incredible stories and behind-the-scenes insights from the making of the series.
The score once again comes from Academy Award-winner Hans Zimmer, with Thom Lukas and Laurentia Editha for Bleeding Fingers Music, performed live by the City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra.
The companion live concert is preparing to take audiences even deeper into the underwater world on an epic audio-visual scale.
Specially curated footage from Blue Planet III will be shown on a state-of-the-art 200 sq metre Ultra HD LED screen – one of the largest of its kind used for an orchestral touring screen show and approximately the size of a tennis court.
Blue Planet III live in concert is coming to Manchester next year. Credit: BBC Studios
The brand-new Blue Planet III Live in Concert will kick off here in Manchester before heading to Birmingham, Glasgow, and London.
Executive Producer Elizabeth White says: “Making Blue Planet III has taken us to places we never imagined we’d film. But there’s something about bringing that footage into a concert arena full of people, with the score performed live all around you, that will be truly special.
“This tour is our chance to share the series on a completely different scale, and I can’t wait to be there live, revealing the extraordinary stories behind what audiences are seeing on screen.”
Hans Zimmer says: “There’s nothing like experiencing this score live with an orchestra, especially when it’s paired with the extraordinary visuals of the life underwater. Thom, Laurentia and I are ecstatic that audiences will be able to enjoy our score in this way.”
Blue Planet III Live in Concert will be at the AO Arena in Manchester on Friday 21 May 2027 – general release tickets start from £40 and go on sale from 11am on Friday 16 October HERE.
Molly-Mae Hague revisits first Manchester flat, now on the market for £185k
Daisy Jackson
Molly-Mae Hague’s first Manchester flat is now on the market for £185k – and the star herself has paid a visit to her old digs.
Those who have been following Molly-Mae since before she shot to serious fame on Love Island will have recognised the backdrop of her recent TikTok video.
The 27-year-old reality TV star and businesswoman posed around the one-bedroom flat, dancing to Sabrina Carpenter’s ‘House Tour’.
The apartment is where she lived just before entering Love Island, and where she and now-fiance Tommy Fury lived briefly when they left the show.
And now that exact flat where she really launched her social media career has been listed for sale, at £185,000.
The corner apartment stands on the 17th floor of Islington Wharf, overlooking New Islington tram stop and right on the doorstep of Ancoats.
Her former landlord, who arranged for Molly-Mae to have one look around her old flat before it’s sold, said that she was a ‘lovely, polite and down-to-earth young woman, and an excellent tenant who looked after the apartment extremely well.’
The one bedroom apartment has double-aspect floor-to-ceiling windows which look across Manchester on one side, and out towards the Pennines on the other.
It’s listed for sale with no chain and the option to include existing furnishings (which seems to include the same couch Molly-Mae had at the time).
The flat also has a kitchen/living space, a communal garden, superfast broadband, and is within walking distance of Manchester Piccadilly.
Daisy Jackson -
5th May 2022 
