Coronation Street: Louis Emerick on Liz's new love interest Mike - and the roles he ALMOST played

Cowardly Steve will be seen hiding from Mike and urging Liz to serve him, little realising that he's set to become a new love interest for his mum.

"Steve's not going to like the idea of that! We're going to have to keep that quiet!" says former Brookside actor Louis Emerick, whose debut scenes will be shown next Wednesday. "Mike's doing this old farmhouse up in Spain, so he's hoping that he can tempt Liz to come and stay with him for a day or two."

The Corrie newcomer will also be seen asking for work with a local cab firm, something that could bring him to the doors of Streetcars - whether Steve wants him there or not.

"Mike has retired from teaching and he now has a cab driver's licence, so his plan is to work part time in order to fund the work he's doing on the property in Spain.

"Initially, Steve isn't keen on taking him on, but then Tim points out that he can have a put of fun. Mike used to give Steve detention, so now Steve can get revenge by giving him the OAP runs!"

And what of Mike's fledgling romance with Liz - how does he compare with her past loves, in particular Jim Donald? "Oh Jim's in the right place - in prison," laughs Emerick. "Come on, you'd never let that man out again, would you? She's got someone with a bit of culture now, a bit of charm. Someone who's going to woo her properly! So leave him there, throw away the key."

Had Corrie taken an alternative course though, Emerick could have been playing a partner for Liz at an earlier stage:

"I'd been up for a couple of parts before and kind of got close. But I'd given up the ghost of ever coming in. The first time was to play Tony Stewart, but he's now ended up dead!

"And I was also up to play Freddie, but I lost out to Derek Griffiths, who's a lovely guy to lose out to. But I've got my time now, which is cool."

But all good things come to those who wait and it's fair to say that Emerick is now having a ball on the set of the ITV soap:

"I'm having a great time. Bev [Callard] and I have known each other for 30 years. So that's what's been so nice about coming into this - my character gets to be involved with both her and Simon Gregson, who's a sweetheart. I couldn't have wished for a better baptism."

You can watch a 60-second rundown of next week's drama on Coronation Street below. Beneath that, there's our exclusive Week in Weatherfield review show

And visit our dedicated Coronation Street page for all the latest news, interviews and spoilers.

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