William Roache, who plays Ken Barlow in TV soap Coronation Street, is 90 today.
Roache is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest serving star in a continuous role on a television show.
He's played nerdy womaniser Ken since Corrie first aired on December 9th 1960, and has been central to many storylines over the years.
Ken married four times to three different women on "The Street," twice to Deirdre (Anne Kirkbride). Perhaps his most memorable storyline of all was when Deirdre had an affair with Ken's arch-rival Mike Baldwin (Johnny Briggs) in the 1980s.
When he remarried Deirdre in 2005, it clashed with the royal nuptials of Prince Charles and Camilla, and more than twice as many people tuned in to watch the ITV drama.
In real life, William Roache was born in Nottingham on April 25th 1932. Prior to joining the cast of Coronation Street, he joined the British Army and was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant.
Roache was married twice, to Anna Cropper and Sarah McEwan Mottram, both are now deceased. He has five children, one of whom is actor Linus Roache.
He currently lives in Cheshire, and was awarded an OBE last year.
