It took much negotiation and three failed attempts to get a telephone chat with Bill Ward, but it was worth it. He's such a nice man. And, yes, that is Bill Ward who plays villainous builder Charlie Stubbs in Coronation Street, which just goes to prove what a fine actor this former advertising executive, a latecomer to the profession, has become. Ward took some tracking down because he was busy battling with the demon Tracy Barlow on the cobbled streets of Weatherfield, and when he wasn't doing that he was practising magic with Paul Daniels. The man soap fans love to hate is swapping one villain for another, this time Abanazer in Aladdin, The Lowry's spectacular Christmas panto. Charlie Stubbs to Abanazer? Some culture shock! 'Oh yes,' said Ward, 'but great fun when you have been doing hardcore drama, which Charlie has got me into for three years. Abanazer isn't much of a baddie compared to Charlie. I'm having a blast. 'You get something in theatre you don't get anywhere else. It's great for kids to experience that, be an audience and, yes, there will be lots of audience participation. I used to love it as a kid.' It's his first panto but he's yet to encounter anything too daunting, not even the magic. He said: 'Paul gave me some handy tips and I bought myself a magic set; you know, the sort you are given as a kid. It's a great role. The others do all the hard work. I just come on and cause trouble.' Ward teams up with Emmerdale's Cleveland Campbell as the Genie of the Lamp and another ex-Corrie star, Casey-Lee Jolleys, who played poor Fred Elliott's phoney Thai bride, as Princess Yasmin. They promise an adventure of fast and furious fun in a show with the latest chart hits, wicked dance routines, a spectacular flying carpet and a truly hilarious Widow Twankey. As Ward relishes this new-found fun, Charlie Stubbs is still on screen in a battle of wits with The Street's devil woman and he agrees that maybe this time the arch manipulator has met his match. He said: 'Charlie used to love Tracy and now he's intrigued by her, but his over-confidence is his downfall. I can only tell you he gets his comeuppance.' Newcastle-born, Ward worked in advertising for 10 years before giving in to an ambition to act and putting himself through drama school. 'I was 32 and with no experience so it was a struggle,' he said. 'So I worked a lot in fringe theatre to start with, often for no pay. Once I got £40 for four months work.' He gained considerable theatre credits, including Oh What a Lovely War at Clwyd Theatre Cymru, Antigone at Bristol Old Vic and Destiny at Battersea Arts Centre, and TV appearances in The Bill, Footballers' Wives, EastEnders and Jonathan Creek among others, before landing the back-street builder on Corrie. Said Ward: 'I had been on TV a lot and nobody had ever recognised me. But the day after Charlie appeared, people were pointing at me in the street. It was bizarre. They're nice, just want to say hello. 'Charlie has been like my right hand. I have spent more time being him than me! He is thor-oughly unpleasant. He was hard to brush off when I left work because he is mentally un-pleasant and in that sense I won't miss him. 'The character worked the way Corrie works, with writing that feeds off the actors who feed off the writing, and stories that come out of the characters. It's been sad leaving. You work closely with the cast and crew and they are a great bunch. I've had a fantastic three years.' | 
