Coronation Street actors Jonathan Howard and Olivia Frances Brown, who play Carl Webster and Jodie Ramsey, have confirmed they are dating, joining a list of soap stars who have found love on set.
New Romance on the Cobbles
The couple shared photos on social media from Ibiza, including one of them lying on sunbeds and another at a club event. They were on holiday with friend Jamie Lomas and his fiancée Jess Bell.
Jonathan was previously married to Elodie Young, who starred as Elektra Natchios in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, while Olivia previously dated This City is Ours actor James Nelson-Joyce. The pair were engaged but have since split.
Long-Standing Soap Couples
Emmerdale actor Chris Chittell, who plays Eric Pollard and is the soap's longest-serving actor, has been married to co-star Lesley Dunlop since 2016. Lesley played Brenda, who quit the soap last year as her character headed on a three-month cruise.
Chris said of their romance: "Everyone thinks it's the younger members of the cast who have all the fun but we more mature ones do too. It was weird. Somehow we'd never met before and we just kept bumping into each other at work. I can't remember if I asked her for a date or she asked me but she is wonderful and we're very happy."
He added: "For some people, working together would be a nightmare but we love it. We make a point of not talking about Emmerdale when we're at home, though - that would be just too sad, wouldn't it? And we do get strange looks when we're out sometimes. You can see people getting confused."
More Corrie and Emmerdale Romances
Joe Duttine, who plays Tim Metcalfe, and Sally Carman, who stars as Abi Webster, have been married since 2022 after meeting on set in 2018. Sally joked about working with her husband: "It's awful. I don't recommend it. I give him a wide berth because he makes me laugh and once I've gone, there's no getting it back - and there's tears, so it's makeup retouching. I'm like, to myself, 'Get it together,' which makes it worse. He does it on purpose, so then I'm fuming with him!"
Jeff Hordley and Zoe Henry play Cain Dingle and Rhona Goskirk on Emmerdale but rarely share scenes. In 2022, Zoe said: "We have a separate existence at work and we like that. We often do line learning together." They married in 2003 after meeting at drama school in the 90s.
Emmerdale actress Amy Walsh and EastEnders actor Toby-Alexander Smith have been dating since 2020 after meeting in the audience at Strictly Come Dancing a year before. Amy plays Tracy Robinson, while Toby played villain Gray Atkins.
Jane Danson, who stars as Leanne Battersby, is married to Robert Beck, who has appeared in Brookside, Emmerdale, and Waterloo Road. They met in 1999 and married in 2005. Jane said of her crush on him: "When I was at school, I had a sticker of him on my pencil case and a poster of him. He was in Brookside at the time... I liked him a lot and some years later, when I was a little bit older, he was at the soap awards!"
Hollyoaks Love
Nikki Sanderson, who has had roles in Coronation Street and Hollyoaks, is married to Anthony Quinlan, who has appeared in Hollyoaks and Emmerdale. They have a son, Anthony James Quinlan, born on April 19, weighing 7lbs 9oz. Nikki said: "He's named after his dad and my brother James. Two very special men. We're truly blessed. He's just so calm, which is great for us while we're getting used to the baby bubble."
Anthony said he "slid into the DMs and that was it" and added: "I was lucky enough to get a date and the rest is history. All I can say is I'm really, really happy and she's a very special girl. She's lovely."
