Coronation Street and Emmerdale stars have become like family to viewers over the years, but some actors who appear on the ITV soaps really are related in real life
Coronation Street and Emmerdale cast members often compare their co-stars to family – and for some actors, this is literally ‘true’.
Many viewers have been following their soap favourites for years, but may not be aware that several stars have real-life family connections on the beloved ITV shows.
With soap acting clearly a family affair, Coronation Street and Emmerdale are home to many real-life family members from twins to cousins.
Meanwhile, some family members even appear in rival soaps. Here, we delve into all the real-life family members from our favourite soaps….
The Flanagan family
The Flanagan family is one of the largest and best-known real-life soap families. Isabella and William Flanagan are real-life twins although they play cousins Hope Stape and Joseph Brown on Coronation Street.
Meanwhile, their elder sister, Amelia Flanagan, plays April Windsor on Emmerdale. The talented acting trio’s proud parents are often praising their children on social media and giving a glimpse at their life away from the soaps.
Sebastian and Gabrielle Dowling
Isabella and William aren’t the only soap twins as Sebastian and Gabrielle Dowling played real-life twins Cathy and Heath Hope in Emmerdale.
The siblings took on the role of Viv and Bob Hope’s children back in 2007. However, earlier this year in a tragic twist, Heath was killed off in a devastating New Year car crash storyline. Cathy still remains on the ITV soap.
Will and Peter Ash
Coronation Street’s Peter Ash recently took home the Serial Drama Performance National Television Award for his amazing portrayal of Paul Foreman amid the character’s motor neurone disease (MND) battle, which he sadly lost in recent heartbreaking scenes.
One person who will have been celebrating Peter’s accomplishment is his real-life cousin Will Ash, who plays Caleb Milligan on the rival soap Emmerdale. Back when Will was announced to be joining Emmerdale in 2022, Peter tweeted: “Yes! This is my cousin, Will!
“He’s an absolutely fantastic actor, and was one of my big inspirations for getting into acting myself! Can’t wait to see him do his stuff in #Emmerdale!” (sic)
At the time, one soap fan said: “No way, I had no idea he’s your cousin, well fantastic acting definitely runs in the family x.” While another added: “I actually thought you were brothers coz you look so alike!” (sic)
Brooke Vincent and Ellie Leach
Brooke Vincent grew up on Corrie, playing the role of Sophie Webster from 2004 until she left in 2019.
Back in 2011, Brooke was thrilled when her younger cousin Ellie Leach joined the cobbles as Faye Windass – a role she played until 2023. Ellie, 23, went on to win Strictly Come Dancing last year with Vito Coppola.
Charley Webb and Jamie Lomas
Charley Webb played legendary character Debbie Dingle from 2002 until 2021. She has since gone on to star in shows such as The Long Shadow.
However, she’s not the only famous soap star in her family as her real-life brother Jamie Lomas has played Hollyoaks legend Warren Fox since 2006 – he left the Channel 4 soap earlier this year.
Ryan Thomas and Adam Thomas
Ryan Thomas was just a youngster when he first set foot on the cobbles on Christmas Day in 2000 as Jason Grimshaw. He left the hit ITV soap back in 2016.
Meanwhile, back in 2009, his younger brother Adam Thomas joined rival soap Emmerdale as Adam Barton, a role he played until 2018. The siblings also have another famous brother, Scott Thomas, who appeared on Love Island back in 2016.
Greg Wood and Matt Milburn
Coronation Street fans were stunned to discover that two characters who never met on the iconic cobbles were actually related in real life.
Tommy Orpington, a famous footballer for Weatherfield County on the soap and who had an affair with Tracy Barlow earlier this year, is played by actor Matt Milburn.
Yet he’s not the only famous Corrie actor in the family as his real-life brother Greg Wood played nasty loan shark Rick Neeson on the cobbles.
