The character is a fan favourite after 14 years on the cobbles but his time on the iconic soap will soon be coming to an end
Colson Smith has revealed he made a heartbreaking call to his mum about his Coronation Street future weeks before he was axed from the soap. The Corrie star, who has played the iconic character Craig Tinker for the past 14 years, revealed this week that his time on the cobbles would be coming to an end this year.
Speaking on the On The Sofa podcast with fellow Corrie stars Jack P. Shepherd and Ben Price, the 26-year-old admitted that he wasn’t feeling “confident” about his contract renewal prior to his meeting with Coronation Street bosses. He said: “I’d had a couple of chats with you two where I said ‘I wasn’t feeling too confident about this renewal period’. I just had a feeling that the tide had slightly changed for Craig and had changed for the character.”
Craig revealed he got a call in autumn last year from ITV bosses inviting him to a meeting, before ringing Ben and Jack to tell them the news. Despite Jack’s attempts to convince Colson that the meeting would be about a new storyline on Coronation Street, the soap star revealed he knew it was “the end” for his character.
“About a month before, start of October I’d said to Ben and I’d said to my mum, I was like ‘I just don’t feel confident that this renewal is coming this time around’ sort of thing,” Colson said.
On Tuesday, January 7, the former Celebrity Big Brother star took to Instagram to confirm the news of his departure from the soap.
The Craig Tinker star posted an image of his character outside of the Rovers Return wearing his police uniform, a job he has had for many years on the street. He wrote: “Autumn last year I was told that Craig Tinkers time on the Cobbles is to come to end in 2025. I’ve LOVED every single second of my 14 year stay as a resident on the GREATEST street in the world.”
Coronation Street’s Colson Smith(Image: ITV)
The 26-year-old opened up on his feelings about playing a long-standing character, adding: “I feel incredibly lucky to have grown up in, on and around Coronation street. I’ve learnt pretty much everything about life from the people who call it home. I’m excited to play out the exit story for Our Craigy.”
Discussing what his next career move is, Colson said: “For me, this is just the end of the beginning. I genuinely can’t wait to see what chapter 2 has in store for me.”
