The actor has reprised the role of the villain in the ITV soap after seven years
Coronation Street star Marc Baylis has teased Rob Donovan’s ‘relationships’ with other characters amid his on-screen return. The actor has reprised the role of the villain in the ITV soap after seven years.
Fans will recall that Marc was last seen on the show back in 2017 as Rob, the younger brother of Carla Connor and former fiancé of Tracy Barlow, from behind bars following the 2014 murder of Tina McIntyre.
It was revealed that Carla’s nephew Bobby Crawford will bring his dad back into his and Carla’s lives in upcoming scenes as it was revealed that Carla needs a kidney transplant and Bobby things Rob could be the one to help.
Next week, after Ryan Connor says Carla wouldn’t accept a kidney off Rob even if he offered, Bobby lies and says he is going out with Max Turner before heading off to see his dad again in prison. As they chat, Rob tells him he has found religion and would like to donate a kidney to Carla if he is a match.
But the conversation is cut short when across the visiting room Matty Radcliffe, having been involved in killing his own brother, Mason Radcliffe, pulls out a knife and Bobby finds himself in the middle of a hostage situation.
Speaking about what interested him in reprising the role of Rob, Marc said: “I knew that there was a new chapter of Rob that was on the horizon. I’ve always been fascinated with his childhood, and I knew that this story would touch on that aspect and that time in both his and Carla’s life.
“I feel that touching on that gives us a little window as to why Rob is living the life that he’s living. So I knew it was going to open up a bit more of the past. But also, there was some fun to be had with Rob, as there always is, as well. The balance of those two things is brilliant to play with.”
After ‘letting go’ the character he remembered from all those years ago when he last played him as he didn’t want to “go backwards” and wanted to use his “memories” of his alter-ego, Marc has revealed what fans can expect from Rob now.
He said: “There are some heartfelt moments with the people that Rob loves, including new characters that Rob has relationships with. There’s a darker side to Rob than I’ve known before, and we get a window into, I would say, a man who needs more support than he’s getting.”
And it was quite an unusual way he discovered he has an on-screen son. “I saw something as I was walking through a supermarket on a magazine cover, which took me by surprise to find out that Rob was a father,” Marc revealed. “But it was nice to discover because we’ve never really touched on that side of Rob.
“It was around Christmas time last year and here I am a year later and I knew that that would add a layer to Rob being a father. He’s not exactly a role model, but I think that there are lots of discoveries to be made with that relationship as well.
