Roy Cropper has been a firm favourite on the cobbles for nearly 30 years, but actor David Neilson, 75, has shared little of his ‘secret’ life away from Coronation Street

Coronation Street’s Roy Cropper, played by David Neilson, has been a staple on the ITV soap for nearly three decades, becoming a firm favourite among fans. David, now 75, first stepped into the shoes of Roy back in 1995 when he was 46, and has since been involved in some of the show’s most memorable storylines.

One of the most poignant was his relationship with Hayley, one of television’s first transgender characters, who tragically took her own life after being diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer in 2014. Recently, viewers saw Roy falsely imprisoned for the ‘murder’ of Lauren Bolton, a colleague at his café, Roy’s Rolls. The real culprit was revealed to be villain Joel, the father of Lauren’s baby.

Although Roy was eventually released, he has become more withdrawn lately, leaving fans eager to see what will happen next. Away from the cobbles, David leads an equally interesting life, which includes a rarely-seen wife and a secret hideaway in Spain.

His rarely-seen wife Jane

David has been happily married to his wife Jane for over half a century, and together they have a son named Daniel and two granddaughters.

Jane, David’s wife, has played a crucial role in shaping his character, Roy Cropper, on Coronation Street. In a 2009 interview with The Mirror, David revealed that he subtly incorporated aspects of autism into Roy’s character, drawing from Jane’s experience as a Special Education Needs and Disability teacher.

Transformation of Roy’s character

Roy’s character has evolved over time, as he is now one of the most beloved characters on the ITV soap. Explaining how he achieved this, David said: “Roy was a psychopath. He was stalking Deirdre and was a bit scary. It’s nice to play psychos but they don’t stay around too long. My wife is a special needs teacher and she worked with people with autism. She suggested that Roy could have Asperger’s syndrome, making him socially awkward rather than threatening. Nobody really knew what Asperger’s was back in 1995, so it’s my wife I owe it to.”

“It’s never mentioned in the story though, and it shouldn’t be. Roy is a human being and a label doesn’t help him. But I think he’s got it. It gives him reasons for his behaviour and gives me something to play. I enjoy idiosyncrasies in people and Roy is full of them.”

Living the dream in Spain

Since 2002, David and Jane have been dividing their time between Spain and England, allowing them to lead a more normal life.

David shared with The Mirror: “I need to get away from Roy and be myself and they don’t know Roy in Barcelona. If I’m in Spain for a few days I forget what I do for a living, which is the important thing. It means when I come back and someone shouts ‘Roy’, for a moment I forget they’re actually talking to me. And it’s only a couple of hours on the plane so I can commute to Manchester easily enough.”

He added: “Another reason we moved was for excitement. I like to do different things and it’s been good to learn a language and get into a different culture. Our son Daniel had left for university and we were in Bristol in a big house and we thought, ‘What shall we do?'”