[Scarlett.]

His publicity picture

[Kerry]

Looks like he's lost weight

[Scarlett.]

Never saw him with it lol

Looking forward to him joining, hopefully he'll cheer Tyrone up

[Kerry]

He looked chunkier on Dancing on Ice

[Scarlett.]

Probably had to build up fat or something like that...or it could have been the tight fitting costumes lmao

[InOne]

Hmmmm, still just looks like Justin to me lol

[Scarlett.]

Originally Posted by InOne

Hmmmm, still just looks like Justin to me lol

Just like Ryan Lamb will always be John Paul lol

[Kerry]

Originally Posted by Chewy

Probably had to build up fat or something like that...or it could have been the tight fitting costumes lmao

Hmmmm it is slight tbf.....

On DOI -

[Scarlett.]

I see what you mean

[Kerry]

Trouble is, think I've said it before, he looks too old to be Tommy. To me, in that publicity shot, he looks about 28

[Scarlett.]

Nah, the shots of him with the tan and everything on make him look 18

[Kerry]

Originally Posted by Chewy

Nah, the shots of him with the tan and everything on make him look 18

Ahhh OK. I think I might just be used to all of the 'teens' being babies. I still see them as that so him coming in seems so adult

[Scarlett.]

lol true

[Scarlett.]

[\PJ/]

ohhh a new actor that hasn't been on anything else. I could understand if he was a good actor.

[Kerry]

I read that Sally wants her character to have a fling with him as her toyboy

[Scarlett.]

Nah, they took that from a quote saying "Maybe she'll even have an affair with Tommy Duckworth!" (Which was said in jest)

[Kerry]

Originally Posted by Chewy

Nah, they took that from a quote saying "Maybe she'll even have an affair with Tommy Duckworth!" (Which was said in jest)

Oh right

[Novo]

Looks like he's after a bit of Tina there

[Kerry]

Originally Posted by Novo

Looks like he's after a bit of Tina there

And she'll say "No" and slap him and then end up snogging him later

[Scarlett.]

Tina teh cheater

[Scarlett.]

Chris Fountain makes his debut in Coronation Street next week, appearing in the role of Tommy Duckworth. Viewers last saw Tommy as a child character back in 2000, but Jack and Vera's grandson is now all grown up and ready to make his mark in Weatherfield as his charming and confident nature causes a stir on the cobbles. Tommy flirts with Sophie and Sian within minutes of his arrival on the street, but he soon has another local lady in his sights… Here, Chris chats to Digital Spy about joining Corrie and what's to come from Tommy.

When did you first hear about the role of Tommy?
"I think it was around September last year, when I had a call from my agent saying that she'd spoken to Coronation Street's producer Phil Collinson and that he was interested in seeing me about a part. I didn't hear anything else for a couple of months after that and I was also up for a few other parts. My agent later spoke to Phil again and he was asking what I was up to, so she told him about the roles that I was up for and how I was quite close to getting them. Phil told her that he definitely wanted to see me over this part and that he'd get me up to the set straight away."

What happened next?
"I got a train up to Manchester and did a screen test. Then a couple of weeks later, they rang me up and told me that I'd got the part, which was great."

Did you always know that you were auditioning for a member of the Duckworth family, or was that only revealed to you later?
"Yeah, I always knew he was a Duckworth and I was also familiar with the character because I used to watch Coronation Street as a youngster, so I remembered how Jack and Vera would always be talking about 'our Tommy' and how he was the golden boy! So I always knew and the fact that he's a Duckworth is part of the reason why it's such an attractive role to play."

How was the character of Tommy first described to you?
"They described him as a cheeky chappy with a bit of swagger about him and also an eye for the ladies - and that for me was a selling point, really! I didn't get a full character breakdown until a couple of days before I started, so I learned later that he'd been busy travelling around the world and he's a bit of a free spirit. He's one of those loveable characters who can say something that's out of order but people still like him, just because he's Tommy. He's got a kind of charisma that borders on arrogance but doesn't quite cross over to that - he's quite a charming guy."

Tommy feels at home sat at Tyone's house
Tommy arrives on the street looking for Jack, doesn't he?
"Yeah, Tommy's been travelling around the world and he thinks that now is the time to go to see his granddad for a bit, maybe stay around in Weatherfield and see if there's any work in the area. But sadly, he's told by Tyrone that Jack is dead."

Do you think Tommy seems quite similar to Jack in some ways?
"Yeah, completely. When Jack first started he was all over the ladies on the street and, like Tommy, he was one of those characters who could say something that was really out of order, but people would say, 'Oh, it's just Jack'! Like Tommy, Jack was a bit of a loveable rogue."

As Tommy does have an eye for the ladies, could he become a love rat on the street, or is he more of a cheeky ladies' man?
"I'd say he's more of a cheeky ladies' man, to be honest. He doesn't seem like the kind of character who's going to go around making people upset or hurting people on purpose - he's just a bit of a heartbreaker, really! He's got all of the chat-up lines, he's got great banter and he's really confident when it comes to speaking to women. We'll see him get quite a lot of attention on the street."

Tyrone looks on as Tommy puts his arm around Tina
Is it true that we'll see Tommy taking a shine to Tina McIntyre?
"Well, he takes a bit of a shine to everybody on the street! He chats up Sian, he chats up Sophie but then he definitely does take a bit of a shine to Tina when he meets her in the pub. Tina then spends an evening with Tyrone and Tommy at the Duckworths' house, watching a film."

How does Graeme feel about Tommy's interest in Tina?
"I don't think he's very happy! He sees Tina leaving Tommy's house after she's stayed over at the Duckworths' on that night. Nothing's happened and they've just watched a DVD together, but Graeme takes that the wrong way…"

As Tommy is staying with Tyrone, will that be a permanent arrangement and do they become close friends?
"I'm not sure if it's permanent just yet, but at the minute it's a place for him to stay while he's around on the street. But obviously Tyrone is the closest thing to family that Tommy has got on the street, so they bond straight away and Tommy becomes quite protective over Tyrone."

As the Duckworths are such an iconic part of Corrie's history, have you felt the pressure of continuing their legacy?
"Yeah, completely. Duckworth is one of the most celebrated and recognisable names in soap, so there is a pressure with coming in to play a member of the family. Especially as I'm coming straight in on my own to continue the name - it's not as if I'm coming in with a brother or family member, I'm literally coming in to take the whole name of the Duckworths myself. So I do feel quite a bit of pressure. I really hope that he'll be a liked character, because obviously the Duckworths were absolutely fantastic on the street - Jack and Vera were absolute legends, and Tommy's father Terry Duckworth is one of the all-time bad boys of soap. Coming in to take that name is a massive, massive deal and I'm trying to make sure that I do it justice."

As you'll probably know by now, former Hollyoaks star Chris Fountain will be back on our screens next week with an exciting new role as Coronation Street's Tommy Duckworth.

I recently interviewed Chris about his decision to join Weatherfield and you can read the first part of the chat by clicking here.

Read on, however, for the second part of our interview with the popular actor.

Did you look back at any of Tommy's previous scenes to prepare for the role?
"I didn't, but it's funny because I actually know Joseph Aston, who played Tommy when he was younger - that was quite strange, it's a small world! But I don't think Tommy was that much of a character when he was younger and he definitely didn't have any of the traits or personality that he has now - he's grown up in Blackpool, been away travelling, evolved as a person and evolved as a character. So I don't think it would have really been beneficial for me to look back, but I did look into some of the history with him and his dad and what happened there."

As Tommy is still a teenager, has it been strange to play a character who's quite a bit younger than you?
"Not really. Justin on Hollyoaks was also younger than me. This is a little bit more of an age gap, but I think I can pull it off. If I give myself a shave I can definitely pass for 18 or 19."

As well as Tyrone and Tina, who have you been sharing a lot of screen time with?
"I've been spending a lot of time in the garage, so I've been working with Michael Le Vell who plays Kevin quite a bit. It's mainly been Tyrone, Tina and Kevin so far."

Have you had the chance to film any scenes with the older cast members yet, showing Tommy meeting Jack's friends?
"Not yet, but I haven't been filming for all that long so I've still only done a small portion of the scenes that I've got in the scripts. As of yet, I haven't had a chance to work with the older cast members but I'm looking forward to it and getting to know them. I'm probably going to be quite star-struck by people like Bill Roache and Barbara Knox!"

How welcoming have the Corrie cast been?
"They've been absolutely unbelievable. I can't stress how welcoming everyone's been, and it's not just the cast - it's also the crew and even on my first day, the security woman at the gate said hello and welcomed me to Coronation Street. So everyone's been fantastic and I feel like I've been here for ages."

Were you friends with any of the cast before you joined?
"Yeah, I was friends with quite a lot of the cast. I know the majority of the younger cast quite well - people like Ryan Thomas, Sam Aston and I went to school with Jack P. Shepherd. I don't know the older cast very well, so I'm currently making friends with them and getting to know everyone else."

Would you like the producers to bring back Terry and explore the father-son relationship with Tommy at some point?
"Yeah, if Terry came back, I think it would cause fireworks between a lot of the characters. It would be nice to see how that would pan out, because obviously Tommy is completely different to Terry - he hasn't got so much of a temper and I don't think he's a nasty person. It would definitely be quite interesting to see what happened if Terry came back."

What's your reaction to your recent British Soap Awards nomination for Sexiest Male?
"I'm absolutely thrilled to bits - I've not even been on screen yet, so it's quite flattering to be up for Sexiest Male. It's great. A few people have asked me whether it would be quite an embarrassing award to win, but considering I haven't even been on screen yet, I'd take anything! (laughs) If it was Best Haircut, I'd take that as well!"

You had some really big storylines as Justin on Hollyoaks, so can we expect the same from Tommy?
"I hope so! The Hollyoaks storylines were some of the greatest ones that I've been involved in. It would be nice to get the same kind of storylines here, because this show gets so many more viewers than Hollyoaks. That's not me saying that Coronation Street is better than Hollyoaks, but just for the sheer volume of viewers that Coronation Street gets. The live episode last year got 15 million viewers, so for me to get the same kind of storylines I got at Hollyoaks would be great for me because there's so many more people watching who I can prove my ability as an actor to."

Do you still look back on Hollyoaks fondly?
"Yeah, completely. I had six absolutely wonderful years of my life there and all of the people there are just absolutely fantastic. I was so lucky with the character that I played because I was involved in pretty much every major storyline that happened while I was there. So I've got so many fond memories of Hollyoaks."

You did a lot of acting work in between leaving Hollyoaks and now, so has it been nice to prove yourself with other types of role before returning to the world of soap?
"Yeah, when I left Hollyoaks, it was a big world out there and there's obviously only so many jobs to go around for actors. But I was on stage in a play called Departure Lounge for a bit, which was really nice, then I did Five Days which was another different experience and then I did Casualty as well. But to come into such a big show as Coronation Street is obviously fantastic for me - it means that I'm back in regular work again and I love being busy. I just really love taking on a character and trying to make that character my own. It's a great opportunity to do that here."

[Scarlett.]

Chris Fountain makes his debut in Coronation Street next week, appearing in the role of Tommy Duckworth. Viewers last saw Tommy as a child character back in 2000, but Jack and Vera's grandson is now all grown up and ready to make his mark in Weatherfield as his charming and confident nature causes a stir on the cobbles. Tommy flirts with Sophie and Sian within minutes of his arrival on the street, but he soon has another local lady in his sights… Here, Chris chats to Digital Spy about joining Corrie and what's to come from Tommy.

When did you first hear about the role of Tommy?
"I think it was around September last year, when I had a call from my agent saying that she'd spoken to Coronation Street's producer Phil Collinson and that he was interested in seeing me about a part. I didn't hear anything else for a couple of months after that and I was also up for a few other parts. My agent later spoke to Phil again and he was asking what I was up to, so she told him about the roles that I was up for and how I was quite close to getting them. Phil told her that he definitely wanted to see me over this part and that he'd get me up to the set straight away."

What happened next?
"I got a train up to Manchester and did a screen test. Then a couple of weeks later, they rang me up and told me that I'd got the part, which was great."

Did you always know that you were auditioning for a member of the Duckworth family, or was that only revealed to you later?
"Yeah, I always knew he was a Duckworth and I was also familiar with the character because I used to watch Coronation Street as a youngster, so I remembered how Jack and Vera would always be talking about 'our Tommy' and how he was the golden boy! So I always knew and the fact that he's a Duckworth is part of the reason why it's such an attractive role to play."

How was the character of Tommy first described to you?
"They described him as a cheeky chappy with a bit of swagger about him and also an eye for the ladies - and that for me was a selling point, really! I didn't get a full character breakdown until a couple of days before I started, so I learned later that he'd been busy travelling around the world and he's a bit of a free spirit. He's one of those loveable characters who can say something that's out of order but people still like him, just because he's Tommy. He's got a kind of charisma that borders on arrogance but doesn't quite cross over to that - he's quite a charming guy."

Tommy feels at home sat at Tyone's house
Tommy arrives on the street looking for Jack, doesn't he?
"Yeah, Tommy's been travelling around the world and he thinks that now is the time to go to see his granddad for a bit, maybe stay around in Weatherfield and see if there's any work in the area. But sadly, he's told by Tyrone that Jack is dead."

Do you think Tommy seems quite similar to Jack in some ways?
"Yeah, completely. When Jack first started he was all over the ladies on the street and, like Tommy, he was one of those characters who could say something that was really out of order, but people would say, 'Oh, it's just Jack'! Like Tommy, Jack was a bit of a loveable rogue."

As Tommy does have an eye for the ladies, could he become a love rat on the street, or is he more of a cheeky ladies' man?
"I'd say he's more of a cheeky ladies' man, to be honest. He doesn't seem like the kind of character who's going to go around making people upset or hurting people on purpose - he's just a bit of a heartbreaker, really! He's got all of the chat-up lines, he's got great banter and he's really confident when it comes to speaking to women. We'll see him get quite a lot of attention on the street."

Tyrone looks on as Tommy puts his arm around Tina
Is it true that we'll see Tommy taking a shine to Tina McIntyre?
"Well, he takes a bit of a shine to everybody on the street! He chats up Sian, he chats up Sophie but then he definitely does take a bit of a shine to Tina when he meets her in the pub. Tina then spends an evening with Tyrone and Tommy at the Duckworths' house, watching a film."

How does Graeme feel about Tommy's interest in Tina?
"I don't think he's very happy! He sees Tina leaving Tommy's house after she's stayed over at the Duckworths' on that night. Nothing's happened and they've just watched a DVD together, but Graeme takes that the wrong way…"

As Tommy is staying with Tyrone, will that be a permanent arrangement and do they become close friends?
"I'm not sure if it's permanent just yet, but at the minute it's a place for him to stay while he's around on the street. But obviously Tyrone is the closest thing to family that Tommy has got on the street, so they bond straight away and Tommy becomes quite protective over Tyrone."

As the Duckworths are such an iconic part of Corrie's history, have you felt the pressure of continuing their legacy?
"Yeah, completely. Duckworth is one of the most celebrated and recognisable names in soap, so there is a pressure with coming in to play a member of the family. Especially as I'm coming straight in on my own to continue the name - it's not as if I'm coming in with a brother or family member, I'm literally coming in to take the whole name of the Duckworths myself. So I do feel quite a bit of pressure. I really hope that he'll be a liked character, because obviously the Duckworths were absolutely fantastic on the street - Jack and Vera were absolute legends, and Tommy's father Terry Duckworth is one of the all-time bad boys of soap. Coming in to take that name is a massive, massive deal and I'm trying to make sure that I do it justice."

As you'll probably know by now, former Hollyoaks star Chris Fountain will be back on our screens next week with an exciting new role as Coronation Street's Tommy Duckworth.

I recently interviewed Chris about his decision to join Weatherfield and you can read the first part of the chat by clicking here.

Read on, however, for the second part of our interview with the popular actor.

Did you look back at any of Tommy's previous scenes to prepare for the role?
"I didn't, but it's funny because I actually know Joseph Aston, who played Tommy when he was younger - that was quite strange, it's a small world! But I don't think Tommy was that much of a character when he was younger and he definitely didn't have any of the traits or personality that he has now - he's grown up in Blackpool, been away travelling, evolved as a person and evolved as a character. So I don't think it would have really been beneficial for me to look back, but I did look into some of the history with him and his dad and what happened there."

As Tommy is still a teenager, has it been strange to play a character who's quite a bit younger than you?
"Not really. Justin on Hollyoaks was also younger than me. This is a little bit more of an age gap, but I think I can pull it off. If I give myself a shave I can definitely pass for 18 or 19."

As well as Tyrone and Tina, who have you been sharing a lot of screen time with?
"I've been spending a lot of time in the garage, so I've been working with Michael Le Vell who plays Kevin quite a bit. It's mainly been Tyrone, Tina and Kevin so far."

Have you had the chance to film any scenes with the older cast members yet, showing Tommy meeting Jack's friends?
"Not yet, but I haven't been filming for all that long so I've still only done a small portion of the scenes that I've got in the scripts. As of yet, I haven't had a chance to work with the older cast members but I'm looking forward to it and getting to know them. I'm probably going to be quite star-struck by people like Bill Roache and Barbara Knox!"

How welcoming have the Corrie cast been?
"They've been absolutely unbelievable. I can't stress how welcoming everyone's been, and it's not just the cast - it's also the crew and even on my first day, the security woman at the gate said hello and welcomed me to Coronation Street. So everyone's been fantastic and I feel like I've been here for ages."

Were you friends with any of the cast before you joined?
"Yeah, I was friends with quite a lot of the cast. I know the majority of the younger cast quite well - people like Ryan Thomas, Sam Aston and I went to school with Jack P. Shepherd. I don't know the older cast very well, so I'm currently making friends with them and getting to know everyone else."

Would you like the producers to bring back Terry and explore the father-son relationship with Tommy at some point?
"Yeah, if Terry came back, I think it would cause fireworks between a lot of the characters. It would be nice to see how that would pan out, because obviously Tommy is completely different to Terry - he hasn't got so much of a temper and I don't think he's a nasty person. It would definitely be quite interesting to see what happened if Terry came back."

What's your reaction to your recent British Soap Awards nomination for Sexiest Male?
"I'm absolutely thrilled to bits - I've not even been on screen yet, so it's quite flattering to be up for Sexiest Male. It's great. A few people have asked me whether it would be quite an embarrassing award to win, but considering I haven't even been on screen yet, I'd take anything! (laughs) If it was Best Haircut, I'd take that as well!"

You had some really big storylines as Justin on Hollyoaks, so can we expect the same from Tommy?
"I hope so! The Hollyoaks storylines were some of the greatest ones that I've been involved in. It would be nice to get the same kind of storylines here, because this show gets so many more viewers than Hollyoaks. That's not me saying that Coronation Street is better than Hollyoaks, but just for the sheer volume of viewers that Coronation Street gets. The live episode last year got 15 million viewers, so for me to get the same kind of storylines I got at Hollyoaks would be great for me because there's so many more people watching who I can prove my ability as an actor to."

Do you still look back on Hollyoaks fondly?
"Yeah, completely. I had six absolutely wonderful years of my life there and all of the people there are just absolutely fantastic. I was so lucky with the character that I played because I was involved in pretty much every major storyline that happened while I was there. So I've got so many fond memories of Hollyoaks."

You did a lot of acting work in between leaving Hollyoaks and now, so has it been nice to prove yourself with other types of role before returning to the world of soap?
"Yeah, when I left Hollyoaks, it was a big world out there and there's obviously only so many jobs to go around for actors. But I was on stage in a play called Departure Lounge for a bit, which was really nice, then I did Five Days which was another different experience and then I did Casualty as well. But to come into such a big show as Coronation Street is obviously fantastic for me - it means that I'm back in regular work again and I love being busy. I just really love taking on a character and trying to make that character my own. It's a great opportunity to do that here."