'Coronation Street' star Antony Cotton, who plays gay factory worker Sean Tully in the soap, has reportedly been the subject of homophobic abuse.
Whilst leaving the show's Manchester studios, Cotton was allegedly surrounded by a group of eight teenagers, who started hurling verbal abuse at him.
He feared the gang would turn violent, so called security on his mobile. The youths fled when two guards came to his rescue.
"These lads looked like serious trouble. They homed in on poor Antony for whatever reason. They were like a pack of animals," a witness told The Daily Mirror. "It was awful what Antony went through and he was clearly upset."
'Coronation Street' bosses have informed the police, who have released a statement: "It is unfortunate that some very small-minded people were outside the studio gates and became involved in what we believed was an unsavoury but isolated incident."
Cotton went back to work after the incident to complete two scenes.
