Coronation Street star Daniel Brocklebank, who plays gay vicar Billy Mayhew in the ITV soap, has revealed that he has received homophobic abuse on social media since joining the show, saying "people forget that you are a person."
The 37-year-old actor, who is gay, is part of a storyline which sees his character Billy and partner Todd Grimshaw (Bruno Langley) raising a child together and facing a custody battle with the girl's grandparents.
"Do you think we might be out of our depth?" 😅😂❤️#Tilly+1 #Todd #Billy #Summer #Corrie pic.twitter.com/Y2z0yx5T1g
— Coronation Street (@itvcorrie) July 28, 2017
"Because I've been out professionally since I was 18, I've been aware that I was overlooked for roles because producers knew I was gay, and I've had to put up with homophobic abuse on social media," Brocklebank told British tabloid The Mirror.
"People forget that you are a person, who still goes home to their family every night. I think they expect you to be thick-skinned. What they don't see is when you shut the front door after a barrage of abuse and have to try to shake it off."
Brocklebank said the scene which saw his character and Langley's kissing "caused more backlash than any other storyline I've had."
"I had a lot of parents getting in touch saying they were disgusted and that they had to explain to their child why two men were kissing," he said.
"My response to that was, 'Great, that's amazing that you've actually been able to educate your kid that love comes in all different formats.'
"I have goddaughters aged seven and 12 and I phoned their mum and said, 'Do you think we showed anything your kids shouldn't have been watching?' She said, 'What do you mean? No. Why?' And I thought, 'Thank God'."
As it's 50 years since homosexuality was partially decriminalised I'd like to thank those who fought to ensure I get to live my life freely.
— Daniel Brocklebank (@Dan_Brocklebank) July 27, 2017
Brocklebank praised Corrie for the same-sex parenting storyline and said the show "has to move with the times otherwise we're going to end up out of touch."
He added that a fan had started crying last year while telling him how his work on the show had helped her son.
"I thought, 'My God, if I've helped just one person then it's all worth it'," he said.
"Growing up I didn't have any of that, so it makes me proud that I can make a difference."
Coronation Street is on TV3 and ITV Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
