Coronation Street villain Damon Hay has proven to be more than your typical drug lord villain, as his attraction to Sarah Barlow has led him to start turning over a new leaf.
But while Damon and Sarah have only recently been introduced, actors Ciarán Griffiths and Tina O'Brien have known each other for about 25 years.
Their off-screen friendship meant that their character's on-screen romance was much less awkward for the actors to perform, and instead they found they could "play around" with the material they'd been given.
Related: Coronation Street star Ciarán Griffiths reveals future of Damon and Sarah story
"I've known Tina since we were about 14," Griffiths said, "we used to go to drama workshops together so I've really enjoyed doing these scenes with someone I know, someone who gets my humour who I can have fun with.
"It's a bit of an icebreaker and you can have a laugh, play around with the scenes and try things out. She's a great actress, I trust her, some of these scenes can be awkward but with Tina it's sound, we've been playing boyfriend/girlfriend scenes since we were 14!"
Overall, the actor says he's really enjoying his time on the Cobbles, stating that it's to fun to see different and lighter sides to Damon after his early scenes being horrible to Jacob.
Related: Coronation Street casts Antony Cotton's mum Enid Dunn in another role
"I feel like I know him a bit better now," Griffiths added. "I know what he’s about and I’ve found my feet with him... he’s still got that edge but also that more playful side which is fun."
"At times it can be hard because I live in Australia and I’m really missing my kids but I’m determined to enjoy my time here and enjoy the work," he concluded.
Coronation Street airs on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 8pm on ITV1 and streams on ITVX.
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Joe Anderton is a freelance news writer and resident Welsh person at Digital Spy, having worked there since 2016.
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