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Corrie's Bill Roache reveals deep grief at death of Anne Kirkbride three years on

They were married on-screen for 33 years

Author: Emma DoddsPublished 12th Jun 2018
Last updated 12th Jun 2018

Coronation Street legend Bill Roache has opened up about his deep feelings of loss at the death of his on-screen wife Anne Kirkbride, who passed away in 2015 after a battle with breast cancer. Bill, who is the longest-serving cast member of the soap and appeared in its first ever episode, has written about his feelings for Anne in his new book, Life and Soul.

The 86-year-old revealed in his book that he "felt married" to Anne in real life, and also opened up about the last time he saw her when she was in hospital on the day that she died.

In an extract of his new book, published by the Mirror, Bill writes that "you couldn’t help but love her," adding that he called her a "love bomb," and that he'd felt "married in a parallel life" to Annie, as he called her - even revealing that the vicar who'd married them in the show was a minister in real life too.

Their wedding in 1981 was even watched by more people than Prince Charles and Diana's wedding, which took place two days after.

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Although Bill had been able to say goodbye to Anne on her final day, he didn't properly feel her loss until a few weeks after she'd passed away, writing, that when they'd returned to the Barlows' living room, "a wave of emotion really hit me."

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He continued, "In that room were all the photos, all the memories – all the laughter and tears of the 35 years we’d been together. The cast and crew still feel her presence today. She is greatly missed."

Bill also wrote about the loss of his beloved wife Sara, who passed away six years before Anne, saying, "Of course, I grieved for Sara and Annie. But I tried not to grieve for too long. I just send them love. I know they’re in a beautiful, happy place, free of pain."