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Coronation Street's Colson Smith has spilled the beans on a well-kept secret about the popular soap as he shared the origins of the name for one of its most famous landmarks, Roy's Rolls. During a chat with co-stars Jack P Shepherd and Ben Price on their On The Sofa podcast, Colson shared the little-known backstory of how the café got its name. According to him, bosses had already settled on a different name, "something like Roy's Caf (cafe)", but were swayed by a suggestion from a cast member.
Colson recalled how David Neilson, who plays Roy Cropper, came up with the name Roy's Rolls and managed to convince the bosses to change their minds at the last minute: "So they were calling it something else, like Roy's Caf (café) or something like that. And David one night came up with Roy's Rolls and he went to see them and said, Roy's Rolls. And they went 'yeah'.
" The iconic soap location has seen several changes since it first opened its doors in 1978 as Dawson's Café. It was renamed Jim's Café two years later when Jim Sedgewick took over. Ownership later passed to his wife, Alma, who ran the business with Gail Chadwick (formerly Platt), who held a 40 per cent stake in the venture.
However, in a twist of fate, Alma sold her shares to Roy Cropper in 1997. Two years on, he relocated the café from its original Rosamund Street address to its present Victoria Street location, where he continues to man the iconic counter. David Neilson, who marks his 30th year on the soap this year, has become an integral part of the ITV favourite over the decades.
One storyline that still resonates with Corrie fans is the heart-wrenching farewell Roy had to bid to his long-term partner, Hayley Cropper (portrayed by Julie Hesmondhalgh) in 2014, following her battle with pancreatic cancer. In more recent episodes, Roy found himself embroiled in drama once again when he was wrongly accused of murdering Lauren Bolton, a character brought to life by Cait Fitton. To remove this article -.
