Coronation Street's Simon Barlow star shares new career move away from cobbles
Alex Bain has played the role of Simon Barlow on the ITV soap for the last 16 years.
Coronation Street star Alex Bain has shared a surprising career path he would like to pursue after leaving the ITV soap behind. The 22-year-old, who played the role of Simon Barlow, has officially departed the cobbles after filming his final scenes last year.
Alex's exit comes after a 16-year stint on the show. His character, Simon, is leaving the street to join his dad Peter Barlow (Chris Gascoyne) on his boat.
He is looking to start over in a new life after facing some difficult times on the show, including a drunk-driving crash. Although initial reports hinted that Alex voluntarily left the show, later claims suggested that the showrunners decided to write him out.
It seems the actor is also after a fresh start for himself off-screen as he shared that he would like to pursue a career away from acting. Alex admitted that Corrie had "come first" during his time on the show, but now he hoped to finish studying and make dancing his priority.
He said: "I will always be a dancer and one day I would love to be a choreographer and teach dance and ultimately open my own dance and performance school.
"I am currently finally taking my ballet and modern intermediate exams that I should have done when I was 16. I need those qualifications to have a chance of teaching and doing choreography."
However, he added that acting would not be out of the window altogether, as he said: "Acting goes hand in hand with dancing though so hopefully I will be able to continue to do both.
"But dance is definitely my focus at the moment. I’d like to do a dance teaching course. I've been able to attend a full week's worth of classes, which is something I haven't been able to do for a while."
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He continued: "It is an exciting time for me to start thinking about what is next."
Earlier in March, Alex took to Instagram with a photograph of his dressing room mirror, seemingly bidding it farewell. He wrote alongside his post: "Well my day is done! Nice and short day today!
"I'm gonna miss this little space some dearly when I go!" He added: "So glad I've got some shooting days left! So thankful!"