Coronation Street fans only just realising Sue Cleaver was married to soap co-star

Coronation Street’s Sue Cleaver was previously married to a co-star – and fans are only just realising.

Sue shot to fame playing Eileen Grimshaw on the ITV soap – making her debut in 2000. And as the matriarch of the Grimshaw clan, Eileen has become a firm favourite with fans.

She has also played a part in several big storylines. From her feuds on the cobbles to her marriage to serial criminal mastermind Pat Phelan (Connor McIntyre), Eileen’s time in Weatherfield has not been short of drama.

Earlier this year though, it was announced that Sue was leaving the show soon after 25 years of playing Eileen. The actress later explained she had a desire to pursue other opportunities.

However, away from the soap Sue is currently married to Brian Owen, a lighting technician for ITV. But it turns out she was once married to a fellow Coronation Street actor.

From 1993 to 2003, Sue was married to actor James Quinn. Soap fans will recognise James from roles in various programmes – including Coronation Street.

He has played six different roles on the soap since 1989 – his first being factory manager Peter Anderson, who interviewed Vera Duckworth (Liz Dawn) for a job at Brown’s Textiles.

Meanwhile, more recently, he played DS Willets, on-and-off from 2013 to 2021. The copper made an appearance following the Rovers Return blaze in March 2013 and following Pat Phelan’s crimes being exposed in 2018.

As well as Corrie, James has also starred in Emmerdale, again playing a cop, DS Bedford, in 2011. The character was enlisted to try to find the villain who attacked Cain Dingle (Jeff Hordley).

Despite divorcing, Sue and James are on good terms and in 2009, the pair starred alongside each other in a play called Marriages Made In Heaven.

James told Manchester Evening News at the time: “It’s quite funny to be doing this with Sue.

Although we got divorced, we get on well, but we haven’t acted together on stage since we first met in a play in 1991.”

Reacting to Sue’s first marriage to James, alongside a photo of him on the soap, one person said on a Facebook fan page: “Did anyone else know that this policeman on Corrie was Sue Cleaver’s first husband?!”

Others shared their shock as a second person penned: “No way! I remember him.” A third also chimed in: “I didn’t know that.”