He may have stars in his eyes but he has his feet on the ground, and Bruno Langley seems a likeable character on both counts.

Of his time with Billie Piper in Doctor Who, he jokes: 'I didn't get to snog her, which I was p***ed off about, but I think she would have liked to kiss me!

'She's married now, of course, but you know what these showbiz weddings are like...'

Bruno, best-known as Todd Grimshaw in Coronation Street, will appear at the Southampton Mayflower next week in the world premiere production of Flashdance The Musical, based on the film.

It is about young people holding on to their dreams against all odds, and Bruno says: 'I play Jimmy, a street kid aged 18 or 19 who has been in what we would call a young offenders' institution. He's looking for a break and no-one will give it him, but he's determined to show them he can be big.

'The show involves acting, singing and dancing, but I don't have to dance,' he laughs.

'The singing is fine. We do exercises every day and if you sing every day you're going to get better. I'm loving it.'

So is this why he left Corrie in 2004 after three years, to put more variety into his career? 'Absolutely,' he says. 'I could have stayed but now I'm doing what I set out to do, and I'm doing all right – plodding along.'

Rather better than plodding actually. He has appeared not only in Doctor Who but as Romeo at Stafford Castle, in fringe theatre in London, in a tour of A Taste Of Honey and the film The League Of Gentlemen's Apocalypse.

But he was available when asked to return to Corrie for 15 episodes last year for the wedding of Todd's brother, Jason, to Todd's ex-girlfriend, Sarah – which followed Todd's kissing of Sarah's brother, Nick (oh, do keep up).

Asked whether he had wanted to escape the gay storyline, Bruno says: 'Not at all. I wasn't bothered what people thought about that, although it wasn't very nice having people shouting at me in the street.'

He left, he says, because he is easily bored and 'there are lots of parts out there if you're willing to take a pay cut sometimes'.

But at 25, with a 13-month-old son, he might not find that so easy in future.

© The News, 4/8/08

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