He's famous for playing killer Richard Hillman in Corrie, but Brian Capron hopes there won't be murder on the dance floor for his latest role, writes Zita Collinson

BRIAN Capron isn't pretending to be the next Fred Astaire.

His tenure on series five of Strictly Come Dancing came to a swift end when he was unceremoniously shown the door by the famously critical panel of judges during the first week of the BBC1 show.

So it's surprising that the 62-year-old actor, best known for his iconic role as the murderous Richard Hillman in Coronation Street, has taken on a role that requires him to don his dancing shoes once more.

He's starring alongside ex-EastEnder Jessie Wallace, pictured with Susie Fenwick, in Richard Harris's play Stepping Out, which comes to The Regent theatre, in Hanley, as part of a nationwide tour on Tuesday, September 22.

The story follows the fortunes of an amateur tap dancing class and Brian plays Geoffrey, the only male in the hapless troupe.

"The audience seem to absolutely love it," says Brian. "It's very funny but it's also very moving. I have never tap danced in my life and we've had three gruelling weeks of rehearsal. It nearly killed me.

"In one show I lost my cane and it just shot off into the front row of the audience. It's so funny after being thrown off Strictly Come Dancing because I am a useless dancer.

"But Stepping Out is almost like you're watching a reality TV show and you've got to believe these people really can't dance.

"In a way it adds charm to it. If people know we can't dance, they really follow it and see the standard we get to at the end, which is not brilliant, but it's not bad either.

"Really I'm kind of snubbing Strictly and saying, 'hey I'm dancing'."

Brian insists being the odd one out in the practically all-female cast doesn't faze him. "They're as bad as men," he says. "I keep telling them to watch their language. We have a lot of fun and there's a lot of banter."

It's a far cry from Weatherfield. Since leaving Coronation Street in 2003, Brian has enjoyed stints in West End productions of The Rocky Horror Show and Guys And Dolls, as well as TV work in Where The Heart Is.

"At my age – I've been going for about 40 years now – I'm privileged to do any job," he laughs. "But theatre helped me to re-establish myself in a sense. As you can imagine, I've steered clear of murderer parts for the past six years or so.

"People still shout 'murderer' at me but it's normally good humour. The whole thing about the Richard Hillman character for people who watched it properly is he was surrounded by a lot of dark humour. It was slightly like pantomime.

"It's a mixed blessings because you're in the eye of the storm for a while.

"Still, it was a wonderful opportunity and I feel very lucky I got this fabulous story where I could make a big impact in less than two years and then leave.

"It's not a stratospheric career but it's a lovely career I have now," he adds. "It gives me time to spend with my family and to do something like this is an absolute joy."

Stepping Out runs from Tuesday, September 22 until Saturday, September 26. Telephone the box office on 0844 871 7627 for tickets and performance times.