Mr Cropper?
Er... Yes, that's me.
SALLY LINDSAY: He's the owner of the most famous cafe in Britain.
For £5, Jack, not £4.99,
I could do you a mixed grill like you've never had.
Roy is a loveable oddball, he's a great British eccentric.
Company... halt!
Roy Cropper started out as a very strange character
and to some extent still is.
Good morning! Good morning, Roy.
Everybody loves him.
I love you, Roy Cropper.
They laugh at him and they laugh with him,
but they love him.
Roy Cropper, I love you.
I think the magic of Roy Cropper is in the detail.
I will just consult the itinerary.
I did think when I went into it,
I wouldn't mind a couple of years of this, and it's 25 now!
So, the character has a history.
Hello, I'm your dad.
As actor, David Neilson, celebrates 25 years on Coronation Street...
Pop! SHE LAUGHS
..it's time to get our order in...
Ta, Roy.
..for all of Roy Cropper's greatest moments.
Roy!
'As Roy...' Roy!
..David Neilson has created one of the most recognisable characters
on British Television.
What the flamin' hell was you doing down there?
Investigating... for phenomena.
Pleased to meet you. Oh, good to meet you.
But before Roy Cropper arrived in Weatherfield,
David's on-screen debut
came in a 1976 episode of a long-running police drama.
I was doing a training film with this guy,
and he said, "Oh, I'm doing Z Cars next week,
"and there's a tiny little bit, it's a line, do you wanna do it?"
Z CARS THEME TUNE
The titles come up...
I come on...
SHAKES COLLECTION TIN Can you spare the odd copper?
Now, come on, do me a favour, it's the third time this week.
That's inflation for you!
..have my line, and go, and that was it.
This is the last time this week - got it?!
I played a lot of coppers after that in all sorts of things.
STRANGERS THEME TUNE
Strangers, which was a particular favourite.
Scared stiff of the dark, aren't you, son?
Getting a bit more used to it.
RESNICK THEME TUNE
'Resnick, which was a BBC cop series.'
She had your stuff in the street the first chance she got.
I was doing OK, but not OK enough.
I was on the point of going in a different direction.
CORONATION STREET THEME TUNE
But, at the grand old age of 46,
David got a call from the most famous street in Britain.
Morning. Oh, hello.
You must be Roy. That's it.
When I first read the script, I thought,
"Wow, this is... this is right up my street", as it were.
Anyway, just give us a shout if you need owt.
Last door, top of the stairs. I'm usually here. Ta-ra.
Bye. Ta-ra.
I went for six episodes at the beginning.
'He was quite clearly odd.'
Can I help? Oh, my God! Where did you come from?
When David first came in as a guest role,
he came in to be quite menacing and he was a little bit weird.
One often felt that it was painful for the character
to actually to interact with people under normal conditions.
So... no children, then?
Was it internal problems, or did you leave it too late?
He sort of revealed himself very slowly
and over quite a long period of time
as being a man of quite hidden depths, actually,
and of huge integrity, and intelligence and kindness.
You see, I'm quite harmless after all.
Having spotted David's strong performances,
the writers realised his character might have more potential
than the six episodes they'd originally thought...
I bought... I bought these. Oh, thank you.
..and were keen to make Roy a regular resident...
This is Hayley.
..pairing him up with a new character,
played by Julie Hesmondhalgh.
Actually, I think I'd better be going as well...
Would you mind asking for two taxis?
Well, we could share the one. I mean, it's up to you.
Oh, yes. We could do that.
Oh. Right. Ooh.
When I got the call to go for an interview for Hayley,
they didn't tell me anything about the part,
they just said that she was going to be fun, that's all they said.
I really enjoy your company. Do ya?
Yeah. Well, that's why I've come round again to see you again today.
It was a very romantic story of these two people,
these two sort of oddballs that found each other
and that wouldn't be right for anyone else but each other.
I feel though I could talk to you about anything and everything,
even though we hardly know each other,
which is... quite unusual for me.
Well, er, to be honest, it's most unusual for me, too.
Is it? Oh, highly... highly unusual.
Two characters that you could never imagine finding their other half
were clearly finding something in the other,
and that was the beginning of it, really.
But after just a handful of dates,
Hayley decided to share a shocking secret with Roy.
Shall we take coffee upstairs in my flat...?
He had a twinkle in his eye that you'd never seen before,
and so you were just, like, "Right, here it is, here it is."
I'm sorry, Roy. I've said something I shouldn't.
No, no. It's me.
And then, of course, the bombshell.
I'm a transsexual.
I mean, I'm not a female by birth, Roy...
but by choice.
'Roy's very black and white about stuff quite often.'
He's actually very straight...
I'd like you to leave.
..so he couldn't really compute what was going on,
and they did split... Right.
..but he knew that he was more of a human being
with this other person than on his own.
"I am very sorry I have offended you.
"I did not mean to.
"The news that you were a man..." Roy...
"..came as something of a surprise."
You know, Hayley represented that sort of missing part for Roy.
"I hope we can continue to be friends and companions.
"Yours faithfully, Roy... Cropper."
# I feel it in my fingers
# I feel it in my toes. #
Because it was written so well
and because we had this chemistry, Julie and I,
they thought, "Well, these two have got to stay together."
You know, "There's more, there's more."
And did you not... sort of find me interesting at all? Very.
# It's written on the wind. #
Oh!
# It's everywhere I go. #
The strength that they had together was phenomenal.
And I think that's just why it worked so much,
because the love was there and...
..it was just a thing of beauty.
Perhaps if I kissed you? I don't mind.
Royston...
In 1999, a year after their first date,
the unlikely lovebirds were blessed by a local curate in Roy's Rolls.
I will.
Then 11 years later,
Roy and Hayley were finally legally able
to have the romantic wedding day they'd always dreamed about.
Over the 25 years, what has changed is,
just generally, people, I think, are more accepting
of just how people are, rather than ostracising people.
I love you.
You know there's still work to be done,
but they made a difference,
and I think they made a difference in a very good way.
Goodbye. Bye.
Ahh. You are my favourite couple, do you know that? Thank you.
Roy? Yes?
What have you done with the salt?
When Roy started working in the cafe in 1997...
Stops them getting damp, clogging in the tops.
..it was clear he'd found his true calling...
More bacon, please, Roy. Oh, it's on.
..eventually buying the business
and putting his own stamp on a Coronation Street institution.
I'm sorry to keep going on about the new name for the cafe, Gail.
Ooh, are you changing the name? Well, thinking about it.
I was responsible for the name, just as an off-the-cuff thing.
You're not going to call it after a blinking car?
No, but you could turn it round, couldn't you,
and call it Roy's Rolls - as in sandwiches? Oh!
All-day breakfast.
Omelette and beans, yes?
Sausage barn, spicy sauce, no butter.
I think the moment when Roy bought the cafe
and turned it into Roy's Rolls
was a very key moment for the character of Roy...
Oh, really?
..because what it did is it put him
right at the heart of Weatherfield.
Yes, yes. Fine, fine.
I suppose it's his stage,
and it does feel like the Church Of Roy.
This in't just a cafe, is it?
It's a window on the fascinating world of human behaviour.
Are you gonna put the salt cellars on the table, or shall I?!
But after a decade as the cafe's high priest,
Roy suddenly found himself with a new sidekick behind the counter...
Is that you, Mother?
No, it's the Dalai Lama, but my robes are in the wash.
Don't just stand there with your sausage in your hand, pay the man!
It was rather a shock for Roy
and everyone around, because she was quite a fearsome woman, wasn't she?
Come on, chop chop! Those bags won't move themselves.
It brought another dimension from his past,
because I think that a lot of Roy's troubles and inner demons
come from the way his mother treated him as a kid.
Did you get a chance to talk to Roy?
What, the master of avoidance? Of course not. Look at him!
Pound to a penny that's the speaking clock.
He was just the same when he was a boy.
Whenever I need to speak to him,
there was always an urgent jigsaw needed finishing.
For Sylvia, Roy was a disappointment from the moment he popped out.
You see, this has always been your problem, Roy.
You've never been any good with people.
There's nothing that he could do right.
I can feel you... hovering.
She was a miserable old cow in many respects.
You can save me your gratitude.
Excessive displays of emotion make me nauseous.
She wasn't one to button her lip when she should,
and so all sorts of, erm, not very nice things came out of her mouth.
Oh, and the rest of my bags need fetching out of the car.
You've missed a bit!
'She did it brilliantly.'
It wasn't like people thought she was horrible, they enjoyed it.
If there's one thing you do well, it's make a cup of tea.
I'll give you that much. Thank you.
With 25 years as his alter ego Roy,
David Neilson has appeared in over 2,200 episodes
of Coronation Street.
I thought he seemed like a really nice man,
even though he did keep his money in a purse
and needed a good haircut. I just had it cut!
And over that time, he's created a unique style for his character.
Quick, Roy, it's the fashion police!
That anorak is giving 'em GBH of the eyes! What?!
David is full of ideas.
Do you mind if I use your phone to dial a taxi?
And his eye for detail is absolutely second to none.
You even make that dodgy cardigan look quite good.
Everything that you saw
he would work in conjunction with wardrobe
to get that look absolutely right.
MUSIC: Saturday Night Fever
He's got a beige coat for the winter.
He's got a different sort of beige coat for the summer,
but it's beige, and he's got a beige cardigan.
He's very beige.
HE SPEAKS FRENCH
The cravats came from David...
Shall we take some wine?
He was like an old-style gentleman.
'He would always walk on the outside.
If they were walking down the street,
they'd do almost like a dance as they crossed the road,
so he could be on the outside.
He would do it to protect her, cos she was the lady
and the man walks on the outside,
so if the carriages come and it's wet weather, he takes the splashing.
I need Deirdre. Please can you let me in? Certainly.
David Neilson's first scene with me,
he had this shopping bag,
and he had this key on a piece of string...
Not a problem.
..and I just thought, "This guy is amazing".
My mother had recently died
and I was clearing the house out, and I thought,
"Well, I'll take this shopping bag",
which she used to carry around Loughborough Market,
"I'll use that as a shopping bag".
It was already 20-years-old when it first appeared in the show.
Do you mind?
Over the years,
Roy has weathered his fair share of sticky situations...
What is going on?! This is not what it looks like!
..but in 2003...
Hi, Roy. Roy, hi. Oh, hello, again.
..he finally met his nemesis.
Bev Unwin had a 1p bet with Tracy Barlow
that she couldn't get Roy into bed.
Roy went to a wedding.
Come on, drink it, it looks like you need it!
Oh, well. Thank you very much.
And he just had one glass of champagne
which had Rohypnol or something in it, and that was it.
Here we are. Ooh!
He ended up in bed with Tracy Barlow,
and there's quite a kind of iconic scene
where he comes downstairs in the morning.
All right, more tea?
Do you know, yesterday went really well.
Went without a hitch, actually.
We were having breakfast downstairs and suddenly I see Roy Cropper
walking down the Barlow staircase.
Cup of tea?
Er, no, thank you. I've got to open the cafe.
It was very amusing,
but very worrying for Roy at the time, of course.
In a nutshell, one thing lead to another
and I ended up going back to her house
where I had relations with her.
You had what?
I committed an act of adultery.
A lot of it was very, very painful,
because these people were... you know, they were hurt.
The truth is Harold,
your loving husband couldn't wait to get his hands on a real woman.
SLAPS, GASPS
We absolutely loved having Tracy thrown into our mix in that way,
because she couldn't be more opposite in every single way
to what Roy and Hayley represented as a couple and as human beings.
I'm pregnant, Hayley,
and whether you like it or not, Roy's the father!
Then, Tracy Barlow finds she's pregnant
with Steve McDonald's child,
but sees an opportunity to get some money out of this doltz
who runs the cafe and persuades Roy that he's gonna be a father.
You want £20,000 in return for carrying Roy's baby?
I think you're getting good value for money.
It didn't matter what the circumstances were
that led to that happening,
and the crisis, the total crisis it had brought
to his marriage with Hayley, he had to do the right thing by that child.
It's a girl. THEY GASP
A healthy baby girl. 6lbs 4oz.
Oh, Roy!
That just sums up the moral core of Roy Cropper
in a very uncomplicated way, actually.
Hello.
So, this story goes on for over a year.
Do you know something Roy,
I've been dreaming about this day for months.
# Bye, bye, baby... #
But unfortunately for the Croppers, there was no fairytale ending.
This is who the real father is -
bridegroom, Steve.
Not Roy Cropper.
They had the baby and they had to give the baby back.
# Bye, bye, baby, Don't make me cry. #
I'm very sorry, Roy.
And that was kind of heart-breaking.
Come 'ere.
For 16 years, we enjoyed the highs and lows
of the Croppers marriage...
I'm very sorry, Hayley, I really am. I know you are.
..but when actor Julie Hesmondhalgh decided to leave the show
the writers would give Hayley a heartbreaking goodbye.
I knew, and I think David probably knew, as well,
that Hayley would have to die,
because nothing would separate Roy and Hayley apart from death.
I'm sorry to be so hard. I'm afraid it is incurable.
And Hayley's death would charge David
with playing some of his most emotional scenes to date.
Obviously, it was the end of a relationship that Julie and I had
- a working relationship.
Erm, so, it was more poignant than any other,
because it was going to have a real end.
Are you all right? It is rather bracing.
Ah, no. A few lungfuls of this will do me a world of good.
They had that wonderful weekend in Blackpool
and danced in the Tower Ballroom
in what a lot of people say
are their favourite Roy and Hayley scenes ever.
You're the best partner I could ever hope for.
Now, shut up and keep that back straight.
David's a really good dancer,
but I had to learn to do it, so I had special lessons.
Promise you'll do this again.
Please, I'd rather not think about it.
You don't have to - just nod your head.
I just remember thinking, "This is beautiful',
"but obviously... you know, doomed."
I've decided...
I won't let the cancer rule how and when I die.
It raised awareness about
the right to die issue,
which was being discussed in Parliament at that time, as well,
and so made the front pages of quite a lot of newspapers.
I'm going to end my life when I choose.
I felt he didn't agree to it,
but he went along with it because she was gonna do it.
'He didn't want her to suffer, but he didn't want her to go.'
Time's the one thing that we don't have.
Please don't... I'm not ready.
I thought that the writing was... fantastic.
It was a privilege to do it, but hard.
SHE BREATHES QUICKLY
SHE SWALLOWS No!
I love you!
At the moment when she decided to take her life, we did it once,
all the way through. That's it.
No, no, no...
And it felt so real,
you could have heard a pin drop in there, literally.
Because they were made for each other
and no-one else, that made it more...
I think gave it more of a sense of tragedy, really.
My Hayley.
My only love.
Over his 25 years in Coronation Street,
we've watched Roy, a man who struggled to fit in,
evolve into a much loved character that we've taken to our hearts.
You've always brought light into our lives, Fiz,
and I know you'll shine today.
It's quite a journey that this character's had in this show'
and he's got places to go, but I don't know where those places are.
Take care.
Yeah.
From day one, David was never ever
going to treat this slightly misfit character,
in any other way but with full respect.
What do you think?
Well, er, it looks like rather more of a summer ensemble to me.
Have you not got a coat?
I love Roy, he is himself,
he is this sort of quite weird, strange guy,
but I like him.
Let's fall in outside, shall we?
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