It's been a long time coming, but Kevin Webster - played by 44-year-old Michael Le Vell - finally gives into temptation next week when he kisses his best friend and business partner Tyrone Dobbs's (Alan Halsall) wife, Molly (Vicky Binns) after a run through the park. Initially reluctant, Molly soon begins to revel in the attention that she starts receiving from the local mechanic who's nearly twice her age. So where exactly has Kevin's lust for Molly stemmed from? And what does the man behind the character think of the racy plot? We gave Michael a call to find out more...
What were your thoughts when you first heard about the storyline?
"I was a bit shocked at first. I had to come to terms with 'would Kevin have an affair with Tyrone's wife?' There's a lot of water gone under the bridge with Kevin and Sally. He loves her to pieces, though, and he's trying to make an effort. This has come totally out of the blue, caught him off guard and knocked him sideways. It's unavoidable, though."
In the storylines it says that Kevin's "obsessed" with Molly - is it actually obsession?
"I don't know to be honest. I think it's lust for her to begin with. He's got old man younger woman syndrome! I think he started off with the chase and fully expected to get knocked back and that would have been the end of it. But with Molly, she knocks him back at first and then starts saying that she's flattered. It's a bit of a mid-life crisis going on in Kev's head. He's totally flattered that she sees something back in him. Before they know it, they're in too deep."
It's come out of nowhere really, hasn't it? Has it all been in the back of Kevin's mind?
"No, not at all. It's only since Kevin and Molly started training together and he's seen her in Lycra and sweating all the time. That starts registering with him!"
What is it that attracts Kevin to Molly?
"She's got some get up and go about her. She wants to go do the marathon, so she's doing it. Sally wants to do things but it's always in a snobby way and that winds Kevin up a little. He just wants a normal girl, not someone who aspires to be middle class, who's not."
Kevin and Sally have had a rocky relationship over the years. Do you think Kevin still loves her?
"Oh yeah, course he does. It's Kevin who's trying to break the relationship with Molly before it starts because he loves Sally. Kev knows that a lot of people are going to get hurt but it's just one of those situations that he just can't help."
It's quite ironic that after all the strife that Sally's put Kevin through, he's about to do the same to her. Does he not remember what he went through?
"Of course he does. Kevin never really confronted Sally with the fact that he knew about her relationship with Ian Davenport. She always thought that she got away with that one. Maybe that's been playing in the back of his mind? And not only that, Sally was seeing Ian for the money, gifts and all the material things in life. Maybe that's one thing that's never left Kevin's mind."
What would you say to those viewers who think that Molly would never cheat on Tyrone with Kevin?
"That's a tough one. I think it's because Kevin's an older, married and more experienced man and she's hoping to have grown-up conversations with him, whereas Tyrone's still a little immature in his ways at the moment. Women worldwide go for older men and the same with men with younger women - it's not something we've made up for the sake of a story. These situations happen on a daily basis. We try to depict real life as best we can in Coronation Street and this is just another one of those moments. People do fall in love with their best mate's wives, too. I'm not saying it's a right thing, but it happens!"
It's apparently a long-burner… can you give us any teasers as to what we can expect?
"It does run on, but it's not necessarily all about the affair. There are lots of other twists and turns introduced to the story down the line that aren't affair-related. They're going to send it in all different directions. I only have a vague outline of what's happening, but from what I have heard and read, it's very exciting. It's great for all the characters concerned. We can't wait to get our teeth stuck into it all."
You've become part of the makeup of Corrie now – how long do you see yourself sticking around for?
"Who knows? If you asked Bill Roache that 26 years into his Corrie career, he'd have probably said the same! Working on the UK's number one television programme is a great job to have. The quality of the writing and acting is second to none, so for me, why go out there and take the chance on doing something different when you already have, in my opinion, the best job on television?"
We'll be seeing you for the 50th anniversary, then?
"As far as I know! I'm happy to stay, but you never know when they're going to say 'we've gone as far as we can with your character'! You can never take anything for granted. As soon as you start thinking like that, that's when the rug's pulled from under you."
What's it like working with Sally Whittaker? You both have such a great rapport…
"I love Sally to pieces. I've known her for years, even before Corrie. We were at Oldham Theatre Workshop together. She's first class to work with and because I'm doing all these scenes with Vicky [Binns] now, it means I'm going to have a lot more work to do with Sally in the future, which I'm really looking forward to. I'm lucky that I'm surrounded by great actors - Vicky, Sally, Helen, Brooke and Alan [Halsall]."
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