Coronation Street fans baffled after discovering soap star has famous partner
Actress Cherylee Houston - who has been playing Izzy Armstrong on the cobbles for 15 years - is in a long-term relationship with a well known actor and comedian
Coronation Street fans were stunned to discover that Cherylee Houston is in a long-term relationship with a former co-star.
Cherylee, 50, has been on the cobbles since 2010 when she joined as Izzy Armstrong and she is a familiar face to Corrie viewers. Many also recognise her partner, actor and comedian Toby Hadoke, but don’t realise that they are together.
While Izzy hasn’t always had the best of times when it comes to romance, things are very different off-screen as actress Cherylee has been in a happy relationship with Toby for years. The 51-year-old is known for shows such as Phoenix Nights, Shameless and The Forsyte Saga.
Cherylee is in a relationship with Toby Hadoke
He is also no stranger to soapland. Toby has previously had roles in Hollyoaks, Emmerdale and also once appeared in Corrie. He bagged a part in the ITV soap in 2021, turning up in Weatherfield amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Toby played Fergus, and got to star opposite his real life love as Fergus was Izzy’s neighbour. Fergus had a soft spot for Izzy and they grew close, and he became increasingly protective of her during Covid.
Toby and Cherylee, who uses a wheelchair, had to film scenes themselves at their home in Manchester because of shooting restrictions at the time. The actor revealed in an interview that he clearly relished the opportunity.
“I’m a telly geek,” he said. “I love the idea of, ‘This has never been done before.’
The actress joined the soap in 2010(Image: Daily Mirror)
“They’ve never had it with a soap opera where they’ve had to say, ‘We can’t get the actor in. OK, well let’s drop all the stuff in their house and make it on the fly’’.”
He also revealed he loved working with his partner, who he praised as being “such a good actor”. “She’s so brilliant at bringing attention to the importance of disability representation and all of that sort of thing,” he explained.
“I think it’s hard enough sometimes doing it in a television studio, but doing it on a Zoom screen? She’s brilliant.”
The actress plays Izzy on the cobbles(Image: ITV)
The link between Cherylee and Toby has been missed by many viewers, with many surprised when a snap of them together appears. One Corrie fan recently confessed they had “no idea” the pair were married after seeing an image of them.
“I remember him from Corrie I think, didn’t know at the time they were together,” said another.
