ITV Coronation Street Tommy Orpington’s forgotten role as icon in rival soap

Watchers of Coronation Street could have seen Matt Milburn, who portrays Tommy Orpington on the serial opera as a former football player who now works as a painter and decorator, in a completely different capacity.

After seeing Tommy and Tracey’s romance begin, Coronation Street viewers are captivated by the newest drama to hit the cobbles.

Although some viewers may not be aware, Matt Milburn has acted in rival series before. Longtime fans of the programme will be aware that he has been portraying his role intermittently since 2016. Milburn began his acting career in 2004 and has a long history on the small screen.

On October 3, 2016, Matt made his on-screen debut when his character approached Michelle Connor for assistance in planning his nuptials. He portrayed professional football player Tommy Orpington, who later became acquainted with Steve McDonald, Michelle’s husband, and Tim Metcalfe, his business partner. This led to a falling out between the two. The fictional football player gave up in 2021 and is now employed as a painter and decorator.

However, what other roles has Matt had, and what is his life like off the show? We at The Mirror thought we would have a look.

**Tommy has embarked on an affair with Tracy McDonald ( Image: ITV/Danielle Baguley/REX/Shutterstock)**

Previous acting career

Matt has performed in numerous television series before, such as Hollyoaks on Channel 4 (where he played Joe Spencer from 2003 to 2006).

A fire at The Dog in the Pond abruptly ended his character’s life. Additionally, he played Leon D’Costa and Dexter Thomson in two episodes of the television series Doctors.

**Matt previously played Joe in Hollyoaks ( Image: Lime Pictures)**

Matt just offered a lovely homage to his devoted wife, to whom he is blissfully married. “Happy Birthday to my gorgeous wife (and stay) today,” he added. After suffering in a terrible accident in January, she and her twin Stacy Franklin have had a difficult year.

Their physical and mental fortitude in handling it has been nothing short of remarkable. Spirit, tenacity, and persistence have motivated me and filled me with immense pride. Let’s keep moving forward!

I’m sorry I couldn’t be there, but have the nicest day ever! We’ll celebrate when I get back! I adore you all, #ifcarlsbergdidwives, #superwife, #hardasnails, #twinpower.”

Soap star sibling

In addition, Matt Milburn is the brother of actor Greg Wood, who portrayed the wicked mobster Rick Neelan on Coronation Street on a regular basis from 2009 until Gary Windass killed the character in 2019.

After years of being unclear about what to do with his profession, Matt once disclosed that Greg was the one who encouraged him to pursue acting. “Watching my brother in his first college play ignited my fire for it [acting],” he stated in an interview with TV Times.

“Seeing the adrenaline surge through him afterward, I thought: ‘I’d love to give that a go.’ But I just never did.”From my late teens into my early 20s, I had trouble deciding precisely what I wanted to pursue. I believed I wanted to be a PE teacher, so I completed a BTEC in Sports Science.”

“After that, I completed my A-Levels and was going to pursue sports journalism at university when I got my first acting opportunity,” he said. Greg put my name up without telling me because he had a role in Brookside [as Terry Gibson] and was supposed to shoot a play for his friends at the university. Patrick Marber named it Dealer’s Choice, and it revolves on poker.