Coronation Street actor Bill Roache – who has played Ken Barlow on the ITV soap since 1960 – was pictured at the Post Office in Alderley Edge, Cheshire after racking up a tax debt of more than £500,000
Coronation Street star Bill Roache has popped to the Post Office amid his financial woes.
The actor, 91, called into his local branch in Alderley Edge, Cheshire, on Thursday. He earns a reported £250,000 a year playing Ken Barlow on the ITV soap but has racked up a tax debt of more than £500,000.
Earlier this month, the High Court gave him an extra 12 weeks to sell a home to pay off the bill, which he ran up by investing in a Cayman Islands tax avoidance scheme. He has been given three months to clear his debt to HMRC.
At a 33 second court hearing on March 11, a specialist judge was told his amount owed had been reduced due to payments made. But the 91-year-old is awaiting the sale of his home in order to pay off the rest, said Jacquille Jarrett, representing HMRC.
His case was adjourned for 12 weeks, until June 10, for the settlement of the remaining balance. The amount now owed was not revealed in court but last month it was reported he had £546,000 tax bill. The Ken Barlow actor, who holds the world record for the longest-serving TV actor in a continuous role, did not appear at court on the day.
In 2018 the Mirror told how the star faced a huge bill after investing in a £500million scheme. It was unknown how much he had invested in Twofold First Services LLP, owned by a firm in the Cayman Islands.
He was one of 288 investors who entered the scheme and put in, on average, £1.75million. Papers showed he joined the scheme in March 2012. A tribunal ruled in favour of HMRC, which successfully argued Twofold was “a tax avoidance arrangement”. It was branded “abusive and artificial” by the Treasury.
A HMRC spokesman told the Mirror in January it files for a petition for bankruptcy with the court to obtain a bankruptcy order. He said: “We might have an outstanding tax debt, if someone refused to engage with us and pay the tax that is due, then as a last resort we will issue a bankruptcy action. That is to recover the tax they owe but, as I say, it is the sort of thing we do as a last resort.” A Coronation Street spokesman said: “We’re really sorry to hear of Bill’s financial situation. He has an ongoing contract with Coronation Street and remains a much-loved member of the cast.”
