Coronation Street star Jude Riordan has said he’s ‘so grateful’ as he got some news away from his role on the show. The actor is known to viewers of the ITV soap for playing Sam Blakeman.

Sam is the son of Natasha Blakeman and Nick Tilsely but he didn’t meet his father until he was nine years old, as Natasha and Nick had split up before Natasha knew she was pregnant.

A chance encounter at Weatherfield General in 2020 caused Nick to find out that he had a son. Bright and with a passion for astronomy, Sam was very close to his mother. However, Natasha was tragically shot dead by gangster Harvey Gaskell in 2021, leaving Sam mute from grief, until Hope Stape helped him out of his shell, as did Roy Cropper and games of chess.

Since then, Sam has settled into a new life in Weatherfield with Nick, stepmum Leanne Battersby while also living with Leanne’s sister Toyah Habeeb. And while Sam’s life on the cobbles is still a busy one, especially with Hope Stape as his girlfriend, Jude also has other projects he’s proud of away from Weatherfield.

Jude, who also plays Tyler Croft in Sky Comedy’s Brassic, told back in 2022 how he’d been working on a short film, which was directed by his father, Paul Riordan, and created and written by Casualty star Michael Stevenson. Jude took a break from his cobbles character to portray the role of Sean in the film, a young carer looking after his mum, Suzanne, who lives with early onset dementia.

At the time, the youngster shared his pride as they wrapped on the project which filled him with pride as he got to work with his dad. Originally, the film was called Something Missing but in a new Instagram post, Jude revealed a slight update in the film. Sharing a new poster, Jude penned: “On par with the Last Of Us poster. HOW SICK GUYS @cusp_films.”

He also shared a string of behind-the-scenes snap last week as he explained what the thought-provoking film was about. Some BTS shots from my film Hidden with @cusp_films,” he wrote. “We shot this last June. It’s all finally finally finished and heading into festivals. Very proud to be a part of this.

“First big project working with my Dad! Very proud to highlight the role of young carers and how hard it is on them and the family. Also highlighting early onset Dementia. We know this affects so many.”

And now, Jude is celebrating alongside his dad as the film has been nominated for a few awards. Sharing the news on his Instagram Story, the 13-year-old said: “I’m so grateful to be nominated! Hidden really is a special little film,” alongside confirmation he is up for’ Best Actor 2024′ at the Ignite Film Festival.

Hidden is also nominated for Best Score, Best Supporting Actor (Emma Davies), Best Director (Paul Riordan) and Short Of The Festival Realising his dad had also received a nod, Jude wrote on Instagram: “OMG and my Dad,” alongside a face holding back tears emoji. And Paul also shared his own message: “So proud of you, Jude for this nomination.”