Daniel Osbourne is facing a tricky time in Weatherfield as he’s not only been questioned on the disappearance – and suspected murder – of Lauren Bolton, he’s also found himself being accused of attacking Nathan Curtis, the man who groomed his girlfriend Bethany Platt as a teen.
The new twists and turns in Coronation Street come months after Bethany’s reappearance in his life following his split from fiancee Daisy Midgeley. He ended his engagement after discovering Daisy’ and Ryan Connor’s affair.
While actor Rob Mallard first arrived on-screen on the famous cobbles as Daniel, the son of street stalwart Ken Barlow and uncle of serial love rat Adam Barlow back in 2016, making him the third actor to take on the role, it wasn’t his first appearance in a soap.
It was taken when Rob was playing Connor Jenson in Emmerdale. He appeared in the Dales as Connor back in September 2015. He previously confused fans when he shared a snap from his time on another soap. He shared the black and white, bloodied selfie in a rare post to his thousands of followers.
It showed his long locks were bouncing around in an edgier, Elvis-inspired style while donning a leather jacket but his face looked a bit battered and bruised with cuts to his nose and lips. He arrived when Rober Sugden hired the rent-boy to lure his father-in-law Lawrence White to bed.
He attempted to do so by painting his face with fake wounds and convinced Lawrence to take him to his home to help him. But when Connor made a move on Robert’s estranged father-in-law, he was rejected and turned nasty, beating Lawrence up before robbing his belongings and fleeing the village.
It was the following year Rob joined Corrie in the role of Daniel, and he even appeared in Jack Whitehall’s Channel 4 comedy Fresh Meat.
As for Rob’s off-screen love life, he publicly came out as gay during an interview with Gay Times back in 2017 but he told his family at the age of 17 and “never planned to keep [his sexuality] quiet.”
Shortly after joining Corrie, Rob began dating co-star Daniel Brocklebank, who plays vicar Billy Mayhew, and they confirmed their romance when he won his British Soap Award. He said in his acceptance speech: “Even though this is fantastic, Dan, you’re the best thing I’ve ever taken home.”
But just two months later, the pair split with sources citing the reason as being the pressure of working together while maintaining a romantic relationship. Rob went on to date Ben Perryman, but the couple split in 2019, confirming in January 2020 that things had reached their “natural end” and he is believed to have remained single during the country’s lockdown.
However, the soap star has since appeared to find love again. Back in June 2023, the actor appeared to go public with his new partner as he took to Instagram to share a snap of himself all suited and booted for this year’s British Soap Awards. He looked dapper as he attended the star-studded bash in his three-piece navy attire but added a cool edge with a pair of dark sunglasses as he posed outside with his equally-dapper guest.