Louis Emerick thinks there is a ‘stigma’ surrounding soap actors.
The TV star, 64, made his name playing Mick Johnson on Channel 4’s now-defunct serial Brookside in the 1990s and later appeared on Coronation Street and Doctors.
But he has now hit out at critics of the genre as he claimed that continuing dramas do not always get the praise they deserve.
He told The Daily Star Sunday: ‘Soap actors are underestimated. There is still a stigma.
‘But some of the scenes you get on a soap wouldn’t look out of place on a drama. Look at the stuff they are doing now.
Louis Emerick thinks there is a ‘stigma’ surrounding soap actors and has called for others to realise just how ‘fantastic’ their performances really are
The TV star, 64, made his name playing Mick Johnson on Channel 4 ‘s now-defunct serial Brookside in the 1990s (pictured alongside his co-star Kate Beckett as stalker Jenny Swift)
‘If some of those storylines were on a drama, people would be saying, “That’s fantastic”. But because they’re on soaps, people don’t make enough fuss.’
Louis worked alongside esteemed performers Ricky Tomlinson and Sue Johnston, future stars of the BBC sitcom The Royle Family, on Brookside and insisted that things ‘don’t get better’ than that sort of talent.
He said: ‘When soaps do things well it’s as good and as powerful and as relevant as anything that’s on other shows.
‘When I was at ‘Brookside’ we had Sue Johnston and Ricky Tomlinson in the cast. It doesn’t get better than that.’
Louis has also appeared in Casualty and Holby City over the years and believes that the only two he has yet to conquer are ITV’s Yorkshire-based Emmerdale and the BBC flagship EastEnders.
He said: ‘I think the only soaps I haven’t been in are Emmerdale and EastEnders.
‘Being in so many of them isn’t something I planned.’
During his time on Brookside, Louis’ character became the the victim of racial abuse and suffered a steroid addiction.
He first appeared on Coronation Street in 1984 as a van driver and then returned to the country’s longest-running TV soap in 2018 to play the old school teacher of Steve McDonald
Aside from starring in many of the nation’s soaps, Louis has appeared on a host of other programmes (pictured in 2005 impersonating Lionel Richie on Stars In Their Eyes)
He even appeared opposite Daniel Craig (left) in the 2004 film Layer Cake as Liverpool gangster Trevor
Away from the soaps, Louis has had a varied on-screen career having impersonated Lionel Richie on Stars In Their Eyes in 2005 and prior to that he appeared opposite James Bond star Daniel Craig in Layer Cake.
But he insisted that he ‘never meant’ to become a soap actor as such, and he just wants to work on projects that inspire him.
He added: ‘First and foremost I’m an actor for hire. I want to be working and I want to be in something that’s good.
‘I want to find something that keeps the creative juices flowing and makes me want to go to work in the morning. Soaps tick that box and I’ve been fortunate enough to be in so many of them.’
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