When Eileen, played by Sue Cleaver, finally called it a day on the ITV soap, Ryan Thomas and his mother Eileen, who had spent 16 years with him, was there to send her off.
Corrie star Ryan Thomas has given his wife Lucy Mecklenburgh a tour around his on-screen childhood home, as he paid tribute to his TV mum Eileen after Sue Cleaver’s emotional departure from the soap. Ryan, 40, shares two children with TOWIE star Lucy Meck, but he had already left the show by the time they got together.
Ryan spent his teenage years in Weatherfield, having joined the Manchester-based ITV soap in 2000. He stayed until 2016, when his character, builder Jason Grimshaw left the cobbles after being manipulated by his mum Eileen’s partner Pat Phelan.
But Jason wasn’t killed off, and instead emigrated to Thailand, with his mum Eileen mentioning him often on the soap. And with Sue Cleaver finally leaving Corrie for good, he took the opportunity to show Lucy, 33, around the set.
He shared a video of Lucy entering the Grimshaws’ home on Instagram, saying, “I never saw anyone with @lucymeck while I was in the show, so it was nice to finally show my superfan where I grew up.”
Another clip showed Sue being given a round of applause, before hugging her on-screen sons Jason and Todd, who was played by Bruno Langley originally, and then Gareth Pierce since 2017. Ryan wrote: “Haven’t seen it yet but Eileen/mother departed Weatherfield tonight, gone but never forgotten.
It has been a pleasure to study, perform, and participate in your final performance. I’m looking forward to reading your next chapter. I’ll always be with you.
Sue confirmed rumours that Ryan would be returning to the Cobbles for her send off. Speaking on soap podcast Off Script, she said: “I rang Ryan Thomas and I said, ‘Ryan, I’ve not told work yet but I’m gonna leave. Would you come back? I’d really like you to take me out’.
He said, “I wasn’t planning to, but I can’t refuse that.” Simply put, knowing that he was there was all right. He was lovely to have there. He hasn’t drastically changed.
Eileen, Sue’s character, was seen leaving for a new life in Thailand after her final episode was broadcast on Friday night, along with her son Jason. Before drivers from the nearby taxi company honked their horns as she was driven off, Simon Gregson’s character Steve McDonald, George Shuttleworth from Tony Maudsley, and Eileen’s son Todd, played by Gareth Pierce, all said goodbye to the matriarch.
Cleaver stated in an Instagram post, “Well, that’s a wrap. 25 years of joy, sadness, costumes, chaos, and a memorable journey. What a ride it has been, despite the fact that I’ll be sorely miss this character. I appreciate every moment.
Since 2000, Sue has played outspoken Eileen in the ITV series. She began her career in Weatherfield working on the phone at the nearby taxi company Streetcars. She made friends with her boss Steve after boarding the plane with her tear-soothing teenagers Jason and Todd.
Sue came third on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! in 2022, where she opened up about reconciling with her birth mother. She also revealed how her family is ‘bizarrely interconnected’ to other Coronation Street stars, including Helen Worth (who plays Gail Platt) who is godmother to one of her half-sisters.
Meanwhile, her other half-sister’s husband, John Bowe, appeared on the cobbles as Duggie Ferguson. In 2024, Sue released a book A Work In Progress in which she discusses how she feels she is not past her prime, and has been a panellist on ITV daytime chat show Loose Women.
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Source: Mirror
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