Coronation Street star Geoffrey Hinsliff dies aged 86

Tributes are being paid to the actor Geoffrey Hinsliff, best known for playing Don Brennan in Coronation Street, who has died at the age of 86.

Hinsliff, who was born in Leeds, first found fame in the ITV soap in 1987 with his cobbles career lasting a decade.

His role as Don Brennan saw the actor play many storylines which included relationships, affairs, attempted murder and kidnapping.

Hinsliff, who also had parts in Doctor Who, Brass, A Bridge Too Far and Heartbeat, was just short of his 87th birthday when he died, his family said.

A statement from his wife, Judith, who he married in 1967, and daughters, Gaby and Sophie, said: “He was restless, curious, adventurous and funny; he loved nothing better than setting the world to rights around the dinner table.

“But it was family and home that ultimately mattered to him most.”

Helen Worth, who plays Gail Platt in the soap, said: “Geoff was a lovely, quiet man who will be sadly missed by us all.”

ITV added: “His partnership with Lynne Perrie [who played Ivy], was something rather special and they gave the viewers huge pleasure for many years.”

Hinsliff, who graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (Rada) in 1960, had previously played other characters in the same programme, in 1963 and 1977.

His family said: “Geoff was a working-class boy from a family of five, who left school in Leeds aged 15 with no qualifications, yet went on to study at Rada with a scholarship and to join the Royal Shakespeare Company.

“It was an English teacher who encouraged him to act, and all his life he fervently believed in the power of education.

“He was restless, curious, adventurous and funny; he loved nothing better than setting the world to rights around the dinner table.”

He went on to appear in crime shows The Professionals and Z-Cars, before taking to the cobbles as a main character in 1987.

Hinsliff featured in storylines documenting Don’s stormy relationship with his wife Ivy, who had issues getting over the death of her son, as well as his flings including with Denise Osbourne (Denise Black).

Perrie, who died in 2006, was last seen on the street in 1994 when she announced she was going to live in a convent, and viewers were later told she had died from a stroke.

Hinsliff’s character died in 1997 when his car burst into flames in a crash off a viaduct when he became involved in kidnap and attempted murder after struggling with a gambling problem, and having a rivalry with businessman Mike Baldwin (Johnny Briggs).

When he left the soap, Hinsliff said: “I am going out in style.

“I really have to go. Don’s too far down that road now. He’s virtually a complete mental case and there’s no going back.”

Also known for his theatre work, he worked with director Peter Brook in the English-language production of the play Marat/Sade, in the rugby play The Changing Room at the Royal Court and in the comedy film O Lucky Man with Lindsay Anderson in the 1970s.

“He also thoroughly enjoyed playing the forelock-tugging George Fairchild in the cult ITV satire Brass, a pastiche of gritty northern dramas which said so much, and so cleverly, about class divides and the north of his childhood,” his family’s statement also said.

Hinsliff is survived by his wife and daughters along with his four grandchildren.