Bill Roache says his on-screen relationship with Anne Kirkbride was "like being married in a parallel life".
The ‘Coronation Street’ legend – who has played Ken Barlow on the soap since its first episode in 1960 – paid tribute to the similarities he shared with the late actress, who sadly died aged 60 in January 2015.
In his new book ‘Life and Soul’, he wrote: "With Annie, it felt like being married in a parallel life – Ken and Deirdre – even though we’d go our separate ways in the evenings.
"Annie and I were kindred spirits in many ways."
In an extract published by the Mirror, Bill has also candidly opened up about his final meeting with Anne – who first played Deirdre Barlow on the soap in 1972 – and his last words to her.
He said: "She was unconscious, sedated with morphine, but she had a glow that seemed to come from within.
"I held her hand. I felt a tremor and hoped that was a sign she knew I was with her. I thanked her for everything. ‘Goodbye, Annie,’ I said. ‘You know you’re going to a beautiful place.’ "
The 86-year-old actor previously claimed to have been visited on the set of the ITV soap by Anne the day after she lost her battle with cancer.
Speaking in 2015, he said: "I walked towards that set, I felt her presence because she did have an incredible presence.
"I saw her the day she died, she died in the evening on the Monday and I went that afternoon and I was warned she’d lost a lot of weight."
Bill Roache’s last words to Anne Kirkbride
