The explosive storylines involving evil John Stape had viewers hooked - but it was all too real for actor Graeme Hawley.
Hope Stape really didn't stand much of a chance being the spawn of a nasty murderer who wreaked havoc in Coronation Street.
The troubled schoolgirl is facing the long arm of the law after setting fire to dad Tyrone and his girlfriend Alina's flat as part of a twisted scheme.
Hope doesn't remember her nasty father, but it appears the apple hasn't fallen far from the tree as she has turned into a devil child.
Arriving in 2007, John Stape seemed like a mild-mannered teacher and the perfect match for Fiz Brown, that was until he started having an affair with teenage pupil Rosie Webster.
When John's illicit affair was exposed he lost everything, then kidnapped Sally and Kevin's daughter and kept her prisoner for five weeks until he was arrested.
Get the news you want straight to your inbox. Sign up for a Mirror newsletter here .
However, some Corrie viewers were unable to separate the fictional soap storyline from reality.
In 2010, Graeme was attacked in a pub over his character's sordid fling with schoolgirl Rosie by a confused thug who believed it was actually happening in real life.
Graeme said he was astounded some fans find it impossible to differentiate fictional life on the soap from the real world, saying: "It’s a constant issue, people giving their opinions on your character. It comes with the job.
"You become a target in bars. I stayed away from pubs during the World Cup. I thought if England lose it would become my fault."
The vicious attack, which happened in Manchester where the ITV soap is filmed, left Graeme so shaken-up he vowed to steer clear of city centre bars.
He was enjoying a quiet drink when a man suddenly started ranting about his teacher character’s affair with Sophie, played by Helen Flanagan.
The thug then got him in a headlock as his tirade continued until he was dragged off by other revellers and fled.
A source on the ITV soap said: "Graeme was really shaken up. He thought he was going to be badly beaten up by this lunatic.
"Sometimes fans can’t separate fact from fiction and many of the cast have been subjected to verbal abuse over controversial storylines.
"But it is rare for someone to take things further and assault someone. Who knows what could have happened to Graeme?
"It has made him think twice about where he goes for a drink."
What followed next on-screen was a descent into chaos as John stole his colleague's identity, killed a woman who was blackmailing him and abducted his own baby daughter.
Just to add more drama to the mix, John survived jumping off the hospital roof, snatched Rosie once again, then had a car crash and died from a fatal heart attack in October 2011.
Graeme was holding back the tears at his leaving do when he said a sad goodbye to his Corrie pals that year.
He became emotional as he told on-screen wife Jennie McAlpine: "I couldn’t have done it without you."
There was a huge turnout at the farewell drinks, which also had Jennie getting teary-eyed during the emotional speech.
A guest at the party in a Manchester bar said: "Everyone had a lump in their throat as Graeme told Jennie she’d been his rock. He also told us, ‘I love you all.’
"He doesn’t know what the future holds and said ‘If it has to be the dole, the dole it is. But if it’s bigger things they will not beat the years I have had with you guys.’"
Graeme, who played John on and off for four years, looks very different now to when he was on the cobbles.
The 47-year-old actor keeps his followers update on Twitter and in 2018 posted a snap of himself looking completely different to his villainous character - with glasses, a checked shirt and had messy hair.
Since leaving the soap in spectacular fashion, Graeme has remained on our screens gone on to appear in many popular TV shows.
John, who was nominated for Villain of the Year at the British Soap Awards 2009, has appeared in Doctors, Casualty, Benidorm and Peaky Blinders.
The actor still lives in Manchester with his wife Elianne Byrne, their daughter Audrey and son Henry.
Most recently, he appeared as Graham Napely in the ITV comedy series Finding Alice at the start of the year.
Sadly, unless John comes back as a ghost or zombie, it is unlikely that Graeme will ever make another Corrie appearance.
*Coronation Street airs Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays on ITV at 7.30pm and 8.30pm
Do you have a story to share? Email webfeatures@trinitymirror.com.
