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  "path": "/celebrity/itv-coronation-street-keith-duffy-return",
  "publishedAt": "2026-05-23T05:30:02.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.gbnews.com",
  "tags": [
    "Zingo Bingo",
    "Boyzone singer Keith Duffy blasts modern censorship as he fumes comedies are 'way too woke'",
    "Bev Turner lets rip on education department over viral Gemma Collins campaign: 'Should be ashamed!'",
    "Dame Caroline Dinenage demands explanations over Married At First Sight welfare concerns",
    "The GB News Editorial Charter"
  ],
  "textContent": "\n\n\nKeith Duffy has revealed why he will “never” return to Coronation Street, despite fans continuing to remember his character Kieran McCarthy more than a decade after he left the cobbles.\n\nSpeaking exclusively to GB News, the former Boyzone star admitted he still holds deep affection for the ITV soap, but said the programme has changed too much for him to consider a comeback.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nAsked whether he would ever return if the right storyline came along, Mr Duffy said: “No... and the reason for that is, I had a super amazing time in Coronation Street, but I left there over 14 years ago.\n\n\"I was in Corrie on and off for 10 years, but it’s 14 years since I was there, and since the time I left, they’ve moved venue from Quay Street, Manchester, over to Media City in Salford Quays. So it’s a whole new place now.”\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nTRENDING\n\nStories\n\nVideos\n\nYour Say\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nThe singer and actor first joined the soap in 2002 as mechanic Kieran McCarthy and remained a fan favourite throughout his decade-long stint on the programme.\n\nThe 50-year-old reflected emotionally on the legendary cast members he worked with during what many viewers regard as a golden era for the soap.\n\n“All the actors I was fortunate enough to work with, like the icons of the show, like Mike Baldwin, Jack Duckworth, Vera Duckworth, Deirdre Barlow, Fred Elliott, Betty Driver, all the iconic characters.\n\n\"I worked with them all, and they’re all gone now,” he said, on behalf of Zingo Bingo.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n“You look at Corrie now, I don’t recognise anybody anymore, so it wouldn’t feel like I’m going back to something.\n\n\"It would feel like I’m starting something new again.”\n\nMr Duffy admitted he would rather preserve his memories of the show than attempt to recreate them years later.\n\n“I kind of feel I’ve done it,” he explained.\n\n### LATEST DEVELOPMENTS\n\n\n\n\n  * Boyzone singer Keith Duffy blasts modern censorship as he fumes comedies are 'way too woke'\n  * Bev Turner lets rip on education department over viral Gemma Collins campaign: 'Should be ashamed!'\n  * Dame Caroline Dinenage demands explanations over Married At First Sight welfare concerns\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n“The memories I have, I’ll keep with me forever. The people I met, the memories I made with those people, they’re very special to me.”\n\nThe star added that joining Coronation Street came at a particularly uncertain point in his life, following the end of Boyzone’s initial chart domination.\n\n“It was a very special time in my life because it was very confused,” he said.\n\n“My music career at the time was over. I was educating myself on a new career path, and Coronation Street gave that to me.”\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nElsewhere in the interview, Mr Duffy reflected on how fame and the entertainment industry have dramatically changed since Working My Way Back to You launched Boyzone into stardom 32 years ago.\n\nThe singer warned that modern fame had become “dangerous” for young people due to the pressures of social media and influencer culture.\n\n“It’s dangerous for the younger generation today because it’s not real, it’s false, it’s fake,” he said.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n“You don’t know what you’re looking at, whether it’s AI or whether it’s real.”\n\nMr Duffy also criticised modern celebrity culture, arguing that many people are now “famous for being famous” rather than for building careers through talent and hard work.\n\nHe said: \"Famous people, or celebrities back in my day, were somebody who had a successful career as an actor, or as a sports person. Or it was a singer, and they've got a track record of success.\n\n\"But nowadays, people are just famous for looking good, or having a good body, or just having a sense of humour.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n\"You don't necessarily have to have a back catalogue of success in whatever craft that you were good at.\n\nMr Duffy, who originally rose to fame as part of Boyzone, managed by Louis Walsh, revealed he still crosses paths with the infamous music mogul from time to time.\n\nHe told GB News: “My family base is in Ireland... So I would frequent similar bars and restaurants that Louis would. So our shoulders would cross.\"\n\nThe actor concluded: “We get on fine, you know? I don’t have any problems with Louis.”\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n**Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter**",
  "title": "ITV Coronation Street legend shares real reason he will NEVER return to the Cobbles after iconic storyline"
}