Will Mellor won plaudits for his recent role in Mr Bates Vs The Post Office, but the Coronation Street actor admits that celebrating alongside his stellar castmates gave him imposter syndrome
WORDS: JEN PHARO PHOTOS: STUDIO PORTRAITS COURTESY OF COTTON TRADERS, LORNA ROACH PHOTOGRAPHY/OK! MAGAZINE, ITV, BBC/GUY LEVY
THE ENTERTAINER
It’s been a chaotic start to the year for Will Mellor – and he couldn’t be more thrilled. The actor thrives on drama and reveals that he’s at his happiest when everything is going on around him. “I’m very grateful for it,” grins Will, 47, who has spoken bravely about his battles with depression in the past. “I like chaos. When I’m busy, in my head, I’m alright.”
The latest round of chaos has been induced by the overwhelming success of the drama Mr Bates Vs The Post Office, in which Will stars as wronged sub-postmaster Lee Castleton. The ITV megahit has captured the public’s imagination and not a day goes by where fans don’t congratulate him on his performance.
On top of that, he has just finished filming his latest stint as that conniving Coronation Street drug dealer Harvey Gaskell, and now he’s whisking his wife Michelle and their children Jayden, 19, and Renee, 15, away for some well-deserved quality time together.
While he loves the mayhem, Will – who previously admitted he struggles when he’s out of work and has too much time to himself – also knows he needs to take breaks too.
“We’re going on holiday with the kids,” he says. “It’s some time with the family. It’s been a chaotic start to the year so I think I’ve earned a little break with my family.”
Will met dancer Michelle when they starred together in the stage musical Oh, What A Night in 1999, and they have been happily married since 2007.
His family has always been his first priority, and he found himself strongly relating to his Mr Bates Vs The Post Office character Lee, who was prosecuted and declared bankrupt when all he had done was try to honestly provide for his brood.
“I wanted to get that journey right,” explains Will. “And being a dad, I can relate to that feeling of ‘all I want to do is protect my family’. I enjoy that responsibility as a dad and a husband to provide for my family, and to lose that and feel like it was my fault… I’ve had similar things happen to me where I’ve made a decision and it hasn’t gone right and I’m thinking, ‘God
