CORRIE stalwart Bill Roache says he has a soft spot for the Queen — and fancied her from the first time they met.
The veteran actor, 90 next week, has been married twice while his soap character Ken Barlow has tied the knot four times.
But he confessed in a TV documentary that he has always held a special affection for Her Majesty, now 95
He revealed: “I’ve met the Queen eight times.
“I first met her when I was 21 and I was in the Army and we had the day with her which was very nice.
“I really fancied her! I don’t know if that’s heresy but she was very attractive.”
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The Coronation Street veteran made the royal revelation in Happy Birthday Bill, an ITV special celebrating his forthcoming landmark.
The show began with Bill’s schooldays in Colwyn Bay, North Wales, then moved on to his life in the Army.
Bill joined the Royal Welch Fusiliers in 1953 and was stationed in Jamaica, where he first encountered Her Majesty.
On the documentary, aired last night on ITV, he is shown a photograph of a bash she attended — along with a smoking goat.
He exclaimed: “This is the party with the Queen! I remember being there because she was fascinated by the regimental goat.
“The goat ate cigarettes, two cigarettes a day, and she was feeding him.”
Also in the show, Bill who joined Corrie in 1960, met a fan whose name was Ken Barlow.
He quipped: “I’m sorry this has been inflicted on you, I find being called Ken annoying, too.
“I was in Paris with a friend and a guard blew his whistle and yelled ‘Monsieur Barlow!’
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“But it’s also very helpful.
“You can usually get into restaurants when they are full.”
