Coronation Street is a British soap opera first broadcast on ITV on 9 December 1960. The following is a list of characters introduced in 2023, by order of first appearance. January saw Amy Robbins join the cast as Christina Boyd, the mother of established character Daisy Midgeley (Charlotte Jordan). In June, Noah Olaoye joined as Gav Adetiba, a friend of Max Turner's (Paddy Bever). Claire Sweeney is also set to join the cast as Cassandra Plummer, the estranged mother of Tyrone Dobbs (Alan Halsall) and daughter of Evelyn Plummer (Maureen Lipman), in June. Married couple Courtney (Stephanie Davis) and Darren Vance (Ryan Early) then began appearing in July. Additionally, multiple other characters have appeared throughout the year.

Christina Boyd 

Christina Boyd, played by Amy Robbins, made her first appearance on 23 January 2023. She was introduced as the mother of established character Daisy Midgeley (Charlotte Jordan). Robbins' casting was announced on 2 December 2022 with storyline details being kept secret. However, it was confirmed that Christina would "shake things up on the cobbles" in her first few months on the soap, with "potential for more appearances down the line". A spokesperson for Coronation Street stated that Christina's arrival would "up-end Daisy's life" as well as explain Daisy's personality. It meant a lot to Robbins to be cast on the soap. Robbins' brother Ted Robbins, who portrayed Brendan Finch, advised her "not to underestimate the feeling of standing in The Rovers Return for the first time"; he told her that the feeling would be overwhelming and she agreed.

Robbins based Christina on a woman she had encountered in real life. At a Coronation Street press event, she explained: "I knew a woman who was doing one form of healing after another, getting one qualification after another. And nobody actually knew whether she was fully qualified, or whether she was just totally making the whole thing up. That sort of, living on the front foot and staying with friends. I've known a few women like that." She described her character as chaotic and a "bag of contradictions". She felt that Christina wants people to think she is confident while on the inside, she is vulnerable. Despite her faults, Robbins found there to be a warmth and likability to her character, if she was given the chance. She stated: "she's made so many mistakes, she's probably full of guilt. In her own way, she wants to make things better but she keeps messing it up. That's what she does, she messes stuff up." Due to this characterisation, Robbins found it interesting to portray the role.

Gav Adetiba

Gav Adetiba, played by Noah Olaoye, first appeared on 5 May 2023. He is a fellow student Max Turner (Paddy Bever) meets in a secure training centre (STC). They form a friendship, and during their lessons with English teacher Daniel Osbourne (Rob Mallard), Gav is the first pupil to work out the connection between Daniel and Max, as Daniel is looking out for Max on behalf of Max's father, David Platt (Jack P. Shepherd).

Olaoye described Gav Gav as a lovable rogue. He opined that Gav is not a bully or someone who throws his weight around, but is instead "genuinely a likeable guy [who has] a screw loose so there is that side to him where people are afraid of him". He warned that Gav would do something unhinged if a character were to get on his wrong side. He is bored in the STC and wants to cure his boredom, believing that he may as well have fun while he is there. Olaoye admitted that before being cast, he searched into the people he would be working with. He discovered that Bever had won a National Television Award and "was like, 'No pressure then!'". He was at Huddersfield railway station when he learned of his casting and recalled standing around for five minutes trying to take the news in.

Max naturally gravitates to Gav since he is "the unofficial head boy" of the class. Olaoye explained: "People acknowledge Gav as 'the guy', and you don't mess with Gav otherwise you are going to have a problem. He is not an authoritative figure, just his presence and his aura alone let people know you don’t mess with him." Olaoye said that Gav's friendship with Max is genuine due to their similarities. Due to the STC being a "quite lonely and there [being a] lot of bravado around", critics liked that their friendship gave each other someone to depend on. Olaoye hinted that there would be ups and downs for the friendship, but that they would bring out the best in each other and develop a "beautiful bond".

Cassie Plummer 

Cassandra "Cassie" Plummer, played by Claire Sweeney, made her first appearance on 28 June 2023. She was introduced as the estranged mother of Tyrone Dobbs (Alan Halsall), who was led to believe that she had died from a heroin overdose by her mother, Evelyn Plummer (Maureen Lipman). Cassandra's backstory involves leaving Tyrone at a station due to her feeling unable to care for him and having a drug addiction. The Metros Calli Kitson said that her arrival on the soap would cause a dilemma for Evelyn, who has to decide if she will admit her lies to Tyrone.

Sweeney's casting was announced on 21 April 2023 and she began filming later that month. On her casting, she said: "Even though I've been lucky enough to have enjoyed an amazingly varied career for nearly 40 years – being cast in Coronation Street is, to me, better than being cast in a Hollywood movie!" Sweeney said that she had watched the soap for her entire life and was in shock that she was able to walk on the cobbles. She was nervous to audition since the show meant a lot to her and was "beyond thrilled and grateful" when she learned that she would be playing Tyrone's mother and working alongside Lipman, a "hero" of hers. Of Sweeney and her character, Coronation Street executive producer Iain MacLeod said that she impressed the production team in her audition and described her scenes with Tyrone and Evelyn as "electric".

Her granddaughter Hope finds her unconscious following a drug overdose, after promising to stay clean.

Courtney Vance 

Courtney Vance, played by Stephanie Davis, made her first appearance on 19 July 2023. Upon her introduction, she becomes a romantic interest for teenager Aadi Alahan (Adam Hussain). It was confirmed that Courtney's relationship with Aadi would be an affair, since Davis' casting was announced alongside that of Ryan Early, who portrays her husband, Darren. Davis and Early began filming for the soap in May 2023.

Davis expressed her excitement at being cast on Coronation Street since she had grown up watching the soap. She said: "to be part of the biggest TV soap in Britain, which is in the hearts and homes of so many people, is an honour." Executive producer Iain MacLeod stated that the couple will be "nothing but drama" during their stint on the cobbles. He said: "In Stephanie and Ryan, we have cast two fantastic actors as the catalyst for this fun, fiery storyline". She begins an affair with the son of her husbands business partner Aadi Alahan (Adam Hussain).

Darren Vance 
Darren Vance, played by Ryan Early, made his first appearance on 19 July 2023. Darren was introduced alongside wife Courtney (Stephanie Davis). It was confirmed that from the offset of their introductions, Courtney would embark on an affair with teenager Aadi Alahan (Adam Hussain). Darren partners on a business project with Aadi's father, Dev Alahan (Jimmi Harkishin), which leads to Courtney meeting Aadi and beginning an affair.

On his casting, Early said: "I am so thrilled to be playing Darren Vance on Coronation Street and joining the most iconic soap. I grew up watching the show with my grandmother so to walk on the cobbles is such an honour." Executive producer Iain MacLeod stated that the couple will be "nothing but drama" during their stint on the cobbles. He said: "In Stephanie and Ryan, we have cast two fantastic actors as the catalyst for this fun, fiery storyline".

Other characters

References 

Coronation_Street
2023
, Coronation Street