User:EEfamilytrees/Rowan Cunliffe

Rowan Cunliffe
Coronation Street character
Portrayed by	Emrhys Cooper
Duration	2024
First appearance	Episode 11215 15 March 2024
Last appearance	Episode 11360 9 September 2024
Classification	Former; regular
Introduced by	Iain MacLeod
In-universe information Other names Luke Salter

Rowan Cunliffe was a fictional character from the British television ITV soap opera Coronation Street, portrayed by actor Emrhys Cooper. The character first appeared on screen during the episode airing on 15 March 2024 and made his last appearance on 9 September that same year.

Rowan was introduced to the serial when he started manipulating Leanne Battersby (Jane Danson) into joining an institute, using her dead son, Oliver Battersby's (Emmanuel and Jeremiah Cheetham) memory. Also in his five months on the show, Rowan developed a feud with Leanne's sister, Toyah Battersby (Georgia Taylor).

Development

It was announced on 5 March 2024 that Emrhys Cooper would be joining the cast of Coronation Street as Rowan. He is first seen when he meets Leanne Battersby (Jane Danson) and Simon Barlow (Alex Bain) at the Chariot Square Hotel where they attend an event together. After Simon confesses to drink driving with Sam Blakeman (Jude Riordan) in the back of the car, Leanne decides to help Simon by taking him to a seminar at the hotel being held by a mysterious group called The Institute. Debbie Webster (Sue Devaney) advises Nick Tilsley (Ben Price) goes along with them as there's a wedding fayre on local to the hotel. On Rowan's character, Digital Spy reported that "Rowan approaches Leanne and offers her some unsolicited advice. Leanne is initially taken aback by Rowan's approach, but she drops her guard when he encourages her to share her deepest thoughts and feelings. When Rowan leaves and flashes Leanne a smile, she can't help but blush. Does this Weatherfield newcomer have a hidden agenda?"

When Rowan arrived in Coronation Street, he begins to manipulate Leanne into The Institute, which begins to cause a rift in her relationship with Nick. This led to Nick having an affair with Leanne's step-sister, Toyah Battersby (Georgia Taylor), which Rowan finds out about and uses the information to blackmail Nick into investing into The Institute after he suggests to Leanne that it would be a good idea to invest £40,000 in the business. Rowan, along with Leanne have also been trying to persuade Amy Barlow (Elle Mulvaney) into joining The Institute. Cooper spoke out about the behaviour of his character: "I think that he really wants to open another resource centre, so he's on a mission to raise the investment needed, however he can do that, and he wants to 'help' more people, so there might be some more characters he's bringing into the organisation…." Cooper added that he had "quite a lot of insight" when he researched into the role of Rowan before auditioning, and said it was "because I want to try to make the story as believable as possible".

On 12 July 2024, it was announced that Cooper would be departing Coronation Street. The Mirror reported that he would leave when his story "eventually comes to a close", but the storyline "is not ending soon, as the character's behaviour will worsen and escalate over the coming months." However, Digital Spy reported that Rowan's storyline was "always intended to run for a fixed period of time and set out with a clear beginning, middle and end."

After being arrested on 9 September 2024, it was believed that Rowan had departed the series, however Cooper confirmed at the Inside Soap Awards, on 30 September 2024: "He hasn't quite finished his naughty business yet. There might be a little bit more of a twist yet to see, so keep watching and you'll soon see." When asked whether it was important to see Rowan get his comeuppance, Cooper replied: "I think so! It's been so fun playing Rowan. I think he's caused so much trouble that that would have to happen, right?" Cooper reflected on his time on Coronation Street: "It's been really fun, really exciting. It's a very important role, important subject matter. Just spreading the awareness has been a dream come true. There was lots of drama on screen, but off screen there was lots of laughs, lots of love. I made some really good friends and I enjoyed it all, really. Every day was a pleasure. I felt very comfortable with the actors I worked with. They gave me so much, so it was a really beautiful experience that I'll always treasure." Cooper was asked if Rowan would have tried to recruit anyone else. He laughed and responded: "Just the people with the most money, really! It would have been fun to do Ken [Barlow (William Roache)]! But I think it's the dollar amount – the most money would have been the most appealing."