Nathan Graham is glad ‘Coronation Street’ bosses are taking their time with his storyline.
The soap star’s alter ego James Bailey has come out as gay to his family in recent episodes, with his father Ed (Trevor Michael Georges) worried about how it will affect his football career, and he’s glad the plot won’t be rushed to a quick conclusion.
Nathan told Digital Spy: "I think it needs to be told quite delicately, truthfully and with respect.
"If we’d just brought James in and kicked this off right from the start, I don’t think it would have shown the struggle for him, like when he didn’t want to tell his dad.
"We’ve been building up to this moment for a while now, as Ed didn’t know for a long time. We could have just shown that Ed was fine with it, but that’s not necessarily truthful to the way the world is right now, which is a big, big shame."
The 28-year-old actor suggested the ongoing storyline will be "a long journey", with James needing to tell his team-mates about his sexuality and potentially "come out publicly".
He added: "That would be another hurdle for him to face. Plus, would there be another love interest if James was out as a professional footballer? That’s just me thinking of what could happen.
"I don’t know myself yet, as I don’t have those scripts and I don’t go upstairs asking what’s to come.
"I just wait for the scripts to land in my pigeon hole at work. But I think if we’re exploring the issue, there’ll be a lot to come."