Dinsdale quits Corrie

Reece Dinsdale – who plays Joe McIntyre in 'Coronation Street' – is to leave the soap as he is concerned he will become typecast if he stays on.

A source said: “Reece has been a massive hit and top brass thought they could strike a long-term deal. He was offered a massive pay rise but he turned it down.

“Executives were surprised. They wanted him to but he's wriggled off the hook.”

It has been claimed show bosses offered 49-year-old Reece – who earns £100,000 (€116,000) a year for his role – a pay rise of 33%.

Dinsdale’s character is currently addicted to painkillers he began taking after suffering a back injury, and it has been revealed he will exit the soap when his character dies of an overdose.

A ‘Coronation Street’ spokesman said: “We wish Reece all the best.”

McIntyre's addiction is one of the hardest-hitting storylines the soap has ever tackled.

He lies to doctors in order to get new prescriptions, suffers mood swings and even becomes violent towards partner Gail Platt (Helen Worth).

A source told Britain’s News Of The World newspaper: "Everyone knows that heroin and cocaine can ruin lives, but addiction to prescription drugs is rife and rips respectable families apart. Most soaps have featured illegal drug addiction but painkiller addiction is almost unheard of."