Coronation Street David Platt star's exit admission and career announcement as fans 'start to worry'

Jack P Shepherd is renowned as a Coronation Street legend. The soap star has been at the centre of the long running soap's most dramatic storylines since he joined the cast as David Platt in 2000.

Jack's onscreen counterpart has undergone an incredible transformation since his days as the troubled youngster who tormented his family throughout his first decade on the show. David has since married Shona Turner on the show - and the character has matured over the years in a father figure as his storylines now focus on trying to keep his son, Max Turner, on the right path.

However, he was embroiled in an entirely different kind of family drama this week when Nick Tilsley and Toyah Battersby's affair was finally rumbled by Leanne Battersby. David warned Nick to put an end to the affair in Wednesday's episode after he was nearly caught red-handed by Shona.

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His fears were realised at Max's 18th birthday party when Leanne marched into the bistro to confront her cheating partner. Away from the screen, Jack's life is fortunately a lot more settled than his onscreen counterpart and he regularly shares updates with his 395,000 Instagram followers.

He took to the social media platform this week to share an adorable throwback from before he joined the Cobbles. He shared an old school photo, alongside the caption: "Age 8."

Jack's onscreen wife Shona is played by Julia Goulding, who swooned over the update. She took to the comments and said: "Stop it! Lil cutie." Former Corrie star, Catherine Tyldesley, added: "Omg stop."

Jack enjoys a close friendship with many of his co-stars away from the screen with Tina O'Brien, Alan Halsall and Samia Longchambon being some of the celebrity names to have liked the post. Although David and Nick may have clashed in this week's episodes, Jack's relationship with Ben Price away from the screen couldn't be more different.

The actors are close friends and host the On The Sofa podcast together, alongside Colson Smith, who plays Craig Tinker. The actors thrilled fans this week when they confirmed the podcast had returned for a new season.

A joint announcement said: "WE’RE BACK AND BIGGER THAN EVER! You can now listen to us THREE times a week!" Fans took to the comments and were thrilled after the update. Sarah said: "About time...I was starting to worry!" Val added: "How did I not know this?! I'm going to go find it"

Nicola commented: "Glad ya back boys missed you." Lily posted: "So happy you’re all back!!!" Bev posted: "Can’t wait ,missed you so much over the summer. "

Colson has undergone a hair transplant ahead of the new season and Jack has previously admitted having the same procedure in 2019. Jack bravely opened up on the pressures of being in the limelight as he admitted his confidence plummeted to the point he considered quitting the show and acting altogether.

He told his Instagram followers: "I decided to get it done as it was affecting my mental health. To the point where I considered giving up acting and not being in the public eye."

Jack underwent a second operation a year later and hit back at internet trolls for their "hurtful" comments. He added: "I know some people will say that I am being incredibly vain having a second hair transplant so quickly after the first one. All I can say to that was that I needed to do it for my long-term mental well-being. I have been in Corrie for 20 years now - ever since I was 12.

“I know I have been incredibly lucky and love working with such a fantastic group of actors but the relentless schedules take their toll on your mental health, particularly when you have been through as much trauma as David Platt. People pick over your appearance on social media every day and some of those comments really hurt."

Jack is now happier than ever on the soap and is looking forward to what comes next for David. He previously told the ECHO that his character's versatility is key to his longevity in the show.

He said: "In order to keep the character in the show he couldn't be bad all the time. He was quite bad when he was in his teens and the show wanted to keep hold of the character so they had to ultimately stop that character being bad. You can always understand his behaviour and understand the reasons for his behaviour."

He added: "He's a proper mix and he can be be quite funny. People like to laugh I suppose and they can relate to him. He also has his struggles which I think people can relate to as well. He's a loveable rogue."

Jack spoke to the ECHO at the grand unveiling of his waxwork double at Madame Tussauds. He was joined by his proud mum, Janet, and long-term partner, Hanni Treweek.

Jack and Hanni were flooded with support earlier this year when they revealed they are now engaged. Jack popped the question on a luxury trip to Zanzibar as he they shared a joint post on Instagram to confirm the happy news.

The couple met behind the scenes on the show before they started dating in 2017 and Jack described her as his "soulmate". He told OK!: "We met at Corrie but we only really knew each other to say hello to at work. Then our mutual friends got married and we were both guests at the wedding.

"We got chatting. I made Hanni laugh. We had a couple of drinks and we flirted. That was it." Jack was previously in a relationship with his childhood sweetheart, Lauren Shippey, who he shares two children with named Reuben and Nyla.