Coronation Street stars Vicky Entwistle and Bruce Jones have shared a tearful reunion and said “the memories come flooding back”.

The duo played soap couple Janice and Les Battersby for a decade after joining the soap in 1997 and took part in Celebrity Big Brother together in 2013.

Seeing each other for the first time in more than four years on Loose Women’s Reunions Week, Entwistle told Jones: “You look gorgeous still!”

Jones replied: “So do you, you look absolutely beautiful, you’ve never changed.

“I’m nearly in tears looking at you, the memories are flooding back.”

He added: “I owe Vicky so much. Thank you very much, Vicky. I’m back, I’m top form!

“The first day we met, we gelled. It was such a great thing for me to have an actress of Vicky’s standard. We just gelled and became The Battersbys.

“The pair of us were scared at first. When we read the first scripts, I thought we’re never going to get away with this, we’re going to be hated. But we did it.

Television – Coronation St Battersbys Photocall
Vicky Entwistle and Bruce Jones as Janice and Les Battersby (Dave Kendall/PA)

“We worked hard and we did it. Vicky got me through quite a lot of it. I just wanted to be an actor.

“The first two years we were hated… I think I even got told off by my mum. She told me if I did anything against Mr Ken Barlow, that nice man, don’t come home!”

Entwistle said she had promised herself she would not cry and explaining why it was so emotional, she said: “I think just seeing his little face. We did have some great laughs.

“We used to get told off like you wouldn’t believe. They’d say ‘cut’ and we’d be laughing our heads off over what we had to say or do – it was really outrageous.

“We were like, ‘We’re going to ruin this programme!’ We’d both separately been watching it for years. Then all of a sudden, he’s got to headbutt Curly and I’ve got to shout at everyone. We’re like, ‘No one’s going to like us!’ And to be honest, I don’t think they did!”

Asked if they would consider a return, Entwistle said: “If they gave us the Rovers, Bruce, what do you think? Would you be up for running that with me?”

Jones replied: “I would. But I’d only go back with you.”