| Christoper Quinten | |
|---|---|
| Born | Christopher Bell 12 July 1957 Middlesbrough, North Riding of Yorkshire, England |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1978–2000 |
| Spouse | Leeza Gibbons (1989–1991) (divorced) Paula Holmes (1992–present) (Separated) |
| Partner | Alison |
Christopher Quinten (born Christopher Bell on 12 July 1957, Middlesbrough, North Riding of Yorkshire) is a British actor, best known for his role as Brian Tilsley on Coronation Street, which he played from 1978 to 1989.
Quinten first had a role in the 1978 film International Velvet, starring Tatum O'Neal. This appearance was noticed by the Coronation Street casting offices, who gave Ivy Tilsley, the oft-seen Baldwin's worker, a son. Quinten was then signed to the programme, for which he worked for over a decade. His pairing with Gail Potter (played by Helen Worth) proved very popular for the serial in the 1980s.
In 1989, Quinten told the casting office that he was going to move to the United States to marry his then-fiancée, American talk show host Leeza Gibbons. The couple had met in 1988 in New Zealand while appearing on a Telethon,[1] and Quinten had been hoping to stay in the series as a part-time character, but the producers rejected his offer to stay on part-time, and at the end of 1988 the decision was made to kill the character off. His final episode was aired on 15 February 1989, when Brian Tilsley was stabbed to death by a gang of teenagers outside a nightclub.
Once settled in the United States, Quinten and Gibbons worked together on the film RoboCop 2, and had one daughter, Lexi Quinten. The couple divorced in 1991 but are still reportedly on good terms. Quinten has been married to Paula Holmes since 1992, but they are now separated.
In August 2005 Quinten was charged with rape [1]. In June 2006 he was cleared of this charge, and lives with his partner Alison (ex-Stringfellow's dancer) and their 14-month-old daughter Sydney [2]