Soapstar Superstar contestants 15 years on – body makeover, famous split and hit music

It has been over 15 years since fans went wild for their favourite actors on ITV competition Soapstar Superstar.

The singing competition saw huge soap stars from Coronation Street, Emmerdale, EastEnders and many more battle it out in the hope of winning £200,000 for charity.

Hosted by Fern Britton, Ben Shepherd and Blue’s Duncan James, the hugely popular show ran for two series between 2006-2007 – with many fans left in awe at their favourite star’s hidden musical talents.

However, many viewers may be wondering what happened to the stars who appeared on the series too – and over 15 year since Soapstar Superstar ended, Daily Star has taken a look at where the winners and runners up of the show are now.

Richard Fleeshman (Coronation Street)

Richard Fleeshman was the first ever winner of Soapstar Superstar, beating fellow contestants Andy Whymet and Lucy Pargeter all the way back in 2006.

Three years previously he had also become the youngest contestant ever to win Celebrity Stars In Your Eyes at the age of 13 years old – so with such a great singing voice, it is no wonder he scooped the £200,000 prize for charity The Kirsty Appeal on Soapstar Superstar.

After playing Craig Harris in Coronation Street between 2002-2006, the actor has become an established theatre star, performing in productions such as Legally Blonde, The Last Ship and Chicago.

He has since made a return to our TV screens however, appearing in BBC series Call The Midwife, Reign and most recently, ITV2 wrestling sitcom Deep Heat as Nick Nitro.

Richard also has a link to music megastar Elton John too, as he supported the star on his 2008 tour, following the release of Richard’s debut album with Universal records.

In his personal life, the actor is also dating model Celinde Schoenmaker, who appeared in films such as Phantom Of The Opera and Rocketman.

He has also wowed fans with snaps of his toned abs on Instagram, as well as showing off his athletic physique in programme Deep Heat in a major transformation since his Coronation Street days.

Andy Whyment (Coronation Street)

Andy Whyment has been delighting fans on ITV soap Coronation Street since 2000 as the lovable Kirk Sutherland, and in 2006, he came in 2nd on Soapstar Superstar behind co-star Richard Fleeshman.

That’s not Andy’s only reality TV stint however, as he also auditioned for The X Factor in 2010 as his Coronation Street character, as well as taking part in Dancing On Ice 2012, and finishing second in I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! in 2019.

Along with Coronation Street, he also played Darren Sinclair Jones in popular BBC comedy The Royle Family and TV series including Cracker and Heartbeat.

Away from the cobbles, Andy has been married to his wife Nichola Willis since 2007, after admitting to OK! Magazine that he had fancied her for a long time before they finally got together in 2004.

“It wasn’t too long before I realised she was the one I wanted to be with,” said Andy.

“I said in my wedding speech you just know when you meet the one, and that’s true.”

The couple have since shared fun snaps of their family life with children Thomas and Hollie at home in Cheshire, with Andy sharing an Instagram post of him dancing in a hot tub saying: “PERFECT DAY FOR THE HOT TUB LETS HAVE IT!”

Lucy Pargeter (Emmerdale)

While Lucy Pargeter might be fondly known as Chas Dingle in Emmerdale, where she has played the role since 2002, the actress also had a secret popstar past.

In the nineties she was a member of the pop group Paperdolls, who even supported Boyzone on tour and had brief chart success, as well as appearing on Stars In Their Eyes as Emma Bunton – so it is no surprise that she could hold a tune or two to come in 3rd during the first series of Soapstar Superstar.

Along with Emmerdale, Lucy had a role in rival soap Crossroads as Helen Raven, as well as appearing in Soldier Soldier and Dalziel and Pascoe.

Away from the dales, Lucy was also in a relationship with partner Rudi Coleano from 2007-2019, with who she had three children called Lola, Missy and Betty.

A statement announcing their split said: “Lucy Pargeter has confirmed she has separated from her long-term partner, Rudi Coleano, and, while no longer together, their main priority is raising their three daughters.”

Antony Cotton (Coronation Street)

Coronation Street seemed to have a winning streak on Soapstar Superstar, as Sean Tully actor Antony Cotton scooped the £200,000 prize for charity. The Elton John Aids Foundation, during its second series in 2007.

As well as playing Sean Tully since 2003, Antony has also had a number of reality TV stints including winning Celebrity Family Fortunes in 2008 and Let’s Dance For Comic Relief in 2013, as well as coming fourth in the 2011 series of I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!

That’s not all, as he has also had a successful theatre career in productions such as The Hobbit, Snow White and The Seven Dwarves and The Fifteen Streets.

Away from the cobbles, Antony exchanged rings with his long-term partner Peter Eccleston in 2010, with a source telling The Mirror: “He and Peter are so much in love.

“They have exchanged rings to show they are as good as a married couple, although they haven’t had a civil ceremony.”

The couple first met when Peter was working in the props department of the ITV soap, with Antony gushing about his partner in a Mirror interview, saying: “We are an incredible team and Peter brings out my best side.

“He is always ­looking out for me and protecting me when we’re out, while I look after him at home.”

Hayley Tamaddon (Emmerdale)

Delilah Dingle, otherwise known as Del, arrived in the dales in 2005, before leaving two years later in 2007, after leaving the country following her plan to steal money with David Metcalfe.

In the same year as her Emmerdale exit, she came 2nd in Soapstar Superstar, following in the footsteps of her Emmerdale co-star Lucy Pargeter.

As well as appearing in TV series including Where The Heart Is and Shameless, Del actress Hayley Tamaddon also had a rival soap role in Coronation Street as Andrea Beckett from 2013 to 2015.

She has also made many appearances in reality shows, such as the fifth series of Dancing on Ice in 2010, where she won the trophy and starred in a tour alongside ice skating legends Torvill and Dean.

Hayley has also made a name for herself in the theatre world too, performing in productions such as Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Grease and The Rocky Horror Show.

In her personal life, Hayley has previously had high profile relationships with the comedian Marcus Bridgestock and with choreographer Darren Charles.

However, she is now engaged to her estate agent partner Adrian and the pair have a a baby son together, one-year-old Jasper.

The actress revealed on Lorraine that she had known Adrian for a long time, but their romance had only just blossomed in recent years, saying: “[We grew up on the] same street, we went to the same school.

“His gran knew my mum, we lived 10 doors apart and 30 years later I needed an estate agent and it happened to be him.

“We couldn’t believe it at the time, and then we were friends for five years, and five years later we found ourselves both single.

“He was just this nice guy.”

Mark Furze (Home And Away)

Australian actor Mark Furze delighted fans as Summer Bay heartthrob Eric Ralby and during his soap stint, he also came 3rd on Soapstar Superstar.

While on Home And Away between 2004-2008, Mark also starred alongside another Hollywood hunk – Marvel actor Chris Hemsworth.

However after leaving the series, Mark admitted to New Idea that it had been tough finding new roles after leaving the soap, saying: “It’s a tricky thing realising the world doesn’t revolve around you – that’s been hard.”

Despite appearing in TV series Underbelly: The Golden Mile and film A Heartbeat Away, Mark added: “I haven’t worked over here anywhere near as much as I’d have liked to.”

However in 2020, he delighted audiences when he appeared on The Voice Australia, after turning to music and forming bands called Falcon Road and Stonelove.

Speaking about his Voice Australia stint, he told 9Now that everyone he had met were “incredibly talented, mostly professional musicians.

“They’re from all different types of genres and I’m like, the rock guy hanging out in the corner!”

In his personal life, Mark is also happily married to model Laurel Barrett, with the couple tying the knot in 2015.

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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk