Corrie and Emmerdale stars to undertake charity cycle ride between the two soaps

Stars from Coronation Street and Emmerdale are to take part in a charity cycle ride between the sets of the two ITV soaps in preparation for the Tour De France.

Familiar faces from TV including Emmerdale's Nicola Wheeler (Nicola King), James Hooton (Sam Dingle) and Jamie Shelton (Robbie Lawson) will be tackling the route from the Rover's Return to The Woolpack.

Yet-to-be-named actors from Coronation Street will also be involved in the 60-mile ride - including en route support - which takes place on July 1.

The Tour De ITV, which has teamed up with London 2012 legacy sports charity Join In, will also feature Good Morning Britain weather presenter Laura Tobin.

The event will take in a section of the Tour De France route in the Pennines in anticipation of the Grand Depart for the cycle race, which begins in Yorkshire next month.

The idea is to raise money for grassroots sports groups and Marie Curie Cancer Care.

Sara Hanson, ITV's head of corporate responsibility, said: "The Tour De ITV is a great way that we can go that extra mile during a fantastic summer of sport and a perfect opportunity to showcase the essential role of the volunteer behind any big or small sporting event."

 

Patrick McLennan

Patrick McLennan is a London-based journalist and documentary maker who has worked as a writer, sub-editor, digital editor and TV producer in the UK and New Zealand. His CV includes spells as a news producer at the BBC and TVNZ, as well as web editor for Time Inc UK. He has produced TV news and entertainment features on personalities as diverse as Nick Cave, Tom Hardy, Clive James, Jodie Marsh and Kevin Bacon and he co-produced and directed The Ponds, which has screened in UK cinemas, BBC Four and is currently available on Netflix. 


An entertainment writer with a diverse taste in TV and film, he lists Seinfeld, The Sopranos, The Chase, The Thick of It and Detectorists among his favourite shows, but steers well clear of most sci-fi.