Who was Coronation Street's John Stape and how is Jade Rowan his daughter?

John Stape and Fiz in Coronation Street 2009

It has been revealed that scheming nanny Jade Rowan is John Stape's daughter. Here is everything you need to know about the notorious cobble's killer...

Coronation Street viewers have been suspicious that not everything was as it seemed with too-good-to-be-true nanny Jade Rowan for weeks, and now we know that the reason she has got a vendetta against Fiz is because she is secretly John Stape's daughter.

Jade was brought in to the family by Fiz to tutor wayward daughter Hope, believing that she would have the magic touch to get Hope's behaviour under control.

Evelyn listens to Jade's sob story in Coronation Street

Jade has been causing trouble since she arrived in Coronation Street (Picture: ITV)

However it has slowly emerged that not everything is as it seems with Jade, and this week we even saw her frame Hope for arson.

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But while Jade's true identity has been revealed to viewers, Tyrone and Fiz remain in the dark about who they have invited into their home... leaving themselves in serious danger.

Who is John Stape? 

John Stape, played by actor Graeme Hawley, was in Coronation Street between 2007 and 2011, and in his four years on the soap he went from teacher to serial killer, before being killed off in a car accident.

John managed to convince Fiz that he was a good person, and the pair went on to get married and have a daughter together, Hope Stape.

The character was at the centre of huge storylines during his time, including when he had an affair with local teenager Rosie Webster, leading to him being sacked from his job, before then kidnapping Rosie as revenge for him losing his career.

John held Rosie hostage in his grandmother's house for five weeks, before being caught and jailed for his crimes.

Things turned even more sinister after John was released from jail. He stole the identity of an ex-teaching colleague Colin Fishwick, who was moving to Canada. The only problem was, John's lies started to unravel when another former colleague, Charlotte Hoyle, worked out what he was doing and became entangled in his deceit.

John Stape kissing Rosie Webster in Coronation Street in 2007

John had an affair with school girl Rosie Webster in 2007 (Picture: ITV)

Collin returned from abroad and confronted the pair, but when he dropped down dead, John and Charlotte covered up his death by burying his body under the concrete floor in the Underworld factory.

Charlotte the became obsessed with John but when he told her he would never leave Fiz for her, she lashed out with a hammer, only for John to grab it from her and hit her with it as she went to leave.

Just moments after hitting Charlotte, the legendary Coronation Street tram crash happened, leaving John the perfect chance to leave Charlotte's body in the tram wreckage and pretend that's where her injuries came from. Charlotte was later rushed to hospital but died shortly afterwards.

John Stape in Coronation Street in 2008

John then took Rosie hostage, which lead to him spending time in prison (Picture: ITV)

John web of lies got even more complicated when Colin's elderly mum Joy came to Weatherfield looking for him, and despite visiting her and taking her shopping, John eventually told Joy the truth about Colin's death and she has an angina attack at the shock of it all and died.

Eventually Chesney worked out what John had been up to, leading to him and Charlotte's parents being held hostage by the killer.

But while Chesney was locked up at the Hoyle's house, Fiz caught John digging up Colin's body before Underworld's renovations, and she helped him dump the body in the canal - just one of the crimes she later went to jail for.

Coronation Street 2008 Fiz slaps John Stape

Fiz went to prison forJohn's crimes (Picture: ITV)

After going on the run, John finally came back to the cobbles, only for him to kidnap Rosie once again. But this time her dad Kevin Webster worked out what was going on and a car chase began, resulting in John crashing and later dying from his injuries.

How is Jade related to John Stape? 

It has been revealed that Jade is John's daughter... but with their family history relatively unknown, it is a mystery how John has a daughter that Fiz knows nothing about.

While Jade was never mentioned on screen while John was alive, there is a chance that the pair were estranged, or that he didn't even know of her existence.

Coronation Street spoilers: Fiz Stape knows there’s no smoke without fire...

What other trouble does Jade have lined up for Fiz? (Picture: ITV)

But however the connection is explained, it looks like Fiz should probably start sleeping with one eye open from now on.

Coronation Street airs on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 7.30pm and 8.30pm on ITV.

Claire Crick
Assistant Managing Editor at What To Watch

Claire is Assistant Managing Editor at What To Watch and has been a journalist for over 15 years, writing about everything from soaps and TV to beauty, entertainment, and even the Royal Family. After starting her career at a soap magazine, she ended up staying for 13 years, and over that time she’s pulled pints in the Rovers Return, sung karaoke in the Emmerdale village hall, taken a stroll around Albert Square, and visited Summer Bay Surf Club in sunny Australia. 


After learning some tricks of the trade at websites Digital Spy, Entertainment Daily, and Woman & Home, Claire landed a role at What’s On TV and whattowatch.com writing about all things TV and film, with a particular love for Aussie soaps, Strictly Come Dancing and Bake Off


She’s interviewed everyone from June Brown — AKA Dot Cotton — to Michelle Keegan, swapped cooking tips with baking legend Mary Berry backstage at the NTAs, and danced the night away with soap stars at countless awards bashes. There’s not a lot she doesn’t know about soaps and TV and can be very handy when a soapy question comes up in a pub quiz! 


As well as all things soap-related, Claire also loves running, spa breaks, days out with her kids, and getting lost in a good book.