Brookside's Jimmy Corkhill legend Dean Sullivan dies aged 68 (2024)

Brookside star Dean Sullivan has died at the age of 68.

The actor, who was known to millions for playing Jimmy Corkhill in the iconic Channel 4 soap, died peacefully following a short illness.

‘To millions he was and very much still is remembered as ‘Jimmy’, to family and friends he was ‘Dino’, read a statement from Hamilton Management and his family.

‘Dean’s family wants to thank Arrowe Park Hospital for their unwavering and consistent support. We ask that you respect their privacy in their time of grief.’

Dean was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2018 and was discharged last year by his consultant following a course of radio therapy and at the time he urged people to ‘listen to their bodies’.

The legendary actor landed the role of loveable rogue Jimmy Corkhill in 1986, four years after the soap kicked off.

Jimmy swiftly became a household name, with his dodgy antics and iconic ways making him a favourite with viewers. The character appeared across almost two decades of TV, with Dean remaining with Brookie right to its very end when it was controversially axed in 2003.

Dean spoke exclusively to Metro.co.uk earlier this year in the wake of the news that Brookside would re-run from the very beginning, telling us that he would still get recognised every day by the soap’s loyal and unwavering fanbase.

‘Whenever I go out into the public, every day of my life somebody wants an autograph or a photograph or they want to speak, they want to engage,’ he said. ‘They’re always very complimentary to me, they always say we loved Jimmy.

‘And they’re as baffled as anybody, a lot of people are asking those questions as to why did it finish. It was one of the best programmes on TV, one of the best soaps ever.’

Dean was a huge supporter of Brookside and he leaves behind a legacy that will be remembered for generations to come, with Jimmy Corkhill often thought of as one of soap’s greatest ever creations.

The star often discussed the possibility of Brookside returning to our screens, much like Neighbours did following its cancellation, telling us that the Channel 4 soap would be just as relevant now in today’s world as it was when it commenced in 1982.

‘I think it could work even more so these days because one of the big initial storylines, the Grants were a true working-class family.

That was one of the remits, as it were, from Channel 4 that the programme had to be relevant and touch on people’s lives. Back then in the 80s it was the Thatcher years with the miners’ strikes and the unions and whether the unions had any power.

‘You only need to turn on the news today and there’s strikes and the union bosses are talking about the talks or lack of talks with the government. It’s just as relevant as what we were doing in the 80s back when it first started.’

‘Brookside dealt with the issues that people could identify with when it was first broadcast in 1982 and it’s extraordinary, here we are all these years later and it’s exactly what Brookside was doing right at the beginning. So not much has changed, really.

‘I think there would be a massive appetite for it. If it does come back, who knows?’

It was announced in January that STV has acquired the rights to stream Brookside from the very beginning. With the exception of the first two weeks, which saw 10 episodes drop, five outings of the classic soap have been added to the steaming service every week.

The comeback has proven a huge hit, with STV Player enjoying its best ever month in February as a result.

Brookside is available to stream on STV Player from the beginning, with five episodes added every Wednesday.

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