"Famine" - New Longton's Cold Feet & Corrie star hasn't worked for 6 months - here's what he thinks of Netflix
The star said it’s ‘feast and famine’ in the acting world.
TV star John Thomson has revealed he’s not had an acting job for six months - and points the finger at subscription services such as Netflix and Disney+.
Mr Thomson, who was raised in New Longton, and attended All Hallow’s Catholic High School in Penwortham, is best-known for playing Pete Gifford in ITV’s Cold Feet, as well as Jesse Chadwick in Coronation Street, notably serving as part of the exit storyline for Gail Platt in December 2024.
He’s also been part of the Fast Show, Men Behaving Badly, Silent Witness and in an episode of the Art Detectives, but he says that recently, work has dried up and said the ever-changing landscape of television is making life trickier for actors.
Speaking on the Scary Clown Deep Dive Podcast, the 57-year-old said: “Not this year I’m not [busy]. Last year was feast, this year is famine. I haven't done a single acting job for six months. It’s hard now. No one’s got any money, that’s the problem. For commercial stations that rely on advertising, everyone has switched to platforms so they just pay subscriptions."
He added: "If you wanted to advertise your product, why would you pick a commercial station that people are tuning out of? You're not getting the views.”
Cold Feet
Mr Thomson has previously hinted that Cold Feet – which first aired in 1997 before being brought back for a reboot in 2016 – could be set for a comeback. According to The Sun, during an appearance on Gaby Roslin’s podcast with his co-stars Fay Ripley and James Nesbitt, he said: “As far as I am concerned on a business model level you should supply on demand really so I don’t know what they are doing…
“I’ve already teased the idea, because of the success of Gavin and Stacey and their reunited Christmas special it would be better to test the water with a Christmas special.”