Coronation Street star ‘linked to Yorkshire Ripper killings’ left penniless after divorce

The actor who played Les Battersby in Coronation Street, Bruce Jones, has had a remarkable journey since his time on the soap; from being homeless and fighting alcohol addiction to a painful divorce, he has experienced it all over the years. On the show, Battersby and his family were infamous for causing chaos on the cobbled streets of Weatherfield, but they quickly became soap legends when they appeared on our screens back in 1997.

While Battersby may have been the talk of Coronation Street, the actor who played him, Jones, was battling his own struggles behind the scenes. In a surprising revelation, Jones disclosed that his problems began long before he stepped onto the soap’s set, back in 1977.

While still a young man, Bruce was drawn into the Yorkshire Ripper murders, which triggered a police investigation that ultimately destroyed his marriage. The soap star discovered the body of the Ripper’s victim, Jean Jordan, in 1977.

Peter Sutcliffe was later identified as the one who brutally murdered the 20-year-old and left her body on an allotment in Manchester. Despite only finding her body, Bruce was immediately suspected of being the killer - something he said had a lasting effect on his mental health and contributed to the breakdown of his marriage.

He told the Mirror in 2013: “I lost my first marriage, my children. I lost everything because of that. It actually destroyed me to learn that people can do that to a human being. I had nightmares.”

In March 2007, the actor was suspended from the hit soap opera after reportedly getting drunk with an undercover journalist. This incident led Bruce to reveal future storylines on the show and make inappropriate comments.

His departure from the show was confirmed in May that year, with his contract ending in September. After leaving Corrie, Bruce tried his hand at stand-up comedy in Benidorm and even appeared on reality TV programmes like Celebrity Wife Swap with singer Sinitta. However, it was his appearance on the BBC One show Famous, Rich and Homeless in 2009 that revealed his personal struggles.

Viewers were stunned to learn that the beloved actor had spent all of his £1,000,000 fortune and had not received any work offers since his last appearance on Coronation Street two years earlier. Reports emerged that he was living alone in a caravan in North Wales in May 2010 and had lost his £500,000 house in Cheshire due to missed payments.

In recent years, he has made a U-turn with his acting career turning to professional wrestling which admittedly has given him a new lease of life.