Coronation Street’s Bill Roache is reportedly making money by sending personal video messages to his fans amid reports he will fight HMRC in court next month.

Bill, who plays Ken Barlow on the soap, is said to make personalised videos for fans and charges up to £51 each.

The 91-year-old has got lots of great reviews on Cameo, and this month he’s already had eight people say they loved his £51 videos.

A fan said recently, as reported by The Mirror: “Bill was the perfect professional and turned the video around in less than 24 hours. He added a great combination of humour and friendliness. A gentleman.”

Bill also made a special video for on lady’s 60th birthday, saying: “I don’t worry about the numbers. Think about how you feel and I bet you feel a lot younger than the numbers say.”

He joked: “You know 60 is still very, very young. In fact, when I was 70 I decided I was going to get younger every year so I think I’m about 50 now.”

At 91, Bill also offers videos for £45 on another site, Celeb VM, telling his fans: “I find it wonderful to be part of making somebody’s day. I’ll send a message to anyone about anything at all.”

A happy customer named Carole shared: “We haven’t shown the video to my mum yet as it’s not her birthday for a few weeks, but she will absolutely love it. William did a great job, added some personal touches and my mum will be thrilled. Thanks a lot.”

It comes as the actor is said to owe the taxman almost £550,000, following recent reports he is facing bankruptcy. He has had a petition filed against him by HMRC, despite him earning £250,000 per year on the ITV soap.

It is understood that Bill initially owed £588,015.18 and entered an agreement in 2018 to clear it. However, according to The Sun, court papers show that he has paid just £41,666.65 of the hefty bill so far.

HMRC does not comment on individual cases, but previously said of the matter: “We take a supportive approach to dealing with customers who have tax debts, and do everything we can to help those who engage with us to get out of debt, such as offering instalment plans. We only petition for bankruptcy as a last resort.”

A spokesperson for Coronation Street also said: “We’re really sorry to hear of Bill’s financial situation. Bill has an ongoing contract with Coronation Street and remains a much-loved member of the cast.”