https://www.instagram.com/p/DBlISvyOjkH/?igsh=dDB1NXg4NWtoa2l2

Former Hollyoaks actor Emmett J Scanlan has celebrated his wife and ex-co-star Claire Cooper’s birthday in a sweet Instagram post. 

Emmett – best known for playing Brendan Brady on the Channel 4 soap – wrote that he and the former Jacqui McQueen actress had ‘aged magically’ together. 

Claire’s birthday also marked an important milestone for the couple, as he revealed that it was 14 years ago that she ‘flirted back’ with him before they embarked on a romance. 

Posting a series of couples photos on Instagram, Emmett wrote: ‘44 today. The 2nd photo represents the precise moment that I really started falling for her. Despite the handlebar tash I somehow had the confidence to start “flirting” with this powerhouse. Despite my somewhat “bad boy” reputation back then she somehow allowed me too, without challenge.

Up Next

‘Then, what started out as a friend, soon evolved into a boyfriend. Then fiancé. Now Husband…. with family.

‘None of which would have happened had she not humoured me 14 years ago TODAY, got a little bit drunk & flirted back.’

He joked: ‘‘Rookie fuckin mistake Cooper… Happy birthday baby. We’ve aged magically together. Love ye.’

Claire Cooper as Jacqui McQueen and Andrew Moss as Rhys Ashworth in Hollyoaks, in a scene where Jacqui is showing Rhys her bra in a seduction attempt
Claire played Jacqui McQueen in Hollyoaks – pictured here with Andrew Moss as Rhys Ashworth (Picture: Channel 4/Lime Pictures)

Their former co-star Bronagh Waugh, who played Emmet’s on-screen sister Cheryl Brady, wrote: ‘Awwwwww I remember this precise moment when the sparks & banter started flying… magical. Happy Birthday Coops! A powerhouse then & an even stronger, brighter, magical Powerhouse now! Look at the beautiful Family you two have created! Sending you all the love, balloons & the Moon!’

EastEnders’ Danniella Westbrook, who also appeared in Hollyoaks as Trudy Ryan, commented: ‘Happy birthday, coops, you gorgeous woman xxx.’

Roxanne Mckee – better known as Hollyoaks’ Louise Summers – added: ‘Happy Birthday to a magical woman, with a huge heart.’

Emmett J. Scanlan on the red carpet at The Pride of Britain Awards 2024, wearing a sharp brown suit and cream turtleneck
Emmett played Brendan Brady in Hollyoaks (Picture: Getty Images)

The couple married in 2015 and have two children together – four-year-old son Ocean, and daughter Fiáin, who is nearly two. 

Emmett originally appeared in Hollyoaks from 2010 to 2013, while Claire joined the cast in 2006 before also leaving in 2013. 

She reprised her role as Jacqui McQueen for two episodes last December.

Since leaving the soap, her other screen credits include Strike Back, Scott & Bailey and Amazon’s The Peripheral, while Emmett has also appeared in The Fall, Peaky Blinders, Gangs of London and Fool Me Once. 

MORE : Coronation Street star speaks out on bankruptcy: ‘I just lost everything’

MORE : ‘It wasn’t my decision’: TV legend axed from iconic role 37 years after debut

MORE : Emmerdale legend unexpectedly axed after 13 years: ‘It wasn’t my choice’