Aaron McCusker plays Ben Driscoll, who according to Wikipedia (open encyclopedia) first appeared on 27 October 2025. This page separates what sourced coverage confirms about McCusker and the Driscolls from what remains rumour or missing from the record, including the Rovers storyline, the 2026 cast changes and the personal details no cited source covers.
Role: Ben Driscoll · First appearance: 27 October 2025 · Rovers Return: co-owner with Eva Price (Sidmouth Herald/PA (regional news wire)) · Auditions before casting: six (Manchester Evening News (regional daily)) · Earlier major role: Jamie Maguire in Shameless (Metro (national news site))
Quick snapshot
- Ben Driscoll first appeared on 27 October 2025, according to Wikipedia (open encyclopedia)
- McCusker auditioned six times before being cast, according to Manchester Evening News (regional daily)
- Eva Price returned in October 2025 after seven years absent, according to Manchester Evening News (regional daily)
- The Bohemian Rhapsody role of Jim Hutton rests on one report (OK! Magazine (celebrity magazine))
- Maggie Driscoll’s role in funding the Rovers purchase is reported by one outlet (OK! Magazine (celebrity magazine))
- Susie Price’s illness appears in spoiler coverage only, according to RadioTimes (TV listings publisher)
- August 2025: Catherine Tyldesley’s return was announced alongside the Driscoll characters (Hello! / Heat (celebrity magazine))
- November 2025: Aidan O’Callaghan was cast in a one-episode flashback as Alan (The Scottish Sun (national tabloid))
- March 2026: Metro reported a revelation linking Maggie Driscoll to Jim McDonald (Metro (national news site))
- Owen Armstrong returns in January 2027 after 12 years away (RadioTimes (TV listings publisher))
- Megan Walsh was sentenced to prison in 2026 (Metro (national news site))
- McCusker said in October 2025 that Ben faces difficult times, stuck between Maggie and Eva (Digital Spy (TV news site))
Nine facts, one pattern: the dated entries cluster in 2025 and 2026, while the personal details stay blank.
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Actor | Aaron McCusker plays Ben Driscoll, according to Wikipedia (open encyclopedia) |
| Character | Ben Driscoll, co-owner of the Rovers Return with Eva Price, according to Sidmouth Herald/PA (regional news wire) |
| First appearance | 27 October 2025, according to Wikipedia (open encyclopedia) |
| Eva Price’s return | October 2025 after seven years absent, according to Manchester Evening News (regional daily) |
| Earlier major role | Jamie Maguire in Shameless, 2004-2013, according to Metro (national news site) |
| Bohemian Rhapsody role | Jim Hutton, 2018, reported by one outlet, OK! Magazine (celebrity magazine) |
| Auditions before casting | Six, according to McCusker, per Manchester Evening News (regional daily) |
| Jim McDonald funeral | 11 January 2027, according to Wikipedia (open encyclopedia) |
| Owen Armstrong return | January 2027, according to RadioTimes (TV listings publisher) |
Is Aaron McCusker in Corrie?
Who is Ben Driscoll in Coronation Street?
- Aaron McCusker plays Ben Driscoll, according to Wikipedia (open encyclopedia).
- Ben first appeared on 27 October 2025, alongside Eva Price and his mother Maggie Driscoll, according to Wikipedia (open encyclopedia).
- Ben’s family is listed as sons Ollie and Will, plus Eva’s daughter Susie Price, in a single celebrity-magazine listing from OK! Magazine (celebrity magazine).
The implication: the McCusker-Ben link is settled in the sourced record, but Ben’s full backstory will come from the show itself, not from any single profile.
Who is the new landlord of Rovers Return on Coronation Street?
When did Ben Driscoll join Coronation Street?
- Ben and Eva were revealed as the Rovers’ new owners in October 2025, after Ben secretly bought the pub for Eva, according to Sidmouth Herald/PA (regional news wire).
- Ben’s first appearance is dated 27 October 2025, according to Wikipedia (open encyclopedia).
- Eva returned in October 2025 after seven years absent, according to Manchester Evening News (regional daily).
Ben fronts the Rovers on screen, but the funding trail runs through Maggie. According to OK! Magazine (celebrity magazine), a single report, she supplied the remaining purchase money. That makes her the character to watch for who really controls the pub.
The trade-off: the pub’s ownership is the firmest part of Ben’s arc, and it is also the part where the family money complicates the picture.
Who is the new family on Coronation Street?
Who are the family members named in cited ITV or press coverage?
- The Driscolls are the arriving family, which producer Kate Brooks framed as a blended unit with Eva’s return, according to Sidmouth Herald/PA (regional news wire).
- Named family members in cited coverage are Maggie Driscoll, sons Ollie and Will, and Susie Price, in a single celebrity-magazine listing from OK! Magazine (celebrity magazine).
- Ollie arrived roughly three months before Ben, according to Wikipedia (open encyclopedia), a reference that no second cited source repeats.
- Susie Price is shown as unwell in spoiler coverage, according to RadioTimes (TV listings publisher), a point with low confidence.
The catch: the family is named in some coverage and absent from other sources, so no cited source names any further relatives beyond this list.
Which Coronation Street actors will be leaving in 2026?
Which 2026 exits are confirmed by ITV?
- No ITV primary source is among the cited material, so the exit list below rests on press and listings coverage.
- RadioTimes lists Billy Mayhew, Becky Swain, Theo Silverton, Megan Walsh, Cassie Plummer and Nina Lucas among 2026 departures (RadioTimes (TV listings publisher)).
- Megan Walsh was sentenced to prison in 2026, and Nina Lucas is set to leave later in 2026, according to Metro (national news site).
- Newcomers in 2026 include Jodie Ramsey, Idris Nazir and Ross Wilkes, according to Metro (national news site).
- Marco Rhodes arrived in September 2026, according to Express (national tabloid), a single tabloid report.
Glenda Shuttleworth is listed in one tabloid report as a Rovers barmaid alongside Sean Tully and the owners Eva and Ben, so the pub’s staff is changing around the Driscolls, according to Express (national tabloid).
The implication: only a few exits carry firm dates, so treat any departure without an official ITV confirmation as unclear.
Is Aaron McCusker Irish?
Is Aaron McCusker Catholic or Protestant?
- The sourced material does not confirm whether McCusker is Catholic or Protestant.
- His earlier breakout role was Jamie Maguire in Channel 4’s Shameless, which ran 2004-2013, according to Metro (national news site).
- The sourced coverage does not state his nationality, so this page does not confirm it.
Was Aaron McCusker in Bohemian Rhapsody?
- According to OK! Magazine (celebrity magazine), McCusker played Jim Hutton, Freddie Mercury’s partner, in the 2018 film.
- Only one outlet makes this claim, so no second source confirms it yet.
The film credit rests on a single report, so treat it as provisional until a second outlet confirms it.
Why this matters: the sourced record supports his television credits, but not his nationality or religion, so those questions stay open.
Timeline of the Driscoll storyline
- August 2025: Catherine Tyldesley’s return was announced alongside the new Driscoll characters, according to Hello! / Heat (celebrity magazine).
- October 2025: Ben and Eva were revealed as the Rovers’ owners, according to Sidmouth Herald/PA (regional news wire).
- 27 October 2025: Ben’s first appearance, according to Wikipedia (open encyclopedia).
- November 2025: Aidan O’Callaghan was cast in a one-episode flashback as Alan, Ben’s adoptive father, according to The Scottish Sun (national tabloid).
- 11 March 2026: Jim McDonald’s funeral took place, according to Wikipedia (open encyclopedia).
- March 2026: Metro reported a revelation linking Maggie Driscoll to Jim McDonald, according to Metro (national news site).
- January 2027: Owen Armstrong returns after 12 years away, according to RadioTimes (TV listings publisher).
The pattern: Ben’s arc runs from a 2025 arrival to a 2026 revelation, so the Maggie thread is the one to follow.
Confirmed facts and open questions
Confirmed facts
- Aaron McCusker plays Ben Driscoll, according to Wikipedia (open encyclopedia).
- Ben and Eva were revealed as the Rovers’ new owners in October 2025, according to Sidmouth Herald/PA (regional news wire).
- McCusker auditioned six times before being cast, according to Manchester Evening News (regional daily).
- Owen Armstrong returns in January 2027, according to RadioTimes (TV listings publisher).
What’s unclear
- McCusker’s religion, which no cited source confirms.
- McCusker’s wife, children or wider family status.
- The “big bombshell” he teased for the Driscoll family, which the sources do not specify.
- Nina Lucas’s exact exit date, beyond “later in 2026,” according to Metro (national news site).
- Susie Price’s illness, which rests on spoiler coverage with low confidence, according to RadioTimes (TV listings publisher).
The trade-off: the confirmed column is short, so the firm ground is the casting record, not McCusker’s personal life.
In their own words
The Rovers Return is an institution – everybody knows it, even people who don’t watch the show – so it doesn’t get much bigger than being the pub landlord.
Aaron McCusker, interview with Digital Spy (TV news site)
The Driscolls do not arrive quietly, so expect big drama, explosive secrets and raucous knees ups galore.
Kate Brooks, Coronation Street producer, via Sidmouth Herald/PA (regional news wire)
He’s absolutely gutted, he’s been through a stage of blaming himself.
Aaron McCusker on Ben’s reaction, via Metro (national news site)
The implication: McCusker’s words favour the pub as a career move, but the Driscoll plot is still being written, so treat the quotes as a guide to tone rather than plot.
What this means for Ben and the Rovers
According to Metro (national news site), the revelation ties Maggie to Jim McDonald and leaves Ben and Steve McDonald unknowingly half-brothers, which turns the Rovers into a family dispute with a bar attached. For viewers tracking the Driscolls, the choice is clear: follow the confirmed casting record, or treat the Maggie storyline and Susie Price’s illness as speculation until ITV itself confirms them, since no ITV primary source appears in the cited material.
Related reading
The implication: readers comparing Corrie careers can set McCusker’s Ben Driscoll arc beside how Tina O’Brien and Siobhan Finneran built theirs.
Frequently asked questions
Is Aaron McCusker married?
No cited source confirms a marriage or partner, so this article leaves the question open.
Does Aaron McCusker have children?
The cited coverage describes Ben’s sons Ollie and Will, who are fictional characters, according to OK! Magazine (celebrity magazine). No source confirms McCusker’s own children.
What role did Aaron McCusker originally audition for before Ben Driscoll?
He says he auditioned six times for Coronation Street, including for the role of Todd Grimshaw, according to Manchester Evening News (regional daily).
Who plays Eva Price?
Catherine Tyldesley plays Eva Price, who returned in October 2025 after seven years absent, according to Manchester Evening News (regional daily).
Is Susie Price unwell in the show?
According to RadioTimes (TV listings publisher) spoiler coverage, she is shown as unwell. Treat that as provisional.
The catch: the personal-life answers rest on the absence of sourced detail rather than on any denial, so they stay open.
Related stories
Edward Davies Bennett is Editor-in-Chief and Responsible Publisher at Insight Britain, overseeing editorial standards, publication decisions and the corrections process.