Rockers Status Quo get involved in a brawl which nearly puts an end to their careers.

But fans of the band need not worry - it was all an act for an explosive storyline in ITV soap Coronation Street.

The exact details of the plot have been kept under wraps but the band's fictional roadie - alias Brighton actor Ralph Brown - has lifted the lid on the extraordinary plot which has every Corrie fan's tongue wagging.

Viewers will see Ralph tonight as he joins Francis Rossi, Rick Parfitt and the rest of the Quo at Manchester's most famous pub, The Rover's Return.

The group stops at the bar while on tour, settling in for a drink to the amazement of regulars Jack and Vera Duckworth, Deidre Barlow and Les Battersby.

Les tricks them into playing at his wedding to fiance Cilla.

Ralph 48, from Kemp Town, who is best known for his role as Danny in Withnail And I, said: "This part was tailor-made for me because the first group I ever played in as a 16-year-old did Quo numbers.

"It was an honour to be asked to do the part and I think the band were really thrilled to be in the Rovers because it is such an iconic place.

"They really enjoyed themselves although Rick couldn't stop smiling on camera so I was trying to give them a few tips."

Status Quo arrived on the Manchester set with members of their real-life tour crew including technician Andrew Carman, 45, nicknamed Toot, originally from Bexhill.

But Mr Carman was unimpressed by Ralph's performance.

He said: "Ralph painted the archetypal picture of a roadie, with long-hair and a cigarette hanging out of the side of his mouth but that is very much the exception to the rule these days."

But he gave the thumbs-up to Rossi and co.

He said: "Coronation Street is a national institution, a bit like the Quo, but the group were still a bit nervous about it and spent a fair time reading their scripts."

Ralph is shooting his final scenes for the show before travelling to Hungary to star in a fantasy fiction movie.

His roadie role is a revival of a previous part alongside Mike Myers in Wayne's World 2.

But even his Hollywood experience could not compare to a Coronation Street wedding.

He said: "The wedding dress is very ghetto fabulous.

"It is the Quo's 40th anniversary this year and Coronation Street's 45th. It was two massive institutions coming together with me squashed in the middle."