Jude Riordan (born 11th May 2011 in St. Helens, Merseyside) has appeared in Coronation Street since October 2020 as Sam Blakeman, the son of Nick Tilsley and Natasha Blakeman.
The son of television director Paul Riordan (who has himself worked on Coronation Street), he first appeared in the documentary The Secret Life of 4, 5 & 6-Year Olds where his natural ease in front of a camera led to him being signed up as a child actor. He has also appeared in Brassic as Tyler Croft, the CBBC series Katie and the short film Hidden. His older brother Zach also appeared in Coronation Street in the non-speaking role of Oscar in April 2022.
The role of Sam earned Jude a National Television Award in 2021 for Best Newcomer; he became the youngest actor in the annual ceremony's history to win this. He followed it up with an Inside Soap Award win in the same category that November, then Favourite Young Performer in the TV Times Awards in December.