Ex-Coronation Street star Hughes has cancer

The actor was appointed deputy lieutenant for the Isle of Wight last year

TV star Geoffrey Hughes, who played Coronation Street binman Eddie Yeats, is being treated for cancer for a second time.

The 66-year-old collapsed with back pains at his home in Newport, on the Isle of Wight, on Friday.

The actor, who also starred as Onslow in BBC sitcom Keeping Up Appearances, was taken to hospital in Portsmouth for intense radiotherapy.

He was appointed deputy lieutenant for the Isle of Wight last year.

The actor, who also played Twiggy in the comedy The Royle Family, moved to the island from Wirral, Merseyside, in 2003.

He told the BBC last year he was "absolutely thrilled" to have been asked to take on the title and it was "a great honour".

Privacy

The actor, who is married, thought he had beaten prostate cancer a year ago.

But medics at the Queen Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth gave the star the news that the disease had returned.

His spokeswoman Meg Poole said: "Geoffrey is in hospital and having radiotherapy. His wife has asked for privacy at this difficult time."

The actor is also patron of the Red Squirrel Trust and is an active supporter of many local charities and organisations including the Earl Mountbatten Hospice, Cowes Inshore Lifeboat, the RNLI and St Mary's Hospital.

His appointment as deputy lieutenant for the Isle of Wight in July last year, made him "the official link between the island and royalty at formal engagements".