Adam Rickitt, 48, reveals he was paid £12k last year after making 'millions' in his heyday

Former Coronation Street star Adam Rickitt has revealed he paid himself just £12,000 last year from his business, after once making £5,000 for a 30-minute club appearance.Adam, 48, soared to fame playing Nick Tilsley on Coronation Street, landing the role after his first ever acting audition at the age of 18.He starred on the ITV soap from 1997 to 1999, and again from 2002 to 2004, before joining New Zealand soap Shortland Street from 2007 to 2010 and later starring as Kyle Kelly in Hollyoaks from 2017 to 2020. During his soap break, Adam released his album Good Times as part of a six-album record deal.His first single, I Breathe Again, reached number five in the UK, and spawned the iconic 1999 music video where he appeared nude in a glass box while being inspected by doctors. However, the album only managed to peak at number 41, and Adam was promptly dropped from his label. Former Coronation Street star Adam Rickitt has revealed he paid himself just £12,000 last year from his bar business, after once making £5,000 for a 30-minute club appearance. Pictured with his wife Katy Adam, 48, soared to fame playing Nick Tilsley on Coronation Street, landing the role after his first ever acting audition at the age of 18In recent years he and his wife, journalist and TV presenter Katy have stepped away from the spotlight, running a craft beer and artisan gin bar called Dexter and Jones in their town of Knutsford.Speaking to The Times, Adam has revealed that the couple are in 'a period of reinvestment in the business and have sunk everything into it'.He explained that last year they only 'took the personal allowance of about £12,000 and then we took dividends of £36,000 to stay within the basic tax band'.The salary is in stark contrast to the millions Adam used to make. For four episodes a week on Corrie he was paid £3,500 but he would top up his bank balance with personal appearances at clubs where he could be paid as much as £5,000 for half an hour's work.During his heyday, Adam gave millions to his father when he was going through long periods of financial instability. 'He was an amazing financial wizard and was an absolute genius with everyone else’s money, he was a f***-up with his own,' Adam explained.'He was very much a spender. He would blow all his money on stupid things and not very sound investments despite earning £2m to £3m a year — and then he would come and borrow my money.'Admitting his dad was also 'a massive alcoholic' Adam said he never paid him back the £5.5million he lent him. His father died penniless two years ago. During his soap break, Adam launched a music career, releasing Breathe Again as part of his debut album. The song had an iconic 1999 music video where he appeared nude in a glass box Explaining that his own tendency to 'hoard' money is a result of seeing what happened to his father, Adam said he is now content with a simpler way of life.'I’m not angry because when I had money it didn’t make me happy,' he explained of lending millions to his father. ' I’m happy now married to the love of my life, running this place and doing pop music again.'In 2023, Adam revealed that he had been scammed out of 'tens of thousands of pounds' from a cunning bank fraud.The ex soap star shared that he was a victim of an elaborate push payment scam, leaving him feeling 'stupid' and embarrassed'.In a social media video, an emotional Adam told how he thought he was rather 'savvy' when it came to security but admitted he was completely duped by who he believed was the fraud team at Barclays bank, remarking: 'They knew EVERYTHING about me'.The star admitted he could hardly look his wife Katy in the eye after being conned and said that though some people may 'laugh' at him, he wanted to warn others from making his mistake.In 2024 Adam and Katy fulfilled a 'life long dream' of buying their 'home from home' in Sicily. Katy recently revealed the couple – who regularly holiday in Sicily – were hoping to make the Mediterranean island a bigger part of their lives and hinted at a possible opportunity to grow their business there.