Coronation Street actor Michael Le Vell 'delighted' as he walks free from court
Coronation Street star Michael Le Vell said he was "delighted" and vowed to celebrate with a drink after he walked free from court after being cleared of 12 sex abuse charges.
The actor, who has maintained his innocence throughout the trial, was acquitted of five counts of rape, three of indecent assault, two counts of sexual activity with a child and two of causing a child to engage in sexual activity.
Watch the report from ITV News correspondent Damon Green:
He heard the foreman of the jury deliver the not guilty verdicts to a hushed and packed courtroom at the end of an eight-day trial at Manchester Crown Court.
Le Vell, who was on trial under his real name of Michael Turner, mouthed "thank you" to the jury and raised his hand to them after he was cleared.
Leaving court he said:
The jury deliberated for just short of five hours and before they returned to court, Judge Michael Henshell told the public gallery that the verdicts must be received in silence.
Le Vell nervously came into the dock and had to wait before the jurors gathered.
He held his head up as the male foreman began giving the verdicts and on the fourth count of not guilty nodded his head in agreement.
The actor cried in the dock once the not guilty verdicts were delivered and was then allowed out to hug his sobbing family.
Former Coronation Street star Nigel Pivaro said his close friend was "well" after he left the courtroom.
Asked when he might return to the cobbled streets, Michael Le Vell said: "I don't know. I might have a holiday first. I'll have to go and have a chat with my boss."
A spokeswoman for the ITV soap said: "We are looking forward to meeting with Michael to discuss his return to the programme."
He first joined Coronation Street in 1983 and is known to millions of fans as the soap's Kevin Webster.
He did not appear in any episodes of the soap during the legal proceedings.
The Crown Prosecution Service said it respected the verdicts reached by the jury.