Hollyoaks' Rob: The ladies love 'Silas'

Rob Norbury has revealed his Hollyoaks co-star Jeff Rawle, who plays villain Silas Blissett, is competing with him in the heartthrob stakes.

Rob - who plays hunky footballer Riley Costello in the soap - recently took on-screen granddad Silas out clubbing and was stunned at the attention the older actor received.

"He came out for a night out with us in Liverpool and he got mobbed, I was getting a bit jealous. All these hot blondes were coming up to him, I was like, 'I'm not happy here'," he said.

"He's a bit of a pin-up, forget all those Dirty Dens and all that."

Rob, who received a nod for sexiest male in the Inside Soap Awards 2011, joked: "He'll be up for a sexiest male nomination. He can have my longlist nomination because I won't be getting on it, you can put Jeff Rawle up. I think he'll win it."

Despite Jeff's murderous alter ego, Rob said the 60-year-old - who has also made appearances in Spooks, The Bill, and Doctor Who - was "a gentleman".

He added: "He's amazing. He can just talk for hours about the people he knows and the things he's done and you just want to listen, all day."