There's something about Mary? In praise of Corrie's Mary Cole

In terms of Corrie drama, the past few weeks have proved traumatic for the life of one of Corrie’s most blatant eccentrics; Mary Cole. Aghast at the discovery of Brendan’s long lost love letters, the loss of Dev, Jude, Angie, Baby George, and of course Norris, has left Mary bereft.

The great thing about Mary as a character though, is that she fits in well, in many situations, and with most of the streets residents. In the shop with Dev, the café with Roy, propping up the Rovers bar with Tracy or even helping Bethany with her CSA nightmare, Mary is (for want of a better term) an ‘everyman’ amongst the heady mix of the street's residents.

Played with comic timing and true pathos by the superb Patti Clare, Mary has an eloquent grasp of the English language (she’s Roy Cropper’s female equivalent in that regard) and is often full of whimsical eccentric stories of life adventures, brief encounters, school days madness and not forgetting, the regaled stories of Mary’s equally eccentric (we are led to believe) mother. Only ever referred to in parental terms, I wonder what Mary’s mother is really like, would we viewers ever meet her or is she merely mentioned like Streetcars Brenda, and never, ever seen?

Mary however, has rarely been a transient Coronation Street resident and has been embroiled in some great storylines over her past 11 years on the street.

Who remembers the camper van, the story behind Jude’s birth, and Mary’s early incarnation as 'Kathy Bates' kidnapping Norris?

Although initially a competition enthusiast and solely a friend of Norris, Mary initially joined the street in 2008 and began an infatuation with the busybody newsagent. Soon her motor home became parked on the Corrie cobbles as she embarked on installing herself in the life of Norris and eventually alongside other residents.  As a friend of Rita, Emily, and Roy, it wasn't until later years that Mary became more familiar with residents similar to her own age.

After the death of Sunita Alahan in 2013, Mary becomes childminder for street lothario Dev and begins an infatuation with him as well. Although they have shared a hotel room in the past (an innocent drunken encounter), the two have remained great friends and Mary is undoubtedly a surrogate mother to Dev's troublesome twins.

In late 2016 we also discovered that Mary was, in fact, a mother herself. Confiding in Norris, Mary explained that she had an illegitimate son. Tracked down on the internet by Gemma Winter, Mary was soon reunited with Jude, his wife Angie, and Baby son George. With an air of 'Walter Mitty' about him, it was soon apparent that Jude wasn't a successful marine biologist, after all, maybe inheriting his mother's eccentricities but in a rather more unsavoury way. Later marrying Norris for a radio competition quiz, this marriage of convenience was never destined for anything more.

With Norris later leaving the street to visit Emily in Peru, it was left to Mary to look after Dev's kids and become a bit more of a background character, that is until, she developed a wonderful comedy double act with Tracy Barlow, after gaining a job in Preston's Petals. You'd be forgiven for thinking Tracy simply humoured Mary but they appear to share mutual respect, Mary often being a confidante to Tracy, and in recent years, the florists has played host to some of Mary's most humorous scenes. Who can forget Marys impromptu duet with Tracy singing the Elaine Page/Barbara Dickson classic 'I know him so well'?... utterly joyous.

Mary also has a thing for Manchester miserabilist Morrisey and has often been seen quoting his most droll of lyrics, or singing his songs whilst sweeping outside the florist. Morrisey is the idol of idiosyncrasy so its understandable that Mary is a fan - she's also eccentric and undoubtedly a one-off.

Often humorous and wonderfully written, actress Patti Clare can easily deliver pathos, tragedy, and great humour with effortless timing and with real energy. Mary is, for me, a classic example of how a character can grow over the years, developing nuances, familiar behavioural traits, and ultimately be three dimensional and consistently believable.

With recent turmoil, I wonder where the character will go next. I tell you something though.. there is definitely 'something' about Mary.

What do you think? Let us know in the comments section.

With thanks to @corriepedia for providing research material when writing this article.

I am @rybazoxo your self-appointed cobble connoisseur and mid-week episode reviewer for this very blog.
TA-RA!

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