Betty's Desert Island Discs

 

Like many Coronation Street fans I still miss seeing the legendary Betty Driver behind the bar of the Rovers Return. With her twinkly eyes and sparkling sense of humour, Betty was a natural fit for Corrie and graced our screens for over forty years as the no-nonsense hot pot queen.

There was much, much more to Betty than the cobbles of Weatherfield though. Before she died, at the grand old age of 91, Driver joined Kirsty Young for one of my all-time favourite editions of BBC Radio Four's Desert Island Discs. The show sees well-known public figures select the eight records they'd want with them should they find themselves cast away on their desert island. The premise is pretty simple but we learn so much about the individuals from their choices and thanks to a little gentle probing from Kirsty. I remember listening to the programme when it was originally broadcast and thanks to the brilliant archive online, you can listen again whenever the mood takes you.

 

Betty was her usual warm, lovable self during the interview but for me it was the amazing optimism of the woman that struck me most. She told her life story, which was often far from easy and straight forward, without so much as a hint of self-pity and given some of the experiences she'd had, few could blame her if she had. Betty's career dated back to the 1930s and she really was a phenomenal all-rounder. She was a recording artist, made films, toured the country in musicals, revues and plays and entertained the troops during the Second World War. It was so refreshing to hear such honesty from a famous face, while not courting controversy or recognition. It was also lovely to hear how much she still (in 2011) loved being part of the Coronation Street family. 

I'll be honest, Betty's Desert Island Discs moved me to tears, particularly as she talked about her early life and her wartime experiences. As fans, we were so lucky to have her in Coronation Street for 42 years. She was a true force of nature and they quite simply do not make them like that any more. 

 

If you want to listen again to Betty's appearance on Desert Island Discs, you can find it on the BBC's fabulous DID Archive. A link to their site is here

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Julie Goodyear's Desert Island Discs

I can highly recommend Julie Goodyear's appearance on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs. It's well worth a listen. Ms Goodyear has her knockers (as it were) but this is a wonderful programme.

I won't give too much away about the programme but as you would expect Julie talks a great deal about her early years, her family and the many dramatic events that have made up her life. She also talks with great affection for Coronation Street and many of her former fellow cast members. As usual with Desert Island Discs, the castaway's music choices are both entertaining and illuminating. It certainly brought a lump to my throat at times so I'd be interested to hear what anyone else thought.

For me though, there is still a long way to go before anyone tops the much-missed Betty Driver's appearance on this programme. Betty was truly a one off, a pleasure to listen to and an inspiration to us all. I can't help but think it was meant to be that she did that interview at that time before we sadly lost her.

Anyway, Julie's programme can be found here and from the archives, Betty Driver's interview   is here. You can even here the wonderful Betty sing, as she very reluctantly chooses herself as one of her eight discs.

Happy listening! 

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Julie Goodyear's Desert Island Discs

BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs showcases a wide variety of guests. Today's episode features former Coronation Street star Julie Goodyear. Julie played one of the legendary Rovers barmaids/landladies Bet Lynch (Gilroy).

You can listen to the show online here and it's also available for download here (the link on the website isn't working properly at the time I've written this).

Julie talks about her  painful childhood and the death of her beloved grandmother as being one of the most devastating events of her life. She also mentions the friendship she struck up with Sir Lawrence Olivier who was working at Granada at the time when Julie was on Corrie. He also taught her a little trick she used during the Rovers fire of 1986, how to vomit on cue and it did make her scenes more realistic.

Julie has been married four times, one of her husbands actually left her on their wedding day for the best man! Two of her choices for Desert Island Discs are Barry Manilow’s I Made It Through The Rain, Tina Turner’s Simply The Best. It's an interesting listen.

"If anyone should be interested in an epitaph for my life, I would like them to consider, 'At least she tried."


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