Act your age!

Amidst the news today about the dropping of Kate Redford from playing Bethany Platt after the age scandal, there has been an online argument - was it the right decision or is it just a hoo-ha over nothing?

I agree with the ones that feel it is the right thing to drop the actress. Not that there's anything morally wrong with someone acting a younger or older character than themselves, but I feel that it would insult the audience if you have someone who isn't close to the age of the character they're playing. Some sources say her agency was at fault so who knows.

I think it's more important when it comes to actors portraying children. While children mature earlier now that they once did in their attitude and understanding of life, the physical side of their development is still the same. And I think Corrie and other soaps should reflect that. Children on the Street were few and far between in the early years and didn't play a big role in storylines. Then suddenly you had the Platt and Webster children popping up and you had the same actors playing them from their birth until they were around 9 or 10 years old. When they werere-cast, some of the actors were older than the character but not much. The biggest issue was the fact that Tina O'Brien was 17 when she was cast as 13 year old Sarah Lou. 

Now a four year difference wouldn't matter if the character was in their 20s or older, but the teenage years are the ones where the human body goes through its biggest changes and there is no doubt that a 17 year old girl looks different to when she was 13. But Corrie back then got away with it. 

This kind of thing can cause the actor/actress problems. If they're over 18 and acting a child in a well-known show, then if they're seen out clubbing and drinking, they are scrutinised by the public and on social media. It happened too poor old Jennifer Moss as far back as the 1960s. When she was cast as 11 year old Lucille Hewitt back in 1960, Moss was approaching her 16th birthday. When seen out partying with the rest of the cast, Moss was judged for under-age drinking, despite her being old enough. Fame and fortune ruined her life and led her to alcoholism and drug abuse which in time led to her dismissal in 1974. Yes, it was a different age and probably today she would've had support and help.

On the other hand, Helen Worth was 23 when she was cast as 16 year old Gail Potter in 1974. But the difference was I think that Gail had reached that mature age and the difference between a 16 year old and a 23 year old isn't that much in maturity. Well, I don't think so anyway and so maybe the casting directors were overlooked with the little difference between a 19 year old and 25 year old. But alas, would it be right to cast a 19 year old to play a girl who's just entering her teen years? Would if be fair on her?

I think it was the right decision to drop Kate Redford and let's hope they have a back-up actress to turn to, and someone who is closer to Bethany's age. 

We'll see!

Do you agree or disagree with me?

by Llifon

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Corrie Originals - Jennifer Moss as Lucille Hewitt

First appeared: 21st December 1960

Last appeared: 1st July 1974

Jennifer Moss played the role of Lucille Hewitt between 1960 and 1974, a role that saw her blossom from a child to a young woman.

Born in Wigan in Lancashire in 1945, Moss achieved early fame as a child actor. In 1957, she appeared on the BBC’s Children’s Hour alongside Corrie creator Tony Warren. She made appearances in various productions and made her TV debut in 1960 on the BBC Sunday Night Play. The same year she was cast in the role of 11 year old Lucille Hewitt in new drama serial Coronation Street. Moss had to play a character that was four years her junior and this ultimately plagued her lifestyle throughout the 1960s. In 1963, an 18 year old Jennifer Moss was scrutinised by the press for partying – Lucille was only 15 so they thought Moss was underage. Debuting in the fourth episode, Lucille’s storylines included being put in an orphanage; adjusting to dad Harry’s marriage to Concepta and their son Christopher; being taken in by the Walkers when her dad and Concepta left for Ireland; developing a crush on Ray Langton; becoming briefly engaged to Alistair Bradshaw in 1966; losing her father when he was crushed by a van; joining a hippie commune; becoming engaged to Gordon Clegg but he jilted her; being taken on in various jobs; and embarked on a relationship with a married man. During a break from the show in 1963, Moss embarked on a brief singing career.

By the late 1960s and early 1970s, Moss had become an alcoholic and made unruly behaviour on set. This led producer Susi Hush to sack Moss from the role and Lucille was said to have visited her stepmother Concepta in Ireland and never returned. Overall, she appeared in a total of 756 episodes. Fame and fortune had ruined Moss’ life and also her father Reg’s death deeply affected her. She successfully battled alcoholism after her dismissal and became sober in 1978. She failed to secure an acting role until 1989 when she starred in Bread’s Christmas special episode. Eight years later she appeared in Hetty Wainthropp Investigates, starring alongside Patricia Routledge. She made her final TV appearance in Life after the Street in 2001, a programme looking on former Corrie actors’ lives after their departure from the serial. She died five years later in Dunfermline, Scotland aged 61. She had struggled to move on after her father’s death and made a pilgrimage to India in 2006 where she finally came to terms with her loss.

She was married five times: to Peter Hampson, Adrian Glick, John Neill, Paul Howard and Stephen Ramsden. She had three children: Naomi Ruth (with Hampson), Sarah (with Glick), Marcus (with Glick, d. 1975 aged 3 weeks). But with Moss’ alcoholism, the children suffered and were taken into care many times. Both daughters managed to rebuild their relationships with their mother in the coming years. Moss spent the rest of her days stamp collecting. Although Moss died, Lucille’s fate hasn’t been addressed in Coronation Street. I’d like to think she still resides in Ireland, looking after Concepta with half-brother Christopher. Or maybe she’s married an Irishman?

Did you ever see or meet Jennifer Moss? Do you have any pieces of trivia about her?

Research from Wikipedia, Corriepedia, Corrie Net and IMDB.

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Corrie's first wild child

Jennifer Moss played Corrie's first wild child teenager Lucille Hewitt back in the 1960 and 70s. As well as being an actress, she recorded a couple of pop hits which have been re-released on a compilation CD called Joe Meeks' Girls.

Corrie fan Theo Morgan has kindly uploaded some of Jennifer's songs for fans to listen to, for free. If you liked the Sunny Jim sing-a-long, you might just like these ones too. To listen to Jennifer singing Hobbies, click here and singing Big Boys, click here.

Sadly, Jennifer Moss passed away in 2006. You can read all about her life right here.