Corrie's Alan Bradley: That Blackpool tram and being married to Audrey Roberts

There's a good interview in today's Sunday Mirror with Mark Eden, the actor who played Alan Bradley on Coronation Street - and in real life, the husband of Corrie actor Sue Nicholls (Audrey Roberts) too.

In Corrie, Alan terrorised Rita and was knocked down and killed by a tram in Blackpool.

But in an exclusive interview with the Sunday People, Mark reveals his one big regret – that his career on the ITV soap was cut short.

He said: “It is amazing how many people watched. It was one of the biggest figures they ever had.I should have realised monsters always get killed. They don’t keep them on. I could’ve come back later on in life. If you jump off the pier everyone ­assumes you’ve died but I was killed by a tram, so there was no way of getting away with it. If they had left it open it is just possible that he could have survived, and they could have brought me back.”

It's a good interview, with lots of pictures from Corrie's past and you can read it all here.

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Coronation Street Blog interview: Sally Ann Matthews

It was a thrill last month to visit the ITV tower on London's South Bank to meet an actress who was part of one of Coronation Street's most iconic storylines and certainly one of my own personal favourites. 

As Sally Ann Matthews returns to Corrie to reprise her role as Jenny Bradley after over 20 years away, she met with us to discuss Coronation Street both past and present and a very enjoyable experience it was too. 

The Alan Bradley saga, which ran for almost three years back in the 1980s, was one of Corrie's biggest ever storylines and brought Sally Ann into the living rooms of millions of television viewers. It also began close working relationships with some of Corrie's most well-loved stars.

I really wanted to know what it was like going back into such a massive show after such a long break. Sally Ann said she feels like she has picked up where she left off all those years ago, reuniting with many familiar faces both on screen and off. She quoted Helen Worth (Gail) saying that Corrie was like riding a bike, you never lose the nack of it! Sally Ann did comment on some of the notable differences from the Coronation Street of the 1980s. Of course the programme is more like a machine these days, the organisation and the speed of filming has been taken to another level. She also commented that the cast was now huge compared to before, in fact she had been back for several weeks and was still meeting new faces! 

Sally Ann was very enthusiastic about the new facilities now that Corrie has moved to its Media City home, although one other big change was that there was now no time for proper rehearsals unlike the old days. We can all draw our own conclusions on whether that's a good move or not.

Sally Ann spoke with a great deal of affection for Coronation Street. She was only 15 when she first started on the show although she commented that it wasn't as big a deal back then as there was no access to social media and the press involvement was much less than it is today. Around the time of the 50th anniversary she realised how proud she was to have been a part of Corrie history and also that she wouldn't mind revisiting it at some point in the future.

I also asked Sally Ann what her memories were of the iconic Alan Bradley storyline which ran from 1986 until he famously came a cropper thanks to that Blackpool tram in late 1989. Sally Ann said she wasn't really aware of how big the story was as it ran over such a long period and gradually gathered momentum. It was also such a different time so there wasn't the same publicity around. She does remember that special permission was required for her to utter a swear word when talking about her on screen father at one point! How times have changed!

One very interesting and slightly peculiar anecdote that came out of this discussion surrounded Mark Eden, who of course played Alan so brilliantly. Apparently after the scenes in which Alan attempts to murder Rita were broadcast, Mark noticed a sharp increase in the level of fan mail he was receiving from female viewers. Make of that what you will! Apparently Mark also used to change a lot of the scripts they received before they shot their scenes so Sally Ann eventually stopped attempting to learn their scenes in advance. She added that the changes he made were always for the better! Of course Mark Eden is still very much around today (and is Sue Nicholls' husband) - Sally Ann says she is still in touch with him to this day.

Unfortunately there was only so much that Sally Ann could reveal about Jenny's return to Weatherfield. We do know she meets up with Kevin Webster through an online dating site and although he is pleased to see her, apparently not many other people are! We don't know how much Jenny has changed over the years although it's obvious things have happened to her, both good and bad. Whether she is seriously interested in a romance with Kevin or is just using him for another, bigger reason remains to be seen. It was revealed that Jenny's return story does have a beginning, a middle and a natural end although there was the possibility of more beyond that, but nothing is concrete for now. Personally, I hope she stays around for a good long stint!

We are promised some excellent big scenes coming up between Jenny and Rita (Barbara Knox). It will be terrific to see them sparring on the screen once again - I wonder what Rita's reaction will be? Also, there was the indication of some great comedy between Jenny and Sally Webster, who is none too pleased with Jenny's interest in Kevin. Sally Ann said she loved the direction Sally's character had taken and that Sally's snobbish exploits would immediately get Jenny's back up! Can't wait for that!

Finally, Sally Ann said she felt she was lucky to be given another shot at a character like Jenny nearly thirty years after first playing her. She said it was like coming full circle and revisiting something which had been and continues to be a massive part of her life. 

It was terrific to meet Sally Ann. I cannot wait to see Jenny Bradley once again so we can not only find out what cards life has dealt her but also see what she gets up to now she's back in Weatherfield once more. 

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Time to hide your cheque book Rita!

Ah, the fragrant Jenny Bradley is to return to Coronation Street. Who can forget that long, ginger mane of hair; those unflattering 1980s anoraks and her own special brand of spiteful teenage poison she brought into our lives.

I love the idea of Jenny coming back to see Rita, with one or two reservations. I hope the writers come up with something fresh this time around, while still referencing the past (accurately). After messing up Rita's character and ruining Dennis Tanner's, I hope the next blast from Rita's past is handled better. I also hope it isn't just another opportunity for our Reet to open up her cheque book and raid her increasingly bizarre bank balance. Exactly how much money did Len and Ted have between them? All they did was fix the Rovers toilets and flog boiled sweets.

Jenny will notice quite a difference in the Coronation Street of 2014, compared to when she last appeared (briefly) in 1993. She will still recognise several residents though, thankfully. Ken, Deirdre, Emily, Gail, Audrey, Sally, Kevin, Steve and Liz will all remember her and her infamous father. Tracy and Nick were both children at the time but they must have memories of it all. And I'm sure Norris will have a few sharp comments for her when she turns up in the Kabin.

The Alan Bradley saga really was Barbara Knox's finest hour. It gave her the best storyline of her Corrie career. For three years the tension slowly built with the viewing public uncovering more and more about the shady character who had entered Rita's life. Mark Eden was superb in the part, smooth, menacing and all too believable. The storyline was probably constructed as a ratings winner to combat the soaring popularity of the BBC's Corrie rival, EastEnders. And it worked. Millions of viewers tuned in throughout the saga, peaking with Alan's demise thanks to a combination of Rita's frightful gold mac and a passing Blackpool tram. 

The storyline even won Barbara Knox the Oracle Teletext Best Actress award. Them were the days!

Jenny was, of course, one of several kids Rita fostered over the years. And bizarrely, we have Brian Capron to thank for this, in a roundabout way. Years before he turned up as Weatherfield's black glove wearing serial killer Richard Hillman, he played Don Worthington, a friendly social worker who brought Jenny Bradley to Rita's door in 1986. Just when you thought the man couldn't wreck any more havoc on the good folks of Weatherfield...

So what will Jenny get up to this time around, and what exactly will bring her back into Rita's life? Whatever happens, it will be interesting to see what's become of her over the past 21 years. She may not have been the most pleasant of characters, but she was part of one Coronation Street's most famous storylines. Revisiting that one will be interesting. 

Is it too much to hope for a cameo from Mark Eden as the ghost of Alan Bradley? Anything is possible these days...


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Mark Eden in Dr Zhivago - who knew?

Not me for starters. I know this is hardly news, but for me Christmas isn't Christmas unless I find myself half-watching Dr Zhivago while cooking, nodding off or doing me nails. Only scenes I pay attention to are the ice palace and the daffodils.

However this year while glancing at the credits I saw "Mark Eden - engineer at dam".

This was about twenty five years prior to his being trammed on Corrie as nasty piece of work Alan Bradley. I must say I didn't notice him engineering at the dam but I'll look out for him next year!

My own blog is here

Mark Eden releases his autobiography

There's another Coronation Street book coming out in time for the 50th anniversary. Hot on the heels of William Roache and Bill Tarmey's autobiographies, Mark Eden's life story is now in print.

Mark played Alan Bradley, and is also the real-life husband of Sue Nicholls (Audrey Roberts). As evil Alan Bradley in Corrie, Alan was the most hated man in Britain. Almost 27 million viewers switched on to watch him get killed under the wheels of a Blackpool tram; making it the third highest viewing figure ever recorded in the UK.

The book's called: ‘Who’s Going To Look At You?’ and it'll be published on November 1st.  Buy it on amazon here.