Showing posts with label paul o'grady. Show all posts
Showing posts with label paul o'grady. Show all posts

Saturday, 7 November 2015

The Legendary Jill Summers



I'm currently reading Paul O'Grady's latest memoir, Open The Cage, Murphy and it's a cracking book. I'm a big fan of Paul and always have been. As well as his turn as the legendary Lily Savage, he fronts the wonderful For The Love Of Dogs programme from Battersea Dogs and Cats Home and declares himself a lifelong Corrie fan.

About half way through the book, Paul talks about his friendship with the late, great Jill Summers, famous to long-standing Street viewers as Phyllis Pearce. I've read about Jill in the past but it was touching to read about how close Paul and JIll were, how much he loved her and to hear more about the magnificent lady. They appeared together as panellists on a game show in the early 1990s and struck up a friendship formed over a few scoops in the hotel bar.

Sadly most of Paul's Jill Summers stories cannot be printed as they are so outrageous! I'd love to know what they are! Jill was an absolute legend in Corrie. She was part of the show for fourteen years and kept appearing long after being beset by serious and debilitating health problems. Jill was a trouper, with a career in the entertainment business dating back many years. Fame came late in life with her part as the gravel-voiced old age pensioner, resplendent with her purple hair and lust for Percy Sugden. 


While mainly a comedy character, popping up for scene stealing cameos in Jim's Cafe or in the Rovers, there was a slight sadness in Phyllis. She was a lonely old lady who spent her days making her pension last, taking jobs at the cafe or latterly as Des Barnes' housekeeper, but there was always hope in her portrayal. Phyllis brightened up the screen every time she appeared, her fruity laugh and twinkly eyes always a highlight. One of my favourite Phyllis moments was a scene with Alma in the cafe, decrying the ageing process when she looks in the mirror, "I don't know who that old woman looking back is, but it isn't me."

Jill Summers started her working life in the cotton mills of Lancashire before turning her hand  to hairdressing. Later, she would join ENSA and travel abroad to entertain the troops during the Second World War. Developing her variety act, Jill toured the music halls until television came calling, first of all with a small role as cleaner Bessie Proctor in Coronation Street in 1972. It would be a further ten years before she was cast as Phyllis Pearce. From what I've read, her role in Corrie and the cast she worked with meant the world to her. Although her appearances were rare by the mid 1990s, she kept coming back for more and we were always glad she did.


They don't make them like Jill Summers any more and we're worse off for it. They also don't create characters in Coronation Street like Phyllis these days. Jill was a class act and Phyllis an absolute joy. 

You can follow me on Twitter @GraemeN82




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Friday, 15 August 2014

Paul O'Grady's rescue dog is on Coronation Street tonight

Paul O'Grady helps rescue dog land a role on Coronation Street





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All original work on the Coronation Street Blog is covered by a Creative Commons License

Wednesday, 19 September 2012

Can you name this mystery Coronation Street character?

Well, you learn all sorts of things when you read Inside Soap magazine

I learned today that one of our current Coronation Street favourites starred in the Lily Savage stage show: Pisoner Cell Block H: The Musical

Here she is pictured far right on this image. Can you name her Coronation Street character?

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Friday, 18 May 2012

Paul O'Grady slams Corrie musical

Oh dear. It just keeps getting worse.  After the Corrie musical Street of Dreams was announced this week as being postponed in an email leaked to The Stage, the show's narrator, Paul O’Grady has spoken out, labeling the show “bedlam” and accusing the musical's producers of being “incompetent, inept and unprofessional”

He also revealed that the majority of the cast have yet to be paid and urged Ward, who is the managing director of the show’s production company Reckless Entertainment, to “pay up”.

“That is what is killing me. I can afford it, but they [the cast and crew] can’t." he says. "I feel like screaming out, ‘Pay your crew.' That is what is sickening me. And there were people on this for whom this was their first job, and I had to tell them it’s not like this all the time.”

He also revealed that when the production opened there was no complete script in place, with the performer claiming he had to “cobble stuff together” during the Manchester performances. He added that the set was unfinished, and that cast members were asked to provide their own costumes for the show.

And even if the musical does come back to the stage, Paul O’Grady said he is unlikely to be part of it.

“I don’t think I could to tell you the truth, I have been poisoned so much. We all feel like we have been thrown down the rabbit hole, gone through some crazy wonderland, and come out the other side saying, ‘What was that about?’.”


Read Paul O'Grady's full interview at The Stage website

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Friday, 9 December 2011

Paul O'Grady on Corrie's Street of Dreams musical

There's a good interview today in The Mirror with Paul O'Grady who talks about his role in the new Coronation Street musical, Street of Dreams.

From The Mirror:

The musical will re-enact memorable storylines and iconic characters from the past five decades, in 90 minutes of high energy song and dance routines.The premiere is in March in Manchester and features Paul alongside famous faces, including William Roache (Ken Barlow), Julie Goodyear (Bet Lynch), Kevin Kennedy (Curly Watts), Brian Capron (Richard Hillman) and actors playing much-loved characters of the past such as the late, great Elsie Tanner and Ena Sharples.

Paul says: “The show is based on the album Coronation Street – Rogues, Angels, Heroes and Fools, which was written by Trisha Ward. I was sent a copy last year and I played it on the radio and I thought the songs were really clever, so when Trisha rang up and asked if I was interested I said yes. I fancied doing some theatre, it sounded like a good idea and I love Coronation Street.”

Paul is on stage for most of the show. “There’s no popping off for a cup of tea for me,” he laughs. “I’ve got a script that is as thick as Lord of the Rings. There’s a nice little bit with me and Ena Sharples in the shop – now there’s something I thought I’d never say! Me and Elsie… it’s just incredible. I’m going to be having tea with the Barlows, doing a bit of a tango with Vera. I’ve not handpicked the storylines myself but I know each and every one of them inside out. Our household were such avid Corrie viewers and at 7.30 pronto we’d all sit down together and watch it. And if the phone dared ring during that half hour my mother would be outraged. There are still big chunks of script engraved in my memory from 30 years back.”
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Friday, 4 November 2011

Corrie the Musical to be produced

After several years of planning, Corrie the Musical is nearly ready to go ahead and the first casting announcement is out of the gate. Paul O'Grady is going to be the Narrator, so says the Sun. The musical will span 50 years of Corrie and feature current and past cast members, though we don't know who those will be,  yet. There's lots of speculation but until we hear the official word, mum's the word. O'Grady, well known as a huge fan of Coronation Street,  will do a great job.

The show was written by Trisha Ward and will tour starting in the spring of 2012. Keep your eye out for announcements for locations and tickets and we'll blog it all when we know what's what, who's who and where's where!

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