New! Corrie fan book on Coronation Street Barmaids

Coronation Strreet fan and writer Richard Kirby has compiled an online book looking back at the Coronation Street barmaids who had worked in the Rovers. Each piece is nterspersed with a more detailed piece covering a story from each decade since the 1960s. 

Richard tell us: " I have decided it might be a nice idea to upload the content to my website in the hope that people who enjoy Corrie can have a little trip down memory lane. The first few chapters are already available and the rest will follow over the next few days."

You can view the content for free at Richard's website here:

https://www.richardkirby.org/coronation-street.html

Away from Coronation Street, Richard's time away from work is spent trying to raise mental health awareness.  He has completed over 100 "challenges" before taking a bit of a break for the past few months and you can read about his challenges here.

See also: Coronation Street A-Z: B is for Barmaids

See also: Christmas presents for Coronation Street fans

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What Katy did (or might do) next

Now then. I've been thinking about Coronation Street, as you do, (don't you? I do!). Now that Katy's decided she hasn't got the stomach to be a paramedic, she doesn't know what her next move will be. I think I've got an idea what it's going to be and I'm going to speculate that Katy will soon be pulling pints behind the bar at the Rovers.

It's not really a stretch. She's young and pretty. She's got a job at the gym but it's probably not that fiscally rewarding. Over at the pub, Steve is absent more than he's there and Michelle and Liz together can't cover all the shifts. Liz replaced Tina with Eva but we know that Catherine Tyldesly is going to be on her maternity leave pretty soon. My money is on a visit to New York to see Stella and they're going to need part time help behind the bar.

Enter Katy. She can work evenings and Chesney can mind Joseph. I don't imagine it will be long term, just until Eva returns because we also know that Georgia May Foote is going to be leaving as well.  It's inevitable, really. Most of the attractive young Weatherfielders in the neighbourhood work at the Rovers. There really isn't anyone else. Sophie might be old enough but she's really not barmaid material, is she, not with her cheerless demeanor.

That's my best guess. What say you?


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Corrie fans vote Betty as their favourite Rovers barmaid

Coronation Street Blog readers have voted for Betty Turpin as their favourite Rovers barmaid - narrowingly beating Bet Lynch!

Over 500 Corrie fans cast their votes in our poll and the results are announced as follows:

129 (24.48%) voted for Betty while 126 (23.91%) voted for Bet.
Becky Granger came in third place with 93 votes (17.65%).
Raquel Wolstenhulme came in fourth with 53 votes (10.6%).
Liz McDonald was in fifth place with 38 votes (7.21%) while Tina McIntyre wasn't far behind with 37 votes (7.02%).
Michelle Connor was in seventh place with 17 votes (3.23%) with Shelley Unwin receiving 16 votes (3.04%).
Gloria Todd was in ninth place with 6 votes (1.14%).

11 voters opted to choose their own favourite barmaids with Geena Gregory, Sally Webster, Stella Price and Tanya Pooley receiving 2 votes each, while the remainder of the 'other' votes went to Tracy Barlow, Sunita Alahan and Irma Barlow.

It was a close call, but I'm happy that Betty has won the poll. She's the longest serving barmaid and she created the famous hotpot. She was a loyal member of the Rovers staff and is much missed behind the bar.

Are you glad that Betty came out on top? Or do you think that the accolade should be given to Bet Lynch? Or to any other barmaid? Let's hear your thoughts!

Our current poll here on the Coronation Street Blog asks fans to vote for their favourite Coronation Street battleaxe.  If you haven't voted yet, you can cast your vote here.

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Vote for your favourite Rovers barmaid

If you haven't already, you can still vote for your favourite Rovers barmaid.

The poll closes on Monday, 15th April.

Who do you think will come out on top?

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Corrie A-Z: B is for Barmaids

A Rovers barmaids reunion



Since 1960, there have been 56 barmaids serving behind the Rovers bar. Some have only lasted a few weeks or months, while others have served for many years. Their storylines usually involve a complicated love life where they are manipulated by the men in their lives and hide behind the public façade of being a barmaid.

Concepta Riley was the first barmaid and served until 1962.

Betty Turpin/Williams holds the record for longest serving barmaid, clocking 43 years behind the bar. Famed for her hotpot, she began in 1969 and worked for 11 licensees. She became a mother figure and shoulder to cry for her young fellow barmaids and her customers.

Fellow barmaid Bet Lynch served for 15 years between 1970 and 1985 and rose to become landlady before leaving in 1995. During her stint as barmaid, she was famed for her beehive, earrings and flirting with customers. Without a doubt, she is Corrie’s most famous barmaid, and indeed soap’s famous barmaid.

Other barmaids who’ve been behind the bar include Lucille Hewitt (1967-1974), Gloria Todd (1985-1988), Liz McDonald (1990-1996, 2004-2010), Raquel Wolstenhulme (1991-1996), Shelley Unwin (2001-2006), Violet Wilson (2004-2008), Michelle Connor (2006-2010) and Becky Granger/McDonald (2008-2011). Tina McIntyre is the current Rovers barmaid.

Some Corrie veterans have been Rovers barmaids including Emily (1968-1970), Blanche (1974), Gail (1976) and Sally (1986).
 

Who's your favourite Rovers barmaid? Vote now and also leave your comments!

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Shobna Gulati on Sunita becoming the new Rovers Return barmaid

Image from PickledJo

Shobna Gulati, who plays Sunita Alahan on Coronation Street, was interviewed this morning on ITV's Daybreak about Sunita becoming the new Rovers Return barmaid in Corrie.

She says it's very daunting and Daybreak showed the VT  of Sunita serving Dev in the pub, recommending he has a small brandy rather than a large one - very funny indeed!  "You'll have drunks making passes," Dev warns his wife, jealous as anything. Shobna says Sunita loves winding up Dev by dressing up as a busty barmaid.

Shobna talks about the difference it makes working behind the Rovers Return bar, and it changes the way an actress behaves, she says it makes her feel very different as an actress.  She's been taught how to pull pints by Michelle Keegan (Tina) and Michelle Collins (Stella).

She also talked about how great it is to have Michael Le Vell back on the set of Coronation Street, which was lovely to hear.

And... oooh!... she revealed that Sunita will be puckering up with another fella, someone who's not Dev. Wonder who it could be?
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Pic: Coronation Street barmaids - how they are now

Flitting around th'internet looking for pictures of the wonderful Suzie Birchall, as you do - well I do anyway, I came across this fabulous photo of a whole bunch (is that the right collective noun?) of Coronation Street barmaids as they are now. It appeared in The Sun in 2010, in the run up to the 50th anniversary and the article also contains a few quotes from the actresses about their time pulling pints in the Rovers. How many do you recognise?

There's a key in the bottom right hand corner and if you go to The Sun's website, it will tell you who is who.


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Tina becomes the new Rovers barmaid

Nobody will be surprised at this news. Every pretty  young girl gets to be a barmaid at the Rovers sooner or later and Tina McIntyre is slated to be the next one behind the pumps according to the Daily Star. With Michelle leaving and Ciaran going to work for Nick and Leanne, the bar will be short staffed and Tina is looking for a change. Michelle Keegan is looking forward to it and she won't look uncomfortable in her role. Turns out she's worked in a bar before, one where her dad used to frequent.

'Weatherfield's Fairest Barmaid' competition

An upcoming storyline on Coronation Street sets out to find Weatherfield's Fairest Barmaid. Apparantly, Liz McDonald thinks about entering...

Anyway, the official Corrie website at ITV have a gallery of some, but by no means all, of the most notable barmaids who've pulled pints at the Rovers Return.

And just for our blogger Sunny Jim, here's his favourite Corrie woman, Suzie Birchall, when she worked behind the bar at the Rovers.

Betty to be sacked from the Rovers Return

It's an outrage. Betty Williams is going to be sacked by new Rovers Return manager Poppy, says The Sun.

But don't worry, Betty's not leaving Coronation Street. Phew. I can breathe a sigh of relief now.

Corrie's 50th Barmaid

Becky Grainger behind the bar of the Rovers becomes Coronation Street's 50th barmaid, says Corrie.net today.

But if Tina McIntyre isn't running the place in five years time and doesn't have her name above the door too, I'll wear a barmcake on my head.