Maureen goes in to bat
THIS is the moment Maureen Lipman makes her mouthy arrival back on Coronation Street – as the battleaxe gran of Tyrone Dobbs. Maureen will play Evelyn Plummer on her return to Weatherfield and was spotted filming her arrival scenes on the soap in Manchester this week, alongside Tyrone actor Alan Halsall and his girlfriend Fiz, played by Jennie McAlpine.
Her introduction to the soap will come as Tyrone decides to trace his family history following the recent death of his mum, Jackie.
And it looks like she will start as she means to continue – for she is pictured wielding a battered cricket bat at her long-lost grandson in the spoiler photos!
Corrie bosses have confirmed she will soon be ruling the roost at Number 9 – much to Fiz’s dismay – and it won’t be long before she’s ruffling a few feathers on the Street.
Corrie producer Iain MacLeod said acclaimed actress Maureen would add ‘a fresh dollop of northern humour’ to the soap on her return.
He said: “I am beyond thrilled that we are introducing such a great new character, played by someone of Maureen’s pedigree.
“Evelyn is eye-wateringly withering and will add a fresh dollop of northern humour to the show as she turns Tyrone and Fiz’s lives upside down.”
It is not Maureen’s first time on the cobbles – veteran viewers will remember her from a stint as Rovers Return relief manager Lillian Spencer, a good friend of butcher Fred Elliot, in 2002.
She was best remembered for her pet Mynah bird, Dinah the Mynah, and famously barred Norris Cole and Rita Sullivan from the boozer on her first day.
But her time behind the bar was short-lived, and she left when she was offered a better job in Marple.
Maureen’s impressive CV includes film roles in The Pianist, Educating Rita and Oklahoma.
She has appeared in TV series including All at Number 20, The Fugitives and Plebs.
She is also remembered for her role as Beatie in the 1980s BT adverts. And her late husband, screenwriter Jack Rosenthal, wrote more than 100 early episodes of Coronation Street.
Maureen will make her Corrie comeback as Evelyn next month.