Liz Dawn’s grieving widower mourns for ‘perfect wife’
THE HUSBAND of Coronation Street acting legend Liz Dawn has spoken movingly about the final moments before her death – and his devastation at the loss of his “perfect” wife.
Don Ibbetson said Leeds-born Miss Dawn – who played good-natured battleaxe Vera Duckworth on the TV soap for more than 30 years – held his hand as her life slipped away, telling him: “You don’t know how much I loved you, Don. I did from the very first moment we met.”
Speaking to the Sunday Mirror, Mr Ibbetson, 77, said: “It still feels a little unreal Liz has gone. She’d come through so many problems, so we all thought she was kind of unbreakable.
“But she battled until the end. When she did go it was very peaceful. To the country she was Vera – and she loved that.
“But to all of us she was Liz – the most perfect wife, mother and grandmother. I will love her for the rest of my days.”
Miss Dawn, who was 77, died at home surrounded by her family on September 25. Mr Ibbetson said: “She knew the end was coming. But everyone got to see Liz. She even had a visit from her new great-grandson, only a week old. That was so special.
“After she died we all went into the lounge and raised a glass. We shared memories and what Liz meant to us. We went through every emotion and stayed up all night.” Miss Dawn made her Coronation Street debut in 1974 and became one of the show’s best-loved stars. She was diagnosed with the incurable lung disease emphysema in 2005 before leaving the programme three years later.
She married Mr Ibbetson in 1965 after a first meeting at the old Fforde Grene pub in Harehills, Leeds.
He said: “I was an electrician and I was with a friend and she was with a friend. My first thoughts, I must be honest, were that I found Liz a wee bit annoying.
“She kept asking daft questions like ‘what’s the time?’ and ‘where’s the toilet?’. But I was soon blown away by her. She was gorgeous.”