Coronation Street legend Barbara Knox insists she won't retire after turning 90

10 October 2023 , 20:13

463     0

Coronation Street legend Barbara Knox insists she won't retire after turning 90

Barbara Knox is the world's longest serving female TV soap star known and loved by millions as Coronation Street's Rita Tanner.

But even after turning 90 at the end of September she is adamant that she is going nowhere and wishes to remain on the cobbles as long as she can. In a rare interview she says: "Unbelievable really isn't it? How the years have gone. And what we've crammed into the years and how fortunate I have been, in being in the Street for about 50 or 60 of them. I've lost track.

"So wonderful, really I've been very fortunate. I can't believe all these years have gone by and I'm looking at 90. I can't believe that. And if they're listening. I don't want to retire." Barbara celebrates her milestone 90th birthday with a very special one off ITV documentary this week where she chats with former cast member Bradley Walsh. She breaks down in tears several times as she reveals how many of her fondest memories are in Blackpool, including watching her parents dance in the ballroom.

She was inspired to start acting after watching musicals at the cinema in her home town of Oldham and stage shows whilst on holiday in Blackpool with mum Emma and father Tom in the late 1930s and early 1940s. "Back in the day, Blackpool was the place to go," she says over a glass of champagne. "My parents used to bring me every year from seven to about 10. Because during the war there was restrictions on how far you could travel.

Barbara celebrates her milestone 90th birthday with a very special one off ITV documentary this week with former co-star Bradley Walsh

"There was something for everybody. Being a little girl, I went to the tower to the children's concert. It was in the afternoon and it was very famous. We went and we sat cross legged. And then the little kids come on singing for about half an hour. That was my entertainment in the afternoon. I liked that very much. Maybe that was the next nudge towards showbiz."

Corrie's Sue Cleaver says I'm A Celebrity stint helped her to push boundaries

She then got lucky when a neighbour took her to dance lessons and on the way home would dream of hitting the big time. "The lady next door went for tap dancing classes. She said 'I'll take Barbara'. Oh, there I was, wow. It was in Rochdale. The journey back from there you come through Rochdale and go down a very, very steep hill and I used to want to sit on top of the bus at the front. So if you're doing that and it's dark, there's all lights on each side. And I used to think it must be like this to be on Broadway.

"When I was a little girl, everybody had a cinema, you know streets had a cinema, and it was buttons to go in. Lots of cowboys and lots of musicals [films], that is what undid me. Bettie Grable, Fred Astaire, Carmen Miranda. I would like some of that, it took you out of what you were living through."

Years later Barbara was spotted in amateur theatre and was asked to go and act at Oldham Rep then became a full time actress. "It was quite by accident," she recalls. "This wonderful director came who ran Oldham rep. 'Barbara would you like to come and play that part for me at Oldham Rep?'. Nailed it. I was about 20 or 21."

After a one-off appearance on Corrie in 1964 she worked on a variety of TV roles before she returned to the soap in 1972 and never looked back. Her character Rita has survived three on-screen marriages, two near death experiences with trams [one at Blackpool] and one brain tumour.

Barbara Knox is the world's longest serving female TV soap star known and loved by millions as Coronation Street's Rita Tanner

Arguably her biggest moment on screen was the tram crash in 1989 which killed her violent ex-partner Alan Bradley whilst she survived. Barbara says: "Having had lovely holidays there with my family I grew up and got into showbiz. And I never thought in my life I would be filming in Blackpool. It went from bad to worse, the violence started and the thieving, all the things that can go wrong did go wrong.

"He [Alan played by Mark Eden] was chasing me and he shoved me in the car. As he went around there, I managed to get out. And I've managed to run and there's a tram coming... it was so dramatic. One of the greatest storylines ever. And the beauty of the storyline was they didn't do it in six weeks. It started off with Rita saying 'what's he up to', then the money's going and various things going on and then he gets very bad.

"Something like that to take you out of the studio, you know, it's good. You know, it's an opportunity, it's so strong. It's never been done before." Referring to a storyline that attracted over 27 million viewers, she adds: "I started getting heartbreaking letters from ladies who were going through the same horrible thing and not able to tell anybody. Maybe through that story. And the end... maybe ones done a bit of good. Somebody saw Rita get through it."

The other cast from Coronation Street past and present also line up on the show to pay tribute to Barbara. Dolly Rose-Campbell, who plays Gemma Winter, says: "She is an amazing singer. Sometimes when she comes in, in the morning, she will just break into song when she comes into the corridor. So Jane will put some old fashioned music on like a show tune or something and she'll start singing, Barbara, and we join in. It's a really good feelgood way to start your day. I would be gutted if she retired."

Barbara Knox At 90 airs on ITV on Friday night at 9pm

Bill Roache, who plays Ken Barlow, says: "There is a lot to say about Barbara. She's one of the strong matriarchal characters of a matriarchal show. If she was nervous you wouldn't have known it [on first day] you just couldn't see that. She just looked so beautiful. And so relaxed. Impeccable was the word that comes to mind. She's just lovely to work with. Happy birthday Barbara, 90 y'know is still very young!"

Thelma Barlow, who played Mavis Wilton 1971-1997, says: "We had scenes, the sort of comedy ones and then the sort of angry ones and the lovely sentimental ones. We saw each other through thick and thin. We both ended up crying in the scene [when she left] and we went into the green room to recover with a cup of tea and the director came and said I think we should do it again and we said we cant!"

Richard 'shuts up' GMB guest who says Hancock 'deserved' being called 'd***head'

Malcolm Hebden, who played Norris Cole 1994-2020, says: "Because of that experience in theatre, she knew how to feed the line, it was never competitive. More often than not, I was the one that got put down. But I didn't mind that because that is how a partnership works."

Barbara Knox At 90 airs on ITV on Friday night at 9pm.

Mark Jefferies