Coronation Street is a British television soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in the fictional Weatherfield, a town based on inner-city Salford, England.
A soap opera, or soap for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored by soap manufacturers. The term was preceded by "horse opera", a derogatory term for low-budget Westerns.
The Likely Lads is a British sitcom created and written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais and produced by Dick Clement. Twenty episodes were broadcast by the BBC, in three series, between 16 December 1964 and 23 July 1966. However, only ten of these episodes have survived.
Are You Being Served? is a British sitcom created and written by executive producer David Croft and Jeremy Lloyd, with contributions from Michael Knowles and John Chapman, for the BBC. Set in London, the show follows the misadventures and mishaps of the staff of the retail ladies' and gentlemen's clothing departments in the flagship department store of a fictional chain called Grace Brothers.
Arthur Lowe was an English actor. His acting career spanned 37 years, including starring roles in numerous theatre and television productions. He played Captain Mainwaring in the British sitcom Dad's Army from 1968 until 1977, was nominated for seven BAFTAs and became one of the most recognised faces on UK television.
Ena Sharples is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street, played by Violet Carson. She appeared in the first-ever episode, broadcast on 9 December 1960, and stayed with the show until 2 April 1980.
Elizabeth Mary Driver, was a British actress and singer, best known for her role as Betty Williams in the long-running ITV soap opera, Coronation Street, a role she played for 42 years from 1969 to 2011, appearing in 2732 episodes. She had previously appeared as Mrs Edgley in Coronation Street spin-off Pardon the Expression (1965–1966) opposite Arthur Lowe. In her early career she was a singer, appearing in musical films such as Boots! Boots! (1934), opposite George Formby, and in Penny Paradise (1938), directed by Carol Reed. She was made an MBE in the 2000 New Year Honours.
Out of the Blue is an American fantasy sitcom that aired on ABC during the fall of 1979. It is chiefly notable as having featured a Mork & Mindy crossover, and for the debate surrounding its status as a spin-off of Happy Days.
Beverly Hills Buntz is an American comedy-drama television series and a spin-off of the acclaimed police drama Hill Street Blues. Beverly Hills Buntz aired on NBC from November 5, 1987, to May 20, 1988.
Robert Dorning was a musician, dance band vocalist, ballet dancer and stage, film and television actor. He is known to have performed in at least 77 television and film productions between 1940 and 1988.
Leonard Swindley is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street. One of the original characters created by Tony Warren, he was played by actor Arthur Lowe between 1960 and 1965. The character of Mr. Swindley also appeared as the central figure in two spin-off series following his departure from the Street - Pardon the Expression and Turn Out the Lights, making him a unique character in British soap opera.
Pardon The Expression! was an ITV sitcom made by Granada Television, that was first broadcast from Wednesday 2 June 1965 to Monday 27 June 1966. The sitcom was one of four spin-offs from the soap opera Coronation Street. Pardon the Expression itself had a spin-off: Turn Out the Lights, broadcast in 1967. There was not another spin-off until the 1980s with The Brothers McGregor, which reused two characters who appeared in a single episode.
Vincent Joseph Powell was a British television scriptwriter. He collaborated with a writing partner, Harry Driver, until 1973.
Ken and Deirdre's Bedtime Stories is an online spin off from the ITV soap opera Coronation Street. The episodes were announced in January 2011, being made available on the Coronation Street website from the 14th of February. The series featured the characters Ken Barlow and his wife Deirdre Barlow talking in bed before going to sleep.
Fanny Carby was a British character actress. She had two different roles on Coronation Street: she played Mary Hornigold in 1965, then in 1987 she took the role of Vera Duckworth's domineering mother, Amy Burton, a role she played into the following year. Fanny's other credits include Street spin-off Pardon the Expression, On The Buses, Sykes, The Bill, In Sickness and in Health and Goodnight Sweetheart.
Angela Rosemary Crow was an English television actress, best known for her appearance in the early days of British soap opera Coronation Street, as factory worker Doreen Lostock, between 1961 and 1963.
Derek Granger was a British film and television producer, and screenwriter. He worked on Brideshead Revisited, A Handful of Dust, and Where Angels Fear to Tread.