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The Rovers Return Inn is a fictional Public House on the long running British Soap , Coronation Street . The Rovers Return occupies the corner of Coronation Street. Since the first episode it has been the prinicipal setting in the show and many of its most memorable moments have occurred there. It is owned by the equally-fictional brewery Newton And Ridley . The Rovers Return has since been copied by its rivals EastEnders and Emmerdale , who created the Queen Vic and the Woolpack respectively. The ''soap pub'' is thus now seen as one of the clichés of British television. NAMES OVER THE DOOR Jack and Annie Walker ( Arthur Leslie and Doris Speed ) Jack and Annie ran the Rovers when newly Married in 1937 . Jack was away from the pub for some time on Army duty, leaving Annie to run things by herself. The pair were considered very different. Jack, a broad, northern speaking man (the phrase "Eeee Annie" heard on many occasion), was no different from his customers, whilst Annie was a snobbish, well spoken lady. Despite this, the pair were inseparable until Jack's untimely death in 1970 whilst on holiday. (This was due to the sudden death of Arthur Leslie offscreen.) Considered by many to be the best landlord of them all, Annie Walker held the reins at the Rovers for 13 years. Viewed as snobbish by the likes of Hilda Ogden she ran the pub with class and stood no nonsence. In 1975 she was held up in her bedroom by two young thieves. After refusing to reveal where she kept her money, they fled, receiving a beating in the yard courtesy of Ray Langton and Len Fairclough . Though calm throughout, this ordeal caused Annie to collapse later. The brewery had heard rumours that she was becoming an absentee landlady, something which she had always feared. She did not like to feel detached from her duties and was always free to speak to customers and develop friendships with the staff, in particular Bet Lynch and Betty Turpin . She continued her tenancy till 1983 before passing the baton to her son Billy . Billy Walker ( Kenneth Farrington ) Wayward son of Annie, Billy Walker first appeared in Coronation Street in January 1961 , but took over at the Rovers in 1983 from his mother. It didn't last long however, and he left for good in 1984 after a series of run ins with Police due to the lock-ins held after hours. Bet and Alec Gilroy ( Julie Goodyear and Roy Barraclough ) Argueably the most famous barmaid on Coronation Street, Bet Lynch took role of landlady for a little over 10 years. She was almost immediately put under threat as the Rovers caught fire in 1986 . She was saved by a combination of Kevin Webster and the Fire Brigade . She fell for Alec Gilroy in the same year, said to be the only man who charmed her without pretending to love her. They were married a year later on the 9th of September. Bet's only son, Martin had been killed in a car crash. He had stormed out of the Rovers that very evening, seeing her behaviour with the male customers - he was disgusted. Alec had baggage of his own, in the form of a daughter, Sandra. Once again, ironically, Sandra and her husband met the same fate as Martin, leaving their daughter Vicki destraught and orphaned. Vicki moved in with her granfather at the Rovers, before leaving after a disastrous relationghip with bad-boy Steve MacDonald . Eventually, Bet and Alec parted ways. Alec left for a dream job in Southampton , Bet leaving after a blazing row with her long time friend Rita Sullivan . Jack and Vera Duckworth ( Elizabeth Dawn and Bill Tarmey ) Jack and Vera took over the Rovers soon after the Gilroys' departure. Though a poor couple, they had obtained sufficient money from a large inheritance. For Vera, who always had elevated ideas of her own status, she had finally made something of her life. Her happiness was short-lived when in 1997 they discovered they owed £17,000 in taxes and were forced to take on Alec Gilroy, who had returned from Southampton , as a business partner. When Natalie Barnes took over the pub a year later, she evicted the Duckworths and they ended up running a friend's B&B instead. Natalie Barnes ( Denise Welch ) Natalie raised her own standards by her purchase of the Rovers. Known for interfering in the Webster's marriage, she was one of the street's typical sirens. Her reign was also short lived. A month after their marriage, husband Des Barnes was murdered by thugs in search of Natalie's son. She fell unexpectedly pregnant and left both the pub and Weatherfield in search of a new life. Fred Elliott , Mike Baldwin and Duggie Ferguson ( John Savident , Johnny Briggs and John Bowe ) Natalie put the pub up for sale when she left. However, the interested party was a pub chain called ''Boozy Newt''. Fearing that they were about to lose part of their local heritage, the above consortium of businessmen put together the £75,000 needed to buy the pub. Duggie was the only one with previous experience as a landlord, and was left doing the lion's share of the day to day running, the other two simply reaping the profits. He devised a plan that resulted Fred and Mike selling their share to ''Hamilton Griffiths Holdings'', only for Duggie to reveal that he was the man behind this company. He now took full control of the Rovers. Duggie Ferguson (John Bowe) Duggie's time in charge was short-lived however, deciding to buy Weatherfield Rugby League And Social Club, Duggie being a former Rugby League player. The resulting auction caused a massive bidding war between barmaids such as Gina Gregory and Shelly Unwin . However, Fred Elliot came back and stumped them all with his bid, acting on the wishes of his new wife, Eve Elliot . Eve and Fred Elliot ( Melanie Killburn and John Savident) As a couple, their time in charge was short, with Fred discovering that Eve had in fact committed Bigamy by marrying him. Eve left Fred for her husband Ray Sykes, but had no legal claim to the Rovers as all documents called her ''Eve Elliot'', which was not her name, given that the marriage had never occurred. Fred thus became the sole licencee. Fred Elliot (John Savident) The local Butcher , Fred was never interested in running a pub. Thus Shelly Unwin became the first manager of the Rovers, and the pub has remained in her hands since. However, following a nerbous breakdown, Shelly became Agoraphobic . Her inablitity to leave her bedroom seriously compromised her ability to the run the pub although she has now recovered, returning it relative stability. INCIDENTS Martha's Death 1964 In 1964, the producership of Coronation street was handed to young, enthusiastic Tim Aspinall. He immediately began to ring changes. The most shocking, was the death of Martha Longhurst ( Lynne Carol ). She had been the long time friend of Ena Sharples ( Violet Carson ) and Minnie Caldwell ( Margot Bryant ). The three were a memorable comedy combination in the Snug of the Rovers. On the night of her death, the residents were gathered in the Rovers, singing songs and celebrating Frank Barlow's £5000 win on the Premium Bonds. Martha, on her way to Spain the next day, had been showing off her new passport, of which she was very proud. She began to feel faint and retreated to the Snug, away from the singing punters, all in tune with Ena Sharples on piano. Feeling flushed she undid her top button, pushed off her beret, clutched her chest and collapsed onto the table. The regulars, with the impression she was drunk came to see what was going on. Upon inspection Len Fairclough pronounced her dead. She had suffered a fatal heart attack at the table she had frequented for years. The punters left, leaving only the Walkers, lifelong friend Ena and the late Martha Longhurst. That night saw the credits roll in silence, with the rooftop scene replaced by a table containing a sherry glass, a passport and a pair of spectacles. Since that day, the street has changed and producers since emulated Aspinall's ruthlessness. Lorry Crash 1979 Deidre Langton (see Deirdre Barlow ) wheeled her young daughter Tracy down to the Rovers in her pram. She was to see Annie Walker with regards to a knitting pattern. Knowing Annie's strict rules concerning children on licensed premises, Tracy was left outside in her pram. No more than two minutes had passes as Deirdre and Annie spoke in the back room. Suddenly, their conversation was halted by screeching of breaks followed by a terrible crash, which shook the pub. Annie froze but Deirdre rushed through the pub and outside where she had left Tracy. In that very spot was a 6 foot pile of timber. Accompanying the pile was a lorry, turned on its side and smoking from the crash. Deirdre hysterically pulled away at the wood screaming for Tracy. Inside the pub, Alf Roberts had been sitting with friend, Len Fairclough in front of the window. Alf lay unconscious as Len, whose own arm was broken, desperately tried to help him. Ken Barlow, having rushed across from the community centre, took control. Having realised the driver was dead, he began to help the distraught Deirdre who was still frantically clawing at the timber. Once the police had taken charge, and Deirdre had been taken away to be comforted by Emily Bishop and Ena Sharples, the timber was eventually cleared from the shattered pub. The story was concluded when Tracy was found not to be under the wood, but had been snatched away moments before the pub was hit. The snatcher was a crazed young woman who had become obsessed with Tracy. Mother and daughter were re-united later by the canal as Tracy was rushed to the arms of Deirdre. For Alf Roberts, the scars remained and he underwent a personality change months after he returned from hospital. The Fire 1986 Whether its a coincidence that a sing-a-long night in the Rovers is a recipe for disaster is a matter of opinion. But on this particular night, once again, the guests stood around the piano, enjoying a night of music, unaware of what was to follow. Problems arose from the off. The lights in the pub, had been flickering and cutting out all night. Much to the frustration of Bet and the rest of the punters. Jack Duckworth , potman at the time, decided to fix the problem. Upon return, he was graciously thanked for solving the problem. Despite the fact he had replaced the fuse with a far heftier one, leaving the problem of a potential explosion... Bet retired to bed that night, having locked up. In the middle of the night, the inevitable happened, and the fuse caught fire. Young couple Kevin and Sally were returning from a rock concert in the early hours. Noticing the smoke billowing out from under the Rovers door, Sally alerted Kevin. The street came alive as residents Percy Sugden and Terry Duckworth offered a helping hand. Kevin acquired a ladder with the help of Percy and was able to reach the bedroom window. Inside, Bet had found her exit down the stairs blocked by flames that leapt up at her from the hallway. She let out a gut wrenching scream and crawled back into the bedroom, vomiting up the smoke that had congealed in her stomach. She collapsed. Kevin had smashed his way through the window with a brick. Shouting to the rest of the residents that he could see her, he climbed in. Down below the front windows of the Rovers blew out into the street, sending shocked residents running. As Kevin dragged Bet to the window, the Fire Brigade arrived to take over. Bet was saved as heroic Kevin was led home, refusing to be taken to hospital. Vera Duckworth had sarcastically suggested that the cause had been Bet smoking in bed. Though Jack knew who was to blame. As Bet was led away in the ambulance she joked "Can you give me a minute, let me put my face on" Once the Rovers was rebuilt, Bet pinned an electrician's number up on the board telling Jack to call upon the services of a professional, as they had the Rovers back, and she intended on keeping it. |
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