List of Coronation Street characters introduced in 1998
Her despicable acts were putting Deirdre in an asylum and not informing her of a phone call from her good friend Mike Baldwin (Johnny Briggs).While Zoe Tattersall grieves over the death of her baby daughter, Shannon, she kidnaps Morgan and goes to the canal, intending to jump with him.Emma tells him that she wants to remain in Weatherfield with her biological father, Steve and her half-sister Amy Barlow for the festive season and will visit Fiona in the New Year.Jackie is the mother of Tyrone Dobbs (Alan Halsall), and was originally introduced as the cellmate of Deirdre Barlow (Anne Kirkbride).[5] Greg was the result of a holiday romance between Moira Kelly and Les Battersby when he was working on a travelling fairground on the Isle of Wight.It was a tight fit and one that Greg took an immediate dislike to but he needed Sally's money if he were to make a go of his new underwear venture so he tried to remember the girls' names (unsuccessfully) and play happy families.Becoming more and more dishelved the suits looking less smart and his appearance slipping - he turned once again to Maxine who, after a short fashion, cottoned on to his scheme to finagle a free ride and accommodation until something better came along.Edna Miller first appears in September 1998, when she is interviewed by Jack (Bill Tarmey) and Vera Duckworth (Liz Dawn) for the new job as barmaid in The Rovers Return Inn.She reappears on 21 June 2000, when it is revealed that she has been working in packing in Underworld, and is moved to the factory floor, along with Karen Phillips (Suranne Jones).It is not long before Edna gets herself into trouble when she gives journalist Ken Barlow (William Roache) a story about the poor working conditions in the factory, which he then publishes in The Weatherfield Gazette.Factory owner Mike Baldwin (Johnny Briggs) is livid at the publication and fires Deirdre Barlow (Anne Kirkbride), believing her to be Ken's source.In the days leading up to her demise, she claims that she can sense death and firmly believes that landlord Duggie Ferguson (John Bowe) will soon meet his end.On 23 September 2001, Edna's funeral takes place, and the Weatherfield residents meet her equally miserable sister Iris Merry.The storyline attracted the attention of the Independent Television Commission, who believed that the episode featuring Neil's abduction of Toyah should have carried a warning before it was broadcast.Ronnie appeared to live up to Janice's reputation as a selfish and useless father as he showed little concern for his daughter, caring only that his wife Paula didn't find out about his past.His personality was jovial and cheerful, especially when it came to customers, but his business did exhibit some of the stereotypical aspects of the trade, such as giving assurances that weren't always met, stating that his prices were reasonable and a love for tea breaks, which were actually drinks at The Rovers Return.They subsequently employed him, ironically at Rita's recommendation, but Pat only completed the job when he charged Maxine Peacock (Tracy Shaw) double the rate.The following month, he went into partnership with Steve McDonald (Simon Gregson) in tendering for the contract to Duggie Ferguson (John Bowe) for the development of shops on Victoria Street.Pat's behaviors never changed and even after employing his nephew Sam Kingston, who in 2001 discovered that his uncle's grease remover caused residents to come out in rashes.Her mother, Eve (Melanie Kilburn), walked out when Linda was young and she, being the eldest, had to help her father Ray (Peter Guinness) raise her three younger brothers.When she was 15, her close friend, Karen Phillips (Suranne Jones), moved in after she became estranged from her parents and they later went on to work as machinists in a factory called Wheelers.Mark, however, was infatuated with his father's fiancée and was devastated by her brush-off, so much so, that he halted the wedding by not coming initially and dragging Linda out of the church to speak to her.However, when Linda arrived at the scene, she not only found her husband with his ex-wife, but also recognised that the thug who had been shot was her younger brother Dean Sykes (Ciarán Griffiths).However, after the funeral Linda managed to patch things up with her mother and Eve returned to the street with her, where she met and fell in love with Fred Elliott (John Savident).This led to him caring for her and going on trips around the country with her, resulting in Linda embarking on an affair with a man named Harvey, one of Mike's clients, in May 2001.However, during their heated argument Alma collapsed and after calling an ambulance, Alma was diagnosed with kidney failure and carried upstairs to her bedroom by paramedics where she died in peace on 17 June 2001 with Mike, her best friend Audrey Roberts (Sue Nicholls) and Audrey's daughter Gail Platt (Helen Worth) by her side.After enduring months of heated arguments, Mike finally set his wife up by bringing his son Mark back to the street.Tyrone has been married to Molly Compton (Vicky Binns), who died in the tram crash, and has had relationships with Fiz Brown (Jennie McAlpine) and Maria Connor (Samia Ghadie).They eventually marry and look forward to the birth of their first child but when she learns that her newborn son, Jake, died from a Group B streptococcal infection that he probably caught from her during delivery, she has a breakdown.Sadly, a combination of grief and the guilt that she feels about her sister's death lead her to snatch newborn Bethany Platt (Mia Cookson).