I’m a Coronation Street superfan – I ranked every character in the soap’s history and it’s a current legend at top spot
ONE Coronation Street superfan has created an epic countdown of all the 380 regular characters on the soap since its inception in 1960.
The countdown has seen every character to have ever appeared in the serial as a regular be ranked with some rather interesting results.
Show superfan Chris Antsey has been sharing the results of his ranking on X – formerly Twitter – and it is fair to say there have been a few surprising results.
It is a current show legend that manages to bag the top spot after an incredibly lengthy career on the hit show.
The Sun has taken a look at those deemed the top 10 greatest characters ever and have also compiled where a few fan favourites managed to land across the show superfan’s full list – including which show ‘funnyman’ found themselves in the abysmal last place.
10. Blanche Hunt
Show Duration: 1974-1976, 1977, 1978, 1981, 1996, 1997, 1998-2009
Battleaxe Blanche was loved on the show for her quick wit, unique humour and her carefree attitude.
Introduced as the mother of Deirdre, the character played by Maggie Jones has certified herself as one of the best ever.
Superfan Chris said: “Blanche was probably at her best being [passive aggressive] to Annie Walker in the 70s, but she was great as an unfiltered waspish Greek chorus in later life too.”
9. Annie Walker
Show Duration: 1960-1983
Annie, played by Doris Speed, is best known as one of Coronation Street‘s original three stand-out women alongside Ena Sharples and Elsie Tanner.
She was remembered for being the show’s first ever landlady when she ran the Rovers alongside hubby Jack.
Chris said of Annie’s legacy: “She was pretentious and snobbish, but always with real heart.
“Loved her relationships with Jack and Billy, and all the comedy with frenemy Nellie Harvey.”
8. Norris Cole
Show Duration: 1994-1997, 1999-2017, 2019-2020
Everyone’s favourite busybody, Norris (Malcolm Hebden) developed his Weatherfield reputation through gossiping and whispering behind the locals back.
He was never afraid to have his say – even when his opinion wasn’t wanted.
Although some may have described him as an oddball and conniving, he regularly showed off his heart of gold.
On ranking him eighth, Chris said: “Loved his initial stint as Dirk’s frenemy, but he really came into his own as Rita’s sidekick. Loved his relationships with Emily and Mary too.”
7. Bet Lynch
Show Duration: 1966, 1970-1995, 2002, 2003
Arguably the show’s most famous Rovers landlady, Bet, played by actress Julie Goodyear, has safely earned her spot in the ten greatest show characters ever.
Her unique look, strong accent and no-nonsense attitude proved she was a force to be reckoned with.
Chris said of Bet: “Fantastic in the 70s as an unlucky-in-love barmaid, but I loved the camp beehived later version too.
“Her performance where she contemplates suicide in 1975 is one of #Corrie’s best ever.”
6. Irma Barlow
Show Duration: 1964-1968, 1969, 1970-1971
Irma, played by Sandra Gough, is possibly the least recognisable name to make it into the top ten ranking.
She was married to local footballer David in the show but Irma left in 1971 abruptly when actress Sandra chose not to return to work the following week following disagreements with the show’s producers.
Of choosing to place her so high, Chris said: “It’s a lovely, funny, spiky and sometimes melancholy performance. Loved her friendships with Bet and Maggie as well as her relationship with David. She deserves to be better known.”
5. Bernard Butler
Show Duration: 1969-1970
Another name who many may be surprised to see ranked so high is Bernard Butler, played by Gorden Kaye, considering he appeared in the show for less than a year.
Introduced as the nephew of Elsie Tanner, Bernard developed strong feelings for Irma during his time in Weatherfield.
Insisting he should have “lasted much longer”, Chris said: “It’s a brilliant tragi-comic performance, as you’d expect from Gorden Kay. Mostly spent his time mooning after Irma or breaking things.”
4. Dennis Tanner
Show Duration: 1960-1962, 1963-1968, 2011-2014
Described as one of Coronation Street’s original heartthrobs and bad boys, Dennis enjoyed two stints on the cobbles.
He was a regular in the sixties as well as enjoying a second three-year stint in the early 2010s when bosses decided to re-introduce him.
His latter years saw him become the husband of Rita but the marriage was ultimately doomed with many fans fearing his re-introduction was a mistake.
Chris said of Dennis: “Loved him working at Gamma with Lucille and Emily and, obviously, his relationship with Elsie. Shame his 2011 return wasn’t as successful.”
3. Emily Bishop
Show Duration: 1960-1961, 1962-1966, 1967-2016, 2019.
For a while, she was Corrie’s longest-serving female character but these days Emily appears to have quit the cobbles for good.
Actress Eileen Derbyshire initially announced a six-month break from the soap in 2015 but failed to return other than for a fleeting appearance over a webcam chat to celebrate Ken’s birthday.
Insisting she was a legend of soap, Chris said: “Often dismissed as just a meek old lady, she was actually really strong. She was excellent during the bigamy and Ed Jackson storylines, and when Ernest was killed.
“She was great at comedy so it’s a shame she wasn’t given more of that latterly. At her absolute peak in the late 60s when she had a bit of a makeover when Gamma became a trendy boutique and she was having flings with farmers and builders.”
2. David Barlow
Show Duration: 1960-1961, 1963, 1964-1968.
The Weatherfield footballing heartthrob, played by Alan Rothwell, has been labelled the second greatest character of all time.
The decision to axe him and kill him off has been described by Chris as the soap’s “biggest mistake” in its 64-years.
Chris said:” Professional football player, shopkeeper and superior Barlow brother. It’s a lovely cheeky performance and I love David and Irma together. They just light up the screen.”
Corrie Character Countdown: Honourable Mentions
Out of numbers 11-380, here are where just a few more Corrie favourites, icons and hidden gems ranked
- 11: Roy Cropper
- 12: Rita Tanner
- 13: Deirdre Barlow
- 27: Debbie Webster
- 35: Jack Walker
- 40: David Platt
- 55: Richard Hillman
- 58: Rob Donovan
- 60: Cilla Battersby-Brown
- 69: Ken Barlow
- 97: Stan Ogden
- 106: Umed Alahan
- 117: Eileen Grimshaw
- 149: Maya Sharma
- 155: Rosie Webster
- 205: Len Fairclough
- 237: Jack Duckworth
- 265: Pat Phelan
- 273: Michelle Connor, pictured above
- 309: Susan Barlow
- 332: Vera Duckworth
- 347: Chesney Brown
- 352: Billy Mayhew
- 378: Les Battersby
- 379: PC Craig Tinker
- 380 (and last): Kirk Sutherland
1. Audrey Roberts
Show Duration: 1979, 1980-1981, 1982, 1984, 1985-present
In at number one is current Weatherfield icon Audrey Roberts.
She becomes the only character to still be appearing in the series to make it to the top spot.
Played by Sue Nicholls, she has showed no signs of going anywhere and can still be seen around the Platt household most weeks on the ITV programme.
Speaking of placing her first, Chris said: Always a lovely warm performance. Often very funny but can be heartbreaking too. I like the fact that she’s not afraid to put herself first when her awful family are being awful.
“Loved her marriage to Alf; there was definitely genuine affection there, and her relationship with Lewis. Loved her friendship with Alma, and her slightly uneasy ones with Rita and Claudia.”
Who lives where on Coronation Street?
Here is where all of the residents of Weatherfield's main street live
- 1 Coronation Street – The Barlow family (Ken, Tracy, Steve, Amy)
- 3 Coronation Street – The Bailey family (Aggie, Ed, Michael)
- 5 Coronation Street – The Winter-Brown family (Gemma, Chesney, Joseph and the Quads)
- 7 Coronation Street – The Alahan family (Dev, Asha, Aadi)
- 9 Coronation Street – The Dobbs family (Tyrone, Fiz, Evelyn, Cassie, Hope, Ruby)
- 11 Coronation Street – The Grimshaw family (Eileen, Todd, George, Mary, Sean, Dylan)
- 13 Coronation Street – The Webster family (Kevin, Abi, Jack, Alfie)
- 15a Coronation Street – Dee-Dee Bailey and Adam Barlow
- 2a Coronation Street – Craig Tinker
- 4 Coronation Street – The Metcalfe family (Sally, Tim)
- 6 Coronation Street – The Nazir family (Yasmeen, Alya, Stu, Eliza)
- 8 Coronation Street – The Platt family (Gail, David, Shona, Max, Lily)
- 10a Coronation Street – Rita Tanner
- 12 Coronation Street – Brian Packham