For the past five years, Dame Maureen Lipman has been walking the cobbles as Corrie’s waspish Evelyn Plummer. The actor, 76, says it ‘astounds’ her that it’s been that long already – but she has no plans to leave. ‘I really admire Evelyn,’ she explains. ‘She is malevolent. She’s grumpy and slightly salt of the earth – she’s a proper Coronation Street character, an old-fashioned matriarch. So for me, it’s a joy to come to work. I’ve been in London for 55 years and I’ve enjoyed coming home.’
Dame Maureen does certainly seem, and tickled television audiences in comedies such as and. But these days, there’s something that gives her more pleasure than any acting accolade – her grandchildren.