by Malcolm Pheby | Aug 17, 2018 | Celebrity, Hall Of Fame
You could say TV and radio presenter Melanie Sykes is as Manchester as Boddingtons Bitter or the Ashtonian Brass Band. And you’d be right! Born in Ashton-under-Lyne, she starred in an advertising campaign for Boddingtons and played the baritone horn along with her...
by Malcolm Pheby | Jul 18, 2018 | Celebrity, Sport
There can be few more iconic figures in British tennis than Stockport-born legend Fred Perry. He won three consecutive Wimbledon Championships from 1934 to 1936 and was ranked the best in the world in the early 1930s. Perry was the first player to win a career Grand...
by Malcolm Pheby | Jul 13, 2018 | Celebrity, TV
There’s a well-trodden path from the cobblestones of Coronation Street to the boards of the serious stage. Stars who’ve made the transition include Pat Phoenix, who played the incomparable Elsie Tanner, and Roy Barraclough, who was irrepressible Rovers’ landlord Alec...
by Malcolm Pheby | Jun 13, 2018 | Celebrity, Hall Of Fame
It was NASA astronomer Carl Sagan’s book Cosmos that first inspired Brian Cox to be become a scientist. The well-known Oldham physicist, TV presenter and author read the book at the age of 12 – and never looked back. Music was also a major part of the young...
by Malcolm Pheby | Apr 27, 2018 | Celebrity, Hall Of Fame, TV
There can be few more familiar sights on TV soaps than Coronation Street’s Ena Sharples sipping milk stout with Minnie Caldwell and Martha Longhurst. The fearsome yet matronly Ena, played by Ancoats-born actress Violet Carson, ruled the Rovers snug for two decades...
by Malcolm Pheby | Feb 28, 2018 | Celebrity, Manchester, TV
It’s Carry On Corrie! iNostalgia remembers Coronation Street stars who’ve also brightened up the big screen in the Carry On movies. Coronation Street and Carry On films must be two of Britain’s most enduring and best loved institutions. Corrie has been coming into our...
