It's been 23 years since we saw The Battersby family arrive at No.5 on the infamous cobbles.
The "family from hell" made up of loud-mouthed mum Janice (Vicky Entwistle), husband Les (Bruce Jones) daughter Toyah (Georgia Taylor) step-daughter Leanne (Jane Danson) later to be joined by Cilla, Les' new squeeze (Wendi Peters) and her son, Chesney (Sam Brown).
Currently, due to the uncertainty with lockdown, ITV bosses are only showing three episodes a week as opposed to the usual six.
Therefore, we thought it was a perfect time to take a trip down memory lane and remember the family who provided the nation with hours of laughter and tears and some of the most iconic moments that have gone down in soap history.
Janice Battersby
After being spotted by casting director while on a theatre tour, Vicky's character Janice arrived in Weatherfield in the new year of 1997 as Mike Baldwins new machinist at "Underworld".
She had a number of dramatic storylines that gripped the nation including affairs, fires and car accidents to name a few.
The bolshy character had many (failed) relationships over the years, most famously cheating on husband Les in the year 2000 with his friend Dennis, leaving Les attempting suicide on New Years Day.
The dramatic episode ended with a car crash with Dennis fighting for his life and later dying in hospital leaving Janice devastated.
Vicky made headlines in 2001 after allegedly head-butting a Corrie fan but charges against her were later dropped.
Similarly in April 2010 her husband, Steven Chapman, was arrested and fined for punching a fan in the face after asking for Vicky's autograph. He was found guilty and fined in November of that year.
The actress, who also starred in The Bill, departed in 2011 after 14 years on the show agreeing to go on a world trip with binman Trevor Dean.
The character left in typical Janice style shouting "losers" to her machinist co workers.
The 51-year-old has since focused on her stage career and went on to star as Madame Thenardier in Les Misabrables on the West End which she said was a "dream come true".
She has also starred in several pantomimes around the country including Snow White and Cinderella in New Brighton.
2013 saw Vicky making a return to the screen in Channel 5's Celebrity Big Brother along with former co-star husband Bruce Jones. She lasted 23 days and came 6th place on the show.
In 2019 she was touring the country starring in Hugh Loftings Doctor Dolittle along side Corrie co starBrian Capron (Richard Hilman).
Les Battersby
Les, played by Bruce Jones appeared on our screens a few months later in the summer of 1997.
After many ups and downs with the factory worker, Les and Janice divorced and he moved on with bar maid Cilla Brown, played by Wendi Peters who provided many TV gold moments. The duo had a broad range of story lines which left viewers of the soap in stitches.
Who could forget the side splitting scene in 2004 which saw the love birds enjoying a brief romantic moment in their new jacuzzi. The classic Corrie moment saw the pair being interrupted by great dane, Schmeichel, climbing into the tub and inevitably causing the council house floor and ceiling to collapse.
Jones' Corrie career came to a halt in March 2007 when he was suspended after allegedly making drunken inappropriate comments and leaking the outcome of future story lines. He was later written out the show covered by a storyline of him going on tour.
He told The People newspaper in 2009 he had not received any job offers since leaving the soap and was in outstanding debt leaving the actor homeless -twice.
Over the years Bruce has been very open about his personal battles with alcoholism and depression.
In 2012, the dad-of-four told the Mirror: "I wake up some days and think, ‘This will be the day that I end it all, I’m going to take pills or throw myself under a train’ because I’ve had enough. I want some peace."
Bruce was forced to live in his holiday home in North Wales after selling his luxury £500,000 Cheshire home to pay off debts.
Three years on from his departure, the actor was again, splashed across newspapers. He pleaded guilty to drink driving and was later sentenced to 8 months in prison, suspended for 18 months, in April the same year.
His most recent appearance was June 2015 when Bruce appeared on the Channel 5 documentary 'Celebs on Benefits' where he explained how he blew is £1m fortune.
It was rumoured that Bruce would return to the soap in 2016 after being pictured close to the ITV set.
Toyah Battersby
Georgia Taylor, 39, made her Coronation Street debut in 1997 as 14 year old rebel Toyah Bettersby.
After unsuccessful auditions for the soap, she won the role of the youngest Battersby age 16, she said "When I got the call to say that I'd got the part I just sat there open-mouthed, hugging my best friend. I could barely believe it."
The budding actress was given a number of serious and gripping story lines during her first six years on the cobbles.
She became the soaps first female character to portray the controversial subject of under age sex in 1998 and was forced to defend her role.
Georgia went on to win a British Soap award in 2001 for Best Dramatic Performance for one of the soaps most controversial story lines in 40 years when she was raped by Phil Taylor behind the Rovers.
2003 saw the the feisty Battersby wave goodbye to Weatherfield with her ex "Spider" after five years. Her characters exit involved in a love triangle university tutor boyfriend getting her best friend pregnant.
It appeared that the cobbles opened up more doors for the actress as she went on to star in stage hits "The Woman Before" and "Christmas is miles away" in which her performance was praised by critics.
2007 saw Georgia return to the screen in BBC's Casualty playing a doctor, miles away from teenage Toyah, where she met her partner, Mark.
13 years on, Georgia has reprised her role on the soap, making an explosive come back on Christmas Day almost 2 years ago in true soap fashion - having a secret relationship with her sister's ex husband.
Georgia was last year spotted cheering on co-star Catherine Tyldsley in the audience of Strictly Come Dancing
Leanne Battersby
Prostitution, drugs, custody battles,miscarriages and an abundance of family dramas are just some of the storylines Leanne Battersby/Tildsley/Barlow (we can't keep up) has took on over the years.
It is fair to say Leanne's love life is a roller coaster to say the least, going back and forth between first love Nick Tilsley and alcoholic Peter Barlow.
The character was a main focus of Corrie's live 50th Anniversary episode, "The tram crash" which enticed 14.9 million viewers where the episode saw Peter and Leanne marry in an emergency ceremony as Peters death was imminent - but at the time was having an affair with ex-husband Nick.
The affair was revealed by Peter's sister Tracey in true Corrie style.
Away from the cobbles, actress Danson won the 2011 Soap Award for Best Dramatic Performance for this episode.
Jane started her acting career at the age of 12 appearing on Channel 4's GBH going onto starring in children's sitcoms on CBBC.
Jane walked down the isle to Brookside actor Robert Beck in 2005 who she met at the soap awards in 1999. She has played the character for 22 years, taking maternity breaks in 2006 and 2009 to have her sons Harry and Sam who she says are "our everything".
2019 saw Jane take to the Ice for ITV's Dancing on Ice. The 41-year-old insists it was the "best experience of her life" despite being booted off in week seven.
