Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
Entertainment
Ashleigh Rainbird & Lottie Gibbons

ITV Coronation Street viewers spot hidden tribute to well-known character

Eagle-eyed Coronation Street fans spotted a hidden tribute to a soap legend.

Earlier this year, the Bailey family moved to the Cobbles - bringing a whole new level of drama with them to the show.

But with so much change taking place in Weatherfield, Coronation Street producers showed they hadn't forgotten a certain soap icon.

The Baileys have a wall adorned with three flying birds in homage to Hilda’s retro ceramic wall mounts.

Jean Alexander as Hilda Ogden in the tv programme Coronation Street (Press Association)

Insiders say bosses wanted to remember Jean Alexander, who died in 2016 aged 90, as well as the famous Rovers Return cleaner, reports Mirror.

With one crooked flier - which Jean personally ensured was always on the wonk - the ducks cheered headscarf-wearing Hilda up so much she once described their significance in a poignant speech.

She said: "I’ve come in here more times than I care to remember, cold, wet, bone-tired, not a penny in me purse.

Eagle-eyed Corrie fans noticed the subtle bird tribute to Hilda Ogden on the Street's new neighbours' wall (ITV)

"Seeing them ducks… they’ve kept me hand away from t’gas tap. And that’s a fact."

Husband Stan was less enthusiastic.

The mallards made their last appearance on Christmas Day 1987, when 27 million viewers tuned in to see Hilda depart for Derbyshire, after telling Sally Webster of her ducks: “They’re beautiful.

“I just wish that middle one would buck itself up a bit.”

Jean Alexander played the legendary Coronation Street character for 23 years.

Her sharp-tongued antics won her an army of fans, who were left devastated at her death just days after she celebrated her 90th birthday.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.