BARBARA KNOX STREET WISE

As she marks her 90th birthday, the star opens up about the unbreakable bonds she has forged during a near 50-year stint in Coronation Street

She's graced our TV screens for almost 50 years in her role as Coronation Street's beloved Rita Tanner, but for Barbara Knox there is still much more to celebrate. The actress recently marked her 90th birthday and was whisked away from the cobbles for a special day out with her former co-star Bradley Walsh, parading down memory lane and reuniting with old friends for an ITV documentary about her career.

"I've been very fortunate," Barbara says on the programme.

"It's unbelievable, what we've crammed into the years and how fortunate I've been, being in the Street for about 50 or 60 of them - I've lost track!" And she's not going anywhere, having renewed her contract for another two years on the show, just days before her big birthday.

In the documentary, Barbara reunites with former soap stars to recount some treasured memories, including her origins as a performer in Blackpool, not far from where she grew up in Oldham as the daughter of a fireman and a mill worker.

"When I was a little girl, there were lots of musicals at the cinema, and that's what undid me - all the glamour," she says.

And while Corrie storylines may be gritty, there was still glamour in joining the cast.

"When I came into it, it was so magical," she says. "I was so terrified."