Betty Williams

Email Article

Characters

13 November 2008, 15:18

DOB: 4/2/1920
Marital Status: Widow (first husband Cyril Turpin, second Billy Williams)
Occupation: Part-time (and longest-serving) barmaid at the Rovers Return

Betty Turpin first appeared in the Street in 1969 with her policeman husband Cyril. Her first job was helping Maggie Clegg run the corner shop but she moved on to work in the Rovers Return where she's been pulling pints and serving her famous hot pots ever since.

Betty was married to Cyril until his death from a heart attack in 1974. She had a secret son, Gordon, but allowed her sister Maggie to bring the boy up, whilst pretending she was his aunt. When Gordon's birth certificate was discovered, it stunned both him and some of Betty's closest pals. It transpired that Betty had conceived Gordon after the war when she had had a fling with married merchant seaman Ted Farrell.

Betty's 1995 marriage to Billy Williams – the man who had taken her virginity on VE night – lasted just two years when he too died of a heart attack.

Betty almost left the Street in 2002 when she moved to Wimbledon in south London to live with son Gordon. But Gordon's wife Caroline made it cruelly clear that she didn't want her mother-in-law there. Betty returned to the Street where she was welcomed back by the people who truly loved her.

Betty Driver plays the role of Betty Williams. Born in Leicester in 1920, Betty was a professional Music Hall performer by the time she was 14. She was a top singing star in the 1930s and 40s. The actress married South African singer Wally Peterson but they split when he returned to South Africa. She now lives with her younger sister Freda near Altrincham, Cheshire. Betty became an MBE in the Millennium New Year's Honours List.

Last updated: 13 November 2008, 15:25