Barbara Knox has starred inCoronation Streetas Rita Tanner for the past 56 years.
The veteran soap star made her name on the cobbles shortly after its on-screen debut making her one of the longest-serving cast members.
After joining the show full time in 1972 following one episode in 1964, 90 year old Barbara established herself as a mainstay on the programme, acting in some of the soap's most dramatic storylines.
However, her time on the show hasn’t always been plain sailing and she has faced her fair share of ups and downs.
From costar spats to personal brushes with the law, the past 56 years have been as dramatic off-screen as on-screen.
Here's a look inside the star's life away from the cobbles…
Marriage and divorce
Off-screen, Barbara has been married twice, first to Denis Mullaney in 1956.
The pair had three children. The year they divorced, in 1977, she married John Knox, but the couple divorced in 1994.
Co-star spat
Barbara has admitted to there being some backstage tension after an episode filmed two years after she joined the show in 1974.
Landlady Bet Lynch won a competition, and so the script called for a trip to Majorca with some of the female cast members.
Iconic Corrie characters such as Hilda Ogden, Emily Bishop, Mavis Riley, Deirdre Barlow, Annie Walker and Betty Turpin all flew out to the Spanish holiday hotspot for the storyline.
However, speaking on a special celebration programme for Coronation Street's 60th anniversary, Barbara revealed that the sunny break caused tension with their male co-stars.
She said: "I’ll tell you a story out of school. We got word that the ladies were going to work in Majorca for a week and the men in the cast, the silly beggars, they wouldn’t speak to us.
"So off we went to Majorca and everyone thought they’re having a great time – but it was dreadful."
Drunk driving conviction
In 2014, Barbara was arrested on suspicion of drink drinking.
According tothe Mirror , after initially pleading not guilty, Barbara admitted making a “terrible error of judgement” and apologised for driving after a boozy lunchtime session with her daughter Maxine Ashcroft.
District Judge Bridget Knight told the then 81-year-old: "An enormous amount of court time has been expended, and expense expended, by the Crown Prosecution Service and by you.”
Barbara was banned from driving for a year, was fined £3000 and ordered to pay costs of £1750.
Mystery illness
Throughout the trial, Barbara continued to film Coronation Street. However, she did request to be written out of the show for five months in 2009 for health reasons, which remained private.
A source told theSunday Mirror: "Barbara felt bad that she had to go, but she explained it was in no way a serious health issue and that she'd be back.
"We had no option but to rewrite storylines and also shoot a scene in the Rovers Return to explain why she wouldn't be around for a while."
However, aside from this break, Barbara has no plans to leave Weatherfield again.
She told the Mirror in 2012 how she has no thoughts of retiring from the soap.
She said: "Retire? What a filthy word. I haven't thought of retiring. I keep saying to everybody I know – don't retire, just keep working."
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