Sunday 2 January 2011

Recommended Reading - Jean Alexander - The Other Side Of The Street

Hilda Ogden finally took down her famous flying ducks from the "muriel" at No 13 as actress Jean Alexander left Coronation Street in late 1987.

Miss Alexander told us that her career was not over - a fact she quickly proved - moving on to a film appearance and the BBC comedy series Last Of The Summer Wine, amongst other things. In 1989, she looked back on her life so far in her autobiography, The Other Side Of The Street, and this book is one I can heartily recommend.

There's no thrills, no starry nonsense here, as Miss Alexander takes readers on a steady canter through her life, beginning with her Liverpool childhood and early work in a public library, on to rep and several early TV appearances, and then to Coronation Street.

From a rat in the theatre dressing room to a highly talkative landlady, an (almost) explosive water heater to a haunted flat, Jean took life in her stride - and this is a lovely read. Perfect to end the day on.

The book also contains insights into the real-life characters of some of the cast of Coronation Street from the 1960s to the 1980s.

Copies of the book sometimes turn up on eBay and I say: "Give yourself a treat, luvvie - grab one!"

1 comment:

Jan Cooper said...

Well done! At least she's had a life to write about, not like some writing theirs at age 20!