NOBODY outshines the Queen, though a dame comes closer than most – and Maureen Lipman came up with a wacky idea for sharing the spotlight with Her Majesty to receive her damehood.
The Corrie actress was awarded the accolade in the 2020 Birthday Honours and joked: “I wanted her to present it to me in the Rovers Return — I thought it would be a fabulous shot.
“Probably some of the other members of Coronation Street would have taken a contract out on my life.”
Maureen, 75, who was made a Dame for her services to charity, entertainment and the arts, is yet to receive the actual medal representing her award but dreamed up the Rovers idea when the Queen recently toured the soap’s set.
She said: “I haven’t got it yet, however I wore the shoes I intended to wear to receive my damehood in.
“I bought some Balenciaga shoes, which are pointed and have a heel. I haven’t worn heels for two years.”
And talking about the delayed medal, Maureen — who was already a CBE — continued: “I think they’ve got such a backlog and I doubt I’ll get it from her anyway.
“They’re quite happy to post it to you. I’ve posted the CBE back — you’ve got to post it back.”
The Queen’s visit to the ITV show’s set this summer was to mark Corrie’s diamond jubilee last year and included a stop at the Rovers — where she didn’t just want to know which ales were on tap, or the flavour of hotpot on offer.
Maureen — who plays Evelyn Plummer, owner of greyhound Cerberus — said: “She was interested in the dog and wanted to know if he could act.
“I told her that (Maureen’s late husband) Jack had written episode 13, and that when she left, we were going to change our clothes and do episode 10,408.”
In fact Maureen’s other half for 30 years, playwright Jack Rosenthal, wrote 129 episodes of Corrie in its early days, and the couple had two children together, writers Amy and Adam Rosenthal.
Jack died in 2004. Earlier this year Maureen’s partner of 13 years, Guido Castro, died aged 84 after a battle with Covid. The former computer expert, who had a form of Parkinson’s disease, tested positive days after receiving his first dose of the vaccine.
She said: “As with Her Majesty, your answer is to throw your-self even more into work, so that’s what you do. As I watched the Queen boldly stride up the cobbles, although there was a red carpet down, it was very touching, and I thought, ‘She’s 20 years older than me and she’s now going off to her second engagement at Manchester Cathedral — amazing!’”
Covid restrictions meant a muted farewell to Guido. She said: “It wasn’t the normal burial or ceremony, but we did everything we could, and we continue to, because the dead don’t vanish.
“I can’t have a mango without thinking of Guido, in the same way as fish and chips means Jack.
“Martin Sherman, the playwright for whom I did a one-woman show called Rose, told me that I was a very lucky woman to have lost two such wonderful men, which was an interesting take.”
Despite the heartache of losing Guido, Maureen would never rule out another romance.
She said: “Well, I never say never. I never expected to find love again after Jack and at the moment I’m very neutral. I have some nice friends, male and female, who I can say, ‘Do you fancy a spot of dinner?’ but I am getting on, and it’s getting a bit late to show anybody my vest.”
Maureen first found fame as agony aunt Jane Lucas in the ITV sitcom Agony, which ran for two years from 1979. Then in the 1980s her character in a series of BT adverts, Beatie Bellman, became a breakout star, spawning a book, You Got An Ology, based on one of her catchphrases.
Maureen first appeared in Coronation Street as snooty temporary pub landlady Lillian Spencer for six episodes in 2002. She then returned in August 2018, this time playing Evelyn, the long-lost grandma of Tyrone Dobbs.
She said: “I just stood in for Julie Goodyear for a couple of weeks. I took over the Rovers, but she came back, so they had to get rid of me!”
After 60 years Coronation Street is still an enduring presence on British telly and Maureen says acting in it is a skill that many big-name stars would struggle with.
But she still manages to make her on-screen grandson Tyrone, played by cobbles veteran Alan Halsall, corpse during scenes.
She said: “He said that in the 20- plus years he’s been in the programme, he never laughs on a take unless it’s me. I’ve a very bad effect on him because I tend to throw a few curveballs that he’s not expecting, and he rises to it every single time.
“He’s a very good actor, and the Coronation Street casting department is genius because we only get one rehearsal.
“It’s not like the old days where we used to rehearse all week and then film it on Friday for two episodes, because now we do five a week. We walk in with our scripts, we read it once, we block it, and we film it.
“It’s unusual to do it more than twice, so those actors are extraordinary. I challenge the Line Of Duty or anyone else to do what the Coronation Street actors do week in, week out. They’re virtually doing Whose Line Is It Anyway?”
Maureen has also been appearing on Channel 4’s Celebrity Gogglebox alongside her telly pal Gyles Brandreth. It means she’s casting her eye over all manner of telly, including Naked Attraction, where hopefuls meet dates starkers.
But she has zero plans to retire, despite turning 75 in May. She said: “Since I became 70, I regularly get asked that. Believe me, the years go bloody fast, and you still feel exactly the same — I don’t understand why people don’t ask me to go out clubbing with them.
“I still love acting, I can’t wait to get my outfit on and do my work. I like being spotted in the street, even with a mask and a trilby on. I like people saying, ‘We love you in Corrie’, or ‘Why the hell are you in Corrie?’ The enthusiasm remains throughout your life.
“I’ve been doing the Saturday job with Gyles on Gogglebox and that’s a completely different kettle of fish. Every week we sit there and look at genitalia, basically, throughout the entire programme. It’s not my favourite, but Gyles and I have such a great time.
“I think if you’re current — and current means being on television every week, so that’s Corrie and Gogglebox — if you’re different, then you do get asked to do quite a lot.”
One thing she has never tried is reality telly, so does a Strictly stint beckon, and has she been asked?
Maureen said: “I have, but I’m not good at taking criticism. I just know that if I was doing my best and people were not nice to me I would either cry or I would thump someone, and I’d really rather not thump someone on telly.
“I’m sure everyone has a lovely time, but underneath it I’m quite a sensitive soul and I’d find it quite upsetting.”
- Maureen has teamed up with home cook Heidi Nathan for a recipe book, This Book Is Toast, with all proceeds going to the Spread A Smile foundation
