MAKING her first appearance in the cobbles in 1989, Liz McDonald became an iconic face in Weatherfield.
But Coronation Street fans were stunned when they uncovered actress Beverley Callard‘s secret role in the ITV soap.
Residents and viewers alike became accustomed to seeing Liz’s face behind the Rovers bar.
In fact, the pub was her first workplace as she became a barmaid right after settling into the cobbles with her husband, ex-army sergeant Jim, and their two children, Steve and Andy.
Throughout the decades until her very last appearance in 2020, Liz went through her fair share of drama, from divorcing Jim to standing by him after he had murdered Jez Quigley.
She eventually let go of the Rovers, moving on and away to Spain to start afresh.
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While actress Beverley Callard will always be remembered as the no-nonsense landlady and barmaid, some fans have associated her to another character in Coronation Street.
These viewers have unearthed a video from her very first appearance in the long-running drama, going back to 1984.
Only diehard Corrie fans could know this – much like Michael Le Vell, Beverley had another role in the Street before becoming Liz and portrayed a character called Julie.
In the forgotten scene, Julie appears alongside another character called Gary as both head to the local casino with Gail and former husband Brian Tilsley.
Although Beverley looks worlds apart from the role that catapulted her into the spotlight – which could explain why her first appearance was so hard to notice and remember – some fans took to Reddit to point her out.
“1984 – Gail and Brian go to a casino with Brian’s friends – look at the actress!”, one fan commented as they revealed the scene.
Another fan quickly responded with amazement: “Is that Bev Callard?”
“It is! Five years before she came in as Liz”, the original poster replied.
Other viewers chimed in on the discussion.
“I’m watching the 1990s straight through and Liz is my favourite character right now! I even have a picture of her on the Lock Screen of my phone”, one of them penned.
“Of all the characters who have left the show, Liz is the one I’ve missed the most”, another added, while a third wrote: “Amazing!! I love moments like that.”
As mentioned above, Beverley was last seen in Coronation Street in August, 2020.
Since her final exit, the actress has admitted she was overloaded during her three decades in Corrie.
Speaking to The Celeb Report, Beverley said: “It’s not nine to five, it’s like seven until ten at night and it’s six days a week, it’s really full on and you have no life, like it used to be a lot harder years ago when the cast was smaller.”
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She went on: “I personally don’t think the scripts are as good now, I think we’re overloaded with soap operas, which is a shame.”
Coronation Street airs Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays on ITV.
