SOME of the biggest names on Coronation Street got emotional as they remembered their time working with Jack and Vera actors, Liz Dawn and Bill Tarmey.
During tonight’s special Coronation Street: 60 Unforgettable Years, the actors paid tribute to perhaps the most iconic couple in the ITV show’s history.
The constantly bickering couple first appeared on Corrie in 1974 and stayed on the Cobbles until Vera’s death in 2008.
But Vera managed a comeback in 2010 when she appeared to Jack as a ghost.
Some of the show’s biggest stars including Sherrie Hewson, remembered how tough it was to film those scenes, especially for Bill, whose health was declining.
“They were Mr and Mrs Coronation to me,” said Alan Halsall who plays Tyrone Dobbs on the show.
Sherrie added: “You totally and utterly believed those characters existed in real life… you believed they were somebody’s next door neighbour.”
Tonight’s ITV special then played the heartbreaking moment, Jack came home to find Vera dead.
The special’s narrator Joanne Lumley then described the moment Vera returned as a ghost, as the “scene that broke the nation’s heart”.
Alan revealed how tough that moment was for everyone on set.
“Personally, knowing Bill’s health wasn’t great, that was one of the hardest days I’ve ever had to film,” Alan said.
Sherrie added while wiping away tears: “It was like part of your family dying.”
Corrie viewers agreed it was an emotional moment and took to Twitter to express it.
One Twitter user wrote: “Jack and Vera are one of the most iconic soap couples ever.”
Another added: “That final scene with Jack and Vera. I am a sobbing wreck now.”
And a third said: “I thought I could get through that without crying and then they showed Jack and Vera.”
Liz Dawn was awarded a MBE in 2000 and a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2008 British Soap Awards.
She died in 2017 after a long battle with cancer.
Bill Tarmey died just two years after retiring from Corrie at the age of 71 after suffering a heart attack at his home in Tenerife.
