Lynne Perrie

Played: Ivy Brennan (1971 - 1994)Lynne Perrie was born on 7 April 1931 as Jean Dudley and grew up in Masborough, Rotherham. She started her show business career as a singer under the name of "Dizzy". In 1950, Lynne married Derrick Barksby, although the marriage has not always been happy. Lynne descibes her husband as lazy and tight-fisted.Lynne gave birth to son, Stephen in May 1951 and worked as a "clippie" on the buses, then at the Argyle sock factory in order to support her family.She made a stage comeback with new cabaret act in 1956, receiving 27 bookings after appearing at the Rotheram Trade Centre. In the early 60s she toured as a support act with the Beatles, who called her "girlie" and was serenaded by Sacha Distel.Lynne has visited Africa 7 times, during the first trip she claimed to have experienced her first orgasm, aged 39 with Roy Douglas. In 1970, she appeared in the film Kes which led to her being offered the part of Ivy Tyldesley in The Street, but she also hit a personal low and contemplated suicide after her affair with Roy. Addiction to sleeping pills followed, and a "bad trip" after accidentally taking LSD turned her against drugs. She entered Coronation Street in 1971, making friends with many of the other actors, including Liz Dawn (Vera), Chris Quentin (Brian) and Johnny Briggs (Mike). Described her three great loves during her lonely years on the Street as one-armed bandits, greyhounds and booze. She also admits to liking toyboys.Lynne didn't enjoy acting alongside Geoff Hinsliff who played Don Brennan, Ivy's new husband and eventually her character was written out of the show. Rumour had it that Lynne had been sacked because she had plastic surgery carried out on her lips without notifying Street officials (she had them enlarged with fat injected from another part of her body. It was supposed to make her look sexy; it made her look like a hamster). However, Lynne dismisses these rumours saying that her contract was not renewed because her character had nowhere to go. Lynne wanted Ivy to be killed off and was not happy that the character was sent to a religious retreat. Eventually Ivy was killed off, and caused trouble through her will, and supposed supernatural manisfestations.Since leaving Coronation Street in 1994 Lynne says the offers have not stopped flooding in. She planned to keep working for another couple of years and then go into semi-retirement, possibly to make after-dinner speeches. She published a "kiss-and-tell" book "Secrets of the Street - the book they could not BAN!" and appeared on chat-shows, notably Channel 4's The Word where she sang "I Will Survive." How apt.

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