Coronation Street legend Amanda Barrie, 91, addresses deaths of friends

Actress and national treasure Amanda Barrie is beloved by long-time Coronation Street fans for playing Alma Sedgewick – later Baldwin – between 1981 and 1982, and later from 1988 until 2001.

At the majestic age of 91, she continues to work in the entertainment industry, with her latest role coming in BBC’s Amandaland, and she shows absolutely zero signs of slowing down anytime soon.

‘I think I’m very lucky to be still working at my age, to be quite honest,’ she said. ‘All you’ve got to do, darling, is carry on breathing, and be curious.’

Speaking on her time spent on the flagship ITV soap, Amanda said: ‘It’s quite an experience, and there’s nothing like being in a soap. I really praise the kids that come into it now, because at least we had a bit of rehearsal. Now, they get it, learn it, do it.

‘We need things like Coronation Street, because everything’s so, sort of, isolated now, and I think things like Coronation Street really bring people together.’

‘People ask me why it’s changed. It’s because the world has changed. That’s why. You’re not going to find the likes of Ena Sharples very often in Manchester now.’

She went on to speak of the realities of losing people while getting older, and made a sad admission.

‘I’ve lost so many friends. And I never delete people from my phone who’ve died. I’ve got a full phone. I just say ‘Oh, dear….’ I’m lucky to be here. I’m very lucky,’ she told The Mirror.

Outside of Coronation Street, Amanda is known for her hugely diverse range of roles including turns in Benidorm as Psychic Sue and Casualty as Elsie Clegg.

Amanda also enjoyed a much celebrated stint in Bad Girls alongside fellow acting royalty, Stephanie Beacham, as Bev Tull and Phyl Oswyn – the Costa Cons, becoming firm fan favourites of the cult TV show for playing the utterly immoral but always hilarious con artists.

On the big screen, she’s had roles across multiple Carry On films, while also appearing in Koroshi, Quadrophenia and, most recently, Tea for Two and Tomorrow.

Off-screen, Amanda lives with her wife, crime-writer Hilary Bonner, splitting their time between Somerset and London.

Who was Alma Baldwin in Coronation Street?

Alma’s full time stint on the street began with her claiming the café that’s now best known as Roy’s Rolls, and a brief relationship with ultimate Weatherfield stalwart, Ken Barlow (William Roache).

When they split, she found herself drawn to factory owner Mike Baldwin (Johnny Briggs), whom she wound up marrying, before entering into a bitter feud with Don Brennan (Geoff Hinsliff).

Geoff bore a deep, burning hatred for Mike, who he blamed for destroying him financially, and set out to strike back, using Alma as his means to get back at his enemy.

He kidnapped Alma in her own car, driving it into the Manchester Ship Canal and though they both survived, he later attempted to run Mike over, again in Alma’s car, this time crashing into the viaduct and perishing as the car erupted in a ball of flame.

Having sold the café to Roy Cropper (David Neilson), Alma then discovered that Mike had cheated on her and promptly kicked him into touch, moving in with bestie, Audrey Roberts (Sue Nicholls).

After a supermarket siege threatened her life, Alma found herself as the centrepiece of an important cervical cancer storyline, during which she missed several smear tests and after a series of hospital misdiagnosis, she discovered she had the disease and it had progressed too far to treat.

Alma returned to Audrey’s house to live out her final days, passing away at home, surrounded by her loved ones.