Inside Coronation Street’s Barlow family from Blanche to Adam
MEMBERS of the Barlow family have appeared in the cobbles as early as 1960.
Since then, the clan has welcomed new members and even shares links with another famous Coronation Street family. But who are the Barlows?
Blanche Linfield (1936-2010)
Acid-tongued battle-axe Blanche Linfield first appeared in Weatherfield in 1974.
She was portrayed by actress Maggie Jones.
Not much is known about Blanche’s life before Coronation Street but she welcomed a single child, a daughter named Deirdre.
Blanche raised her one her own after her husband Donald Hunt was killed in road traffic accident in 1963.
A dressmaker, Blanche ran her own corsetry business until 1976, when she decided to focus on her new job as manageress of the Corner Shop.
A year later, she accepted an offer from her former flame Dave Smith to run his country club and temporarily left the cobbles, without forgetting to pay an occasional visit to her daughter.
Blanche returned permanently to Coronation Street in 1999, match-making Deirdre with her husband Ken.
This prompted her to move in with them at No.1, staying in their front room.
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Retired, she kept herself busy by attending reading groups, looking for love and even going to funerals of people she didn’t even know.
Her brash and sometimes insensitive nature surely did not mellow with age as Blanche was known to be brutally honest, even if that meant putting members of her own family down.
But in a surprising gesture, Blanche bought No.7 to allow her granddaughter Tracy and great-granddaughter Amy to have a home in 2004.
Blanche died of a heart attack during an extended holiday in Portugal at the age of 74 in May, 2010, making her last appearance in the cobbles in December, 2009.
Off-screen, actress Maggie Jones died peacefully in her sleep in December, 2009, just before her last stint on the ITV soap was aired.
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Deirdre Hunt (1955-2015)
As mentioned above, Deirdre (née Hunt) was an only child and was mainly raised by her mother Blanche.
She first arrived in Coronation Street in 1973 and was a long-term Weatherfield resident, well-known for her big glasses and husky voice.
She first secured herself a job as a secretary with builders Fairclough and Langton.
Her love live was tumultuous as she broke off her engagement to Billy Walker in 1975 in favour of her boss, Ray Langton, soon after taking on the job.
The couple welcomed a daughter named Tracy.
Three years later, Deirdre lost trust in Ray and ended their marriage after he had an affair with Janice Stubbs.
While he moved away to Holland, Deirdre followed her mother’s example and raised their only daughter alone.
In 1981, Deirdre found love again in the shape of Ken Barlow, who was sixteen years older than her.
This age difference eventually turned Deirdre to stray from her humdrum family life and being drawn to the more exciting Mike Baldwin, with whom she had an affair in 1983.
But her marriage with Ken didn’t end there, in fact it was made stronger by the ordeal as the pair worked through their problems and remained together for seven more years.
The union ended a when Ken had his own affaire with his secretary Wendy Crozier and Deirdre threw him out.
Deirdre was far from the luckiest in love and has had many other relationships notably with Moroccan toyboy Samir Rachid (who died after a brutal beating) and con man Jon Lindsay.
The latter was even responsible for her going to Redford Prison on fraud charges but her conviction was eventually overturned.
Aside from this string of bad relationships, Deirdre worked at various places in Weatherfield including the Corner Shop and the Rosamund Street Medical Centre.
She was even involved in local politics in 1987 and 1991.
Ken and Deirdre couldn’t stay away from each other forever and, after his own ill-fated romances, they reconciled and remarried in 2005.
Overwhelmed by the drama, she decided to take a break from Weatherfield and left for a holiday under the sun with her friend Bev Unwin.
The latter was eventually given the painful task of announcing Deirdre’s death.
The Corrie stalwart passed away from a brain aneurysm on her 60th birthday, July 8, 2015.
Off-screen, actress Anne Kirkbride died in January 2015, following a secret battle with breast cancer.
Ken Barlow (1939-)
Born and raised in Weatherfield, Ken is the longest-standing Coronation Street resident.
Portrayed by actor William Roache, Ken is the son of postman Frank and kitchen cleaner Ida.
During most of his youth, Ken strived to escape his working class roots and was well on his way to do so when he became the first Coronation Street resident to attend university.
He graduated with a degree in History and English and became an English teacher at Bessie Street School.
Ken remained in Weatherfield near his father following the death of his mother Ida in a road accident in 1961.
He married Valerie Tatlock, with whom he welcomed twins named Susan and Peter.
Valerie sadly died after being electrocuted in 1971.
Two years later, Ken found himself a second wife, Janet, but she showed interest in being a stepmother to his children.
She left Ken and eventually committed suicide in 1977.
During the 1970’s, Ken turned away from teaching and tried his hand at other jobs, thus becoming executive at Mark Brittain Warehouse, a taxi driver and even a Community Development Officer.
Ken found happiness again with Deirdre and the pair were married in 1981.
Fond of Deirdre’s daughter Tracy, Ken adopted her in 1986 and raised her as his own.
While he forgave Deirdre her affair with Mike Baldwin, Ken struggled to do the same with the latter and this triggered a two-decade long feud.
After being thrown out for his own affair with his secretary at the Weatherfield Recorder Wendy Crozier in 1989, Ken tried to end his life.
He slowly rebuilt his life by returning to teaching and had a series of relationship with Alma Sedgewick, Maggie Redman and Denise Osbourne.
Denise welcomed a son named Daniel following their relationship and won custody of him before leaving the street.
Ken and Deirdre reconciled in 1999 and remarried in 2005.
He now lives at No.1 Coronation Street alongside Tracy, her husband Steve McDonald and his granddaughter Amy.
Susan Barlow (1965-2001)
Susan Barlow is the late daughter of Ken and Valerie Barlow and is Peter’s twin sister.
Although her life began in Weatherfield, Susan was sent to live with her maternal grandparents following her mother’s death at the age of five.
Susan therefore lived in Tatlock, Glasgow, until the age of sixteen, paying fleeting visits to her father alongside her brother.
Leaving home for London in 1981, she lived in Newcastle until 1985, when she moved back to Weatherfield.
Much like her stepmother Deirdre, she was charmed by Mike Baldwin, whom she married in 1986.
Their marriage ultimately broke down after Susan aborted their child to focus on her career.
In a shocking move, Susan was thrown out of her home by Mike, who called her a murderer in the process.
Little did Mike know that Susan never actually went through with the termination and gave birth to a son named Adam in Glasgow in 1988.
Mike eventually learned about Adam and pestered Susan to have access to his son.
Susan preferred to go into hiding and left Glasgow.
However, when driving through Preston, her car was forced off the road by the getaway car from a petrol station robbery by Gareth Brannigan and Billy Mayhew.
Adam sustained minor injuries but Susan instantly lost her life.
Peter Barlow (1965-)
Played by Chris Gascoyne since 2000, Peter is also a long-term resident of Coronation Street.
He was first sent to live in Glasgow with his sister at the age of five and signed up for the Royal Navy ten years later.
He was discharged from the Navy in 2002 and returned to Weatherfield, where he became the owner of Barlow’s Bookies.
Peter has been married several times, his first marriage being with Jessica Midgeley.
The pair split after ten years when Jessica found out Peter was unfaithful to her.
Upon his return to Weatherfield, he was engaged to Shelley Unwin but led a double life during an affair with Lucy Richards who became the mother of his a son named Simon.
Peter married both Shelley and Lucy but was caught red-handed for his bigamy.
Lucy moved to Australia with Simon while he settled for a new life in Portsmouth until Lucy’s death brought him back to Weatherfield in 2008.
Lucy passed away and left all of her money to Peter on the one condition he brought up Simon.
Peter agreed, buying the bookies, but drowned his struggles with fatherhood.
He was back on the straight and narrow after setting his flat on fire and nearly killing Simon and managed to remain sober, although he fell off the wagon several times.
In 2008, Peter was romantically involved with Leanne Battersby who stood by him throughout his drinking problems and raised Simon as her own.
Married in 2010, they split up when Peter set his sights on Underworld boss Carla Connor and they eventually tied the knot.
But once again, Peter couldn’t stay faithful very long and made Tina McIntyre his mistress, causing Carla to miscarry their baby when she found out.
Wrongfully accused of murdering Tina, Peter escaped a life sentence when Carla’s brother Rob admitted he was responsible for her death, leaving Peter to return to Portsmouth to build himself back up.
As his father Ken’s health began to fail, and despite their sometimes strained relationship, Peter came back to Weatherfield in 2016.
After a failed relationship with Toyah Battersby and a time as owner of the Rovers, Peter became driver for Street Cars and reconciled with Carla.
Carla Connor (1975-)
Carla (Alison King) has become a member of the Barlow family because of her relationship with Peter.
She is the result of a one-night stand between her mother Sharon Donovan and Johnny Connor, a married man who didn’t acknowledge her as his daughter until 2015.
Carla is a well-known ice queen in Weatherfield but, although she projects a tough exterior, she is a true mother hen to her Underworld employees.
She is notably close with Roy Cropper, following the death of his wife Hayley who worked at the factory.
Before her relationship with Peter, Carla was known for her taste in questionable men.
After inheriting her husband Paul’s share of the factory following his death in 2007, Carla fell for her brother-in-law Liam but married Tony Gordon instead when Liam set his sights on Maria Sutherland.
Tony later confessed that he had Liam killed in a hit-and-run to get his love rival out of the way.
Carla bonded with Peter Barlow while they helped each other give up alcohol.
When Peter married Leanne Battersby, Carla got involved with Frank Foster.
Carla realised she was making a big mistake and broke her engagement with Frank off, after which he raped her.
Carla and Peter then started an affair which was exposed in court, helping Frank get acquitted, although he was murdered by his mother Anne after his release.
As mentioned above, Carla suffered a miscarriage when she found out Peter – then her husband since 2013 – was having an affair with Tina McIntyre.
After nearly marrying Nick Tilsley – the union was annulled when Nickwas made aware of Carla’s one-night stand with Robert by Tracy – Carla moved to Devon.
She returned to Weatherfield in 2017 to help her cousin Aidan get the ailing factory back up and running.
She later ran Underworld alone following Aidan’s suicide.
The factory roof collapsed in 2019, killing Rana Habeeb and Carla was blamed for the tragedy.
The tragedy took a toll on her mental health and she was sent to a psychiatric hospital.
To make amends, Carla distributed her shares in the factory among her employees and currently works there as a manager.
Peter, still in love with her, helped her through the ordeal and the pair got married again in 2021.
Tracy Barlow (1977-)
Tracy (played by Kate Ford) has lived most of her life in Coronation Street with her only father figure being Ken, Deirdre’s second husband, after her biological father Ray left for Holland.
Ray died in 2005 with Tracy never having the chance to build a bond with him.
When she found out Ken had been thrown out for having an affair, Tracy blamed her mother for breaking up their family and grew estranged from her.
Their relationship hit a low point in 1995, when Deirdre’s third husband Samir Rachid was beaten and killed while he was on his way to donate a kidney to Tracy.
At the time, Tracy had taken bad Ecstasy and fallen seriously ill.
She left Weatherfield after her operation and married her first husband Robert Preston in 1996.
Six years later, Tracy returned to the cobbles after living in London and became reputed for being a man-eater, capable of using people for her own satisfaction.
She gave birth to her daughter Amy following a one-night stand with Steve McDonald and temporarily claimed Roy Cropper was the father in a bid to extort money from him and his wife Hayley.
She even embarked on a short marriage with Roy to keep the lie going.
In 2007, Tracy asserted herself as a true villain when she murdered her then-boyfriend Charlie Stubbs in cold blood, as revenge for his philandering.
She tried to get away with the crime by claiming it was self-defence but this backfired and she was handed a life sentence after being found guilty of murder.
Tracy’s prison sentence lasted three years as her conviction was quashed following a re-trial.
Very few residents were happy to see her back, least of all Steve who still went on to marry her after splitting up with his wife Becky.
The pair separated on their wedding day, however, when Steve found out Tracy had covered up her miscarriage with a lie Becky had pushed down the stairs.
Tracy’s ill-fated relationship with Charlie was not the only proof of her being unlucky in matters of the heart.
After getting involved with Rob Donovan, who jilted her at the altar after murdering Tina, Tracy turned him in to the police and went on to date Luke Britton and Steve, once again.
Tracy has been living a more settled life since rekindling her romance with Steve, running florist Preston’s Petals with Mary Taylor as her assistant.
Steve and Tracy remarried in 2018 and live at No.1 with their daughter Amy.
Steve McDonald (1974-)
Growing up in army lodgings, Steve (Simon Gregson) moved to the cobbles in 1989 with his parents Jim and Liz and his twin brother Andy.
He wanted to get into business and used gambling winnings to buy MVB Print, but a year later he was sent to prison for handling stolen goods.
He tried to pin the blame on his rich wife Vicky and she left him right away.
Steve set up Street Cars with Vikram Desai in 2000 and married Kzren Phillips the following year but the ceremony was gatecrashed by Tracy who announced that Steve was the father of her daughter Amy.
Karen married Steve regardless but her battles with Tracy became too much for the couple and they got divorced.
After divorcing Karen, he waged war against Tracy for access to Amy, but only gained custody when Tracy was sent to prison for murdering Charlies Stubbs.
In 2009, Steve McDonald gave up a stable life with Michelle Connor to marry Becky Granger but the relationship was also wrecked by Tracy.
Steve eventually came to his senses during his 2012 wedding reception with Tracy and broke things off with her there and then.
This led him back to Michelle, whom he married in 2015 but when they went through a rough patch, Steve slept with Leanne Battersby and both women were pregnant with his children.
While Michelle lost their son Ruairi in a late miscarriage, Leanne successfully gave birth to a boy named Oliver.
However, Oliver tragically died from a rare form of mitochondrial disease at the age of three.
Steve confessed that he was Oliver’s father to Michelle and she demanded a divorce from him.
He has since met and bonded with Emma Brooker, his daughter with ex-girlfriend Fiona Middleton.
Daniel Osbourne (1995-)
Daniel (Rob Mallard) is the son of Ken Barlow and Denise Osbourne and was raised by his father alone after his mother ran away with Brian Dunkley.
He was then taken by Denis and Brian to live in Scotland with them.
In 2010, Daniel was abandoned at the age of fifteen by his mother and was forced to lie to his friends and teachers to avoid being taken into care.
Six years later, he was at Ken’s bedside after he suffered a stroke and remained in Weatherfield thereafter.
Daniel embarked on an affair with Sinead Tinker in the following months, pushing Ken down the stairs after learning he had pressured Sinead into aborting their baby.
Sinead and Daniel tied the knot in 2018, by which point she was pregnant again.
Unfortunately, she had also been diagnosed with cervical cancer.
Sinead managed her treatment around her son Bertie but after an initial remission, the cancer returned more aggressively.
She passed away in 2019, leaving Daniel a single father.
Daniel has also had a relationship with Bethany Platt but the romance did not end in the greatest terms.
Daniel graduated with a degree in English Literature in 2017 and followed with an MA course one year later with hopes of becoming a journalist.
He eventually completed a PGCE and now teaches English at Weatherfield High.
Daniel and his son Bertie live in 15a Coronation Street and he is trying to get his love life back on track by giving romance another shot with Daisy Midgeley.
Another one of his recent storylines includes a feud with student Max Turner which has ignited a new conflict with the Platt family.
Adam Barlow (1988-)
Adam (Sam Robertson) is Ken’s grandson as he is Susan and Mike Baldwin’s son.
Following his mother’s death, Adam was sent to his private school in Glasgow as a boarder by his father Mike, who was awarded custody of him.
In 2005, Adam left school to get involved with Mike’s knicker factory, Underword, and was propelled into a management position after Mike’s death just a year later.
But as his relationship with half-brother and co-owner Danny Baldwin was strained, Adam saw his 40% share of the business being sold to Liam Connor.
Adam left for Portsmouth to run his uncle Peter’s new betting shop in 2007.
While he became a practising solicitor in Canada, Adam was overcome by an addiction to prescription drugs and his grandfather Ken lived with him for a year to help him.
Adam reciprocated in 2016 by moving to Weatherfield and supporting Ken after his stroke.
At the time, Adam lived with his uncle Daniel at No.15a and set up Barlow Legal Services with Todd Grimshaw.
Since 2018, he shares the business with Imran Habeeb.
Much like his father Mike, Adam has occasionally lied and cheated but has never strayed to the wrong side of the law.
After a rocky relationship, he married Sarah Platt in 2020 and currently lives with her and her son Harry at Redbank Apartments.
Simon Barlow (2003-)
After losing his mother to breastcancer, Simon (played by Alex Bain) was left in the care of his father Peter, returning to Weatherfield from Australia at the age of five.
When his father struggled and turned to alcohol, his maternal grandfather George tried to take custody of him but Simon only ran away and back to Peter.
Thankfully for him, Leanne Battersby – Peter’s then-girlfriend and, later, wife – gave him some stability and began viewing her as his mother.
Leanne was awarded primary custody after her marriage with Peter broke down in 2012.
Bullied by Grace Piper and Faye Windass, Simon became a troubled a child, going as far as physically abusing Leanne and forcing her to report him to the police.
His behaviour improved after some counselling but he turned nasty again in 2018 when he assisted Tyler Jefferies in mugging Audrey Roberts (making the Barlow-Platt feud even worse).
He vent on to burgle the Corner Shop flat but later gave evidence in court against Tyler, showing remorse.
Simon was recently groomed by Jacob Hay into getting involved with a new bad crowd and was tricked to believe he owed a serious debt to drug dealer and criminal Harvey Gaskell.
Simon lives at 12 Victoria Court with Leanne and her partner Nick Tilsley, a member of the Platt family.
Amy Barlow (2004-)
Amy (Elle Mulvaney) has often been a pawn in her mother Tracy’s schemes.
As a new-born, in 2004, she was sold to Roy and Hayley after Tracy managed to fool them into thinking the owner of Roy’s Rolls was Amy’s father.
Hayley and Roy temporarily re-named her Patience Cropper.
Tracy had a change of heart soon after and revealed Steve McDonald was actually Amy’s real father.
Tracy spent the next couple of years pursuing Steve, using Amy as a pawn to sabotage his other relationships.
Her efforts were often vain as Steve was not interested in her, only Amy.
Steve eventually became Amy’s sole guardian when Tracy was convicted of murdering her boyfriend Charlie Stubbs.
Tracy was released on bail in 2010 and regained custody of Amy before slowly worming her way back into Steve’s life.
When they became a couple again in 2017, Amy found it hard to watch them argue.
In recent years, Amy became pregnant at the age of fourteen after sleeping with Tyler Jefferies but had an abortion.
She is also close to her half-sister Emma Brooker, who Steve shares with Fiona Middleton.
In a recent storyline, Amy was the victim of a spiking attack while on a night out with her friends Asha, Summer, Aadi and her criminal boyfriend Jacob Hay.
Other members include:
- Bertie Osbourne (January 14, 2019-) is the son of Daniel Osbourne and Sinead Tinker. He was born prematurely so his mother could continue cancer treatment and spent the first few weeks of his life in an incubator. Sinead passed away three months before his first birthday and his father Daniel is raising him as a single parent.