Irene Sutcliffe who played Maggie Clegg in Coronation Street has died aged 88, according to reports.
The actress starred in the soap from 1968 to 1975 and ran the Corner Shop.
Maggie was married to Les Clegg, who was an alcoholic, and many of her storylines revolved around his battle with the booze.
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She was the sister of show stalwart Betty Turpin, and adopted Betty’s son Gordon, bringing him up as her own.
Maggie divorced Les in 1969 and remarried reformed alcoholic Ron Cooke in 1974 before emigrating to Africa in 1975.
She made a brief return when Gordon found out the truth about his birth mother, but has not been seen on the Street since then.
When Betty died in 2012, Maggie didn’t attend the funeral, though she was seen in a picture in the background at Betty’s house.
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Away from Corrie, Irene was a distinguished stage actress and also appeared on television in Dixon of Dock Green, Pathfinders in Space and Emergency – Ward 10.
She was in Doctors and Doc Martin and her last role was in 2015 in The Royals.
Known to be a private woman, she had a loyal circle of friends, liked to play bridge, and was a member of the Actors’ Benevolent Fund for many years.
She was born on July 12, 1930 and is said to have died on May 3, 2019.
As yet a cause of death has not been revealed.
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