Rovers Return Inn Billy first appears in Coronation Street in January 1961, but takes over The Rovers Return in 1984 after his mother Annie retires and signs the pub over to him. It doesn't last long, though, and he leaves for good in 1984, after a series of run-ins with police due to the lock-ins held after hours. Arguably the most famous barmaid on "Coronation Street", Bet Lynch was in charge of The Rovers Return for a little over 10 years. In late 1984, the brewery, Newton & Ridley, unhappy with the way the pub was being run into the ground by Billy,
Horse Shoe Brewery was erected on the site. In 1956, Meux merged with Friary, Holroyd and Healy of Guildford to form Friary Meux, which went into liquidation in November 1961 and the company was acquired by Allied Breweries in 1964. The Horse Shoe Brewery ceased to brew in 1966. Friary Meux was revived by Allied in 1979 as a brand name for its public houses, but disappeared after Allied's pubs were sold to Punch Taverns in 1999. The former brewery tap is now a branch of Dorothy Perkins, but there are still traces of the Meux brand in London. Notable, until demolition in