Coronation Street reached a low of eight million in February 1973, when Pat Phoenix quit as Elsie Tanner, Violet Carson (battleaxe Ena Sharples) was written out for most of the year due to illness, and Doris Speed (haughty landlady Annie Walker) took two months' leave due to bereavement. The audience of ITV's other flagship soap opera "Crossroads" increased markedly at this time, as its established cast, such as Meg Richardson (Noele Gordon), grew in popularity. These sudden departures forced the writing team to quickly develop characters who had previously stood in the background. The roles of Bet Lynch (Julie Goodyear), Deirdre Hunt
Meg Johnson Meg Johnson Meg Johnson (born 30 September 1936) is an English actress. She is known for her roles on the British soap operas "Coronation Street" (1981–82, 1999), "Brookside" (2000–03), and "Emmerdale" (2003–present). Since 2003, Johnson has played the role of Pearl Ladderbanks in ITV's popular soap opera "Emmerdale". Prior to joining "Emmerdale", Johnson was a part of the axed UK soap "Brookside", playing Brigid McKenna for three years. In the early 1980s she also played the part of Eunice Gee in "Coronation Street", a role she briefly reprised in 1999. She also played Brenda Holden in 4 episodes of "Coronation