I havent always lived in Oz, I was born in Peckham (Land of Only Fools and Horses) and emigrated to this beautiful country in January, 1990.

Coronation Street came onto our screens when I was 3 years old - even from that early age I was hooked.  Mum and Dad had little money but they did have an old second hand b/w tv on which we watched our show, nightly at 7.30pm, Monday and Wednesday evenings.  On this tv, all the characters looked short and fat!!  It was only when my parents managed to buy a new b/w some years later that we realized the only short fat one was Uncle Albert!!  LOL!!

The Street is part of my upbringing.  The characters are embedded in my memory.  When I was a young girl, my mum took me to "Jones and Higgins" in Peckham and we saw Violet Carson there performing for the audience.  I couldnt believe it was the same person as 'Ena' because she looked so lovely, nice hairdo and lippy and a much softer face than I was used to seeing.  I can still recall now, being held up in mums arms to see her over the crowds.  Aaaaah!

I dutifully watch The Street thru childhood and working life, even having the fortune to meet Bill Podmore at a works do when I worked for the Independent Television Companies, based in London, England.  He promised me a trip "Ooop t'Street" long before tours were ever the go, but due to rather copious quantities of the old Amber Nectar, I couldnt quite remember the details and never went!!  Never mind - one day.....

I lived in Ontario, Canada from June 1980 until Jan 1982, missing coronation street as it was not aired there.  However, at some time during that period one of the channels started to run it again right from the start!!!!!!   I tuned in, only to find I couldnt understand a word they said!  Ena seemed to be speaking 20 to the dozen, and it took me a few episodes to tune my ear to the dialect and the speed with which it was delivered!! 

Back in London in '82 I caught up again. A bit further down the track, I  remember the Ken/Deidre/Mike saga.  Working as a receptionist at an ad agency at the time, I even had photos of the three of them up in the reception area, asking anyone who would spare me the time who they thought Deidre would choose.  Gosh, tense times!!!

Emigrating to Oz I was horrified to find there was no coro.  It never occurred to me that it would not be on the telly, especially with all the brits over here.  However, in 1996, we managed to hook up to satellite tv and thank goodness, Arena carries it, allbeit a few years behind, still who cares, I am able to catch up with missed coro and we are catching up fast with 9 half hour episodes a week!!!!!!!

March 1999 sees the first ever Major Ozzie PING!!  A get together of fans on the internet.  Its very exciting for us - the common bond of coro is very strong and Im sure the weekend will be enormously entertaining.  Granada have even dontated a piece of costume for us!!

On the subject of coro on the internet, I have to say that I have never laughed so much since joining the mass of lunatic fans I have met in the rooms of #coro_street or the friendly pub of the Coro GuestBoard.  To sit at a computer, unable to see the screen for the mass of tears flooding down my face with laughter is a sight to behold Im sure!!  hahahha, side splitting, looney, awesome stuff.  If laughter is good for the soul - I have mine in batter with chips!!!!!!  I cannot believe the fun I have here.  Its only when I have tried to explain it to 'outsiders' that the sheer lunacy of it hits me!!  To try to describe to someone how we have partys while we are listening to oldies night on chfi Toronto, dancing with eachother and singing along to the old songs, is near impossible when their mouths are hung open and they have one eye on the door to see if they can escape!  I have given up trying to explain this wonderful experience - its unique and its personal!!

Friends I have met but have yet to meet - isnt that amazing??  There are some truly special friends on the internet coro pages.  TINKY and I share a truly toilet humour, a mere sound wave (usually a rude one) sets us off into uncontrollable laughter.  Having had the pleasure of a face to face (or possum to aaaaardvark) meeting with him, I can say this is true irl too!!  SASPARILLA, my cyber sister from Ottawa is the sister I have never had, raving loonie extraordinaire, but like TINKY, the sweetest of hearts and the dearest of friends.  ELAINE here in Brisbane, a wonderful, thoughtful lady and the first to offer help to newcomers, despite the difficulties she encounters with typing due to her severe arthritis, a special lady who I have become close to and have had many get togethers with.  Then of course there is the Angel of the Street, JACQUELINE, a person good to the core - who cooks the bestest ribs in the world Im told and even makes her own choccies, mmmmmmm, now there is a friend to keep close by!!!  So many wonderful people, hopefully in the year 2000 I shall live my dream of travelling to England and Canada and meet the people I share my life with in real life, what a party that will be!!

Home life for me is varied and wonderful.  I work, have two children, Bradley born in 1986 and Cassey born in 1988, am married to the sexy Phil, and have the fortune of my parents living around the corner from us.  We have a little doggy, Daisy May plus a budgie called Sunshine!!  Our garden consists of at least 30 different varieties of tropical fruit, and as many varieties of pests too I would say!!!!!!!!!  Life is wonderful here on the beach, I count my blessings daily.  Each day is a gift!!! 

My philosophy on life is simple, I base it around the following.......
"Each day the sun comes up and shines brightly.  Sometimes we can't see it for the clouds, but it is always there for us"

Favourite character from The Street was:-
Elsie Tanner - I loved her ballsy nature and her love of gin, fags and men!!!  (not necessarily in that order I guess LOL)

Favourite Storylines:-
hmmm, the accident in the viaduct when the train crashed, and when the lorry crashed into the Rovers.  The ghost in The Snug.  Suzie Birchall's disruptions!!  The goings on when Vera and Ivy worked at Baldwin's factory.  The plays the cast used to put on which had them all dressing up and going on stage. Most touching was when Stan died and Hilda was indoors after all the guests had left after the funeral.  She picked up Stan's glasses, held them to her face and cried her heart out - so did I.

Fave characters now :-
guess I go for the ones who have been around for a while....  Rita, Ken, Mike, Gayle and Betty.

Whoever you are who is reading this, G'day to you and thanks for being part of this wonderful coro family.