Corrie's forgotten characters - Sheila Birtles and Doreen Lostock

I really enjoy writing about our forgotten Coronation Street characters, aren't they fascinating? After focusing on Irma Barlow yesterday, we again find ourselves at the corner shop as we explore the lives of Sheila Birtles and Doreen Lostock. When they first appeared in 1961, Eileen Mayers (Sheila) and Angela Crow (Doreen) played characters who had no names, with scripts referring to them as 'the Barm Cake girls'. The girls became popular with viewers and the characters were developed.

Click below to read about two of the most significant characters in Corrie history.

I say that they are two of the most significant characters because they are the predecessors to every young, single female character to have lived on Coronation Street. For possibly the first time on British television, Sheila and Doreen reflected young women of the 50s and 60s who were free from the domestic and social constraints that their mothers would have experienced. The two girls were independent, enthusiastic and lighthearted, and although their evenings revolved around going to dances in the hope of finding Mr Right, they relied only on themselves and eachother. Sheila was studious and sensible, while Doreen was lively and mischievous.

In 1962 Doreen and Sheila moved into the corner shop flat and in their first act of domestic liberation, set up their record-player and danced the Twist. Sheila worked at the raincoat factory with Christine Hardman, while Doreen branched out and took a job working for Leonard Swindley (himself a precursor of Reg Holdsworth) at Gamma Garments. The trio of Gamma staff (Swindley, Doreen and Emily Nugent) provided some of the earliest Coronation Street comedy, most famously Swindley's fire drill which left the them locked out. The cheeky Doreen was in perfect contrast to the pompous Swindley and the timid Emily, and Eileen Derbyshire apparently looks on that as her favourite time in the show.

Eileen Mayers commented on the importance of Doreen and Sheila as best friends, saying that the relationship between the two was completely authentic in terms of what northern working girls did and how they viewed life. The pairing of two young friend has since been emulated, most notably by Gail Potter and Tricia Hopkins and later by Gail and Suzie Birchall. Helen Worth has often remarked that she feels the friendship between Gail and Suzie in the 1970s was very reminiscent of Sheila and Doreen, and that the initial development of her character was directly based on a previous and successful archetype. Indeed, Eileen Mayers made her final appearance as Sheila in the same year that Helen Worth started as Gail.

In 1963 Doreen found herself in hot water at Gamma Garments when two men told her that most of the stock was to be transferred to another branch. Doreen sat by and watched as the shelves were emptied and the stock loaded into a van. Even Emily Nugent thought nothing of the events until they found out that they had been conned and the men had stolen the stock! The dodgy Neil Crossley was installed as manager when Swindley was promoted to head office and started an affair with Sheila, in spite of her going out with Jerry Booth at the time. Crossley enjoyed Sheila only as bit of fun, and when she grew hysterical over their relationship he hit her and quickly left the area.

Sheila became massively depressed and was sacked from her job due to neglect and decided to take her own life. The scenes showing Sheila try to commit suicide were recorded, showing her swallowing tablets, turning on the gas, vomiting into the bin and swallowing more tablets. Just days before the episode was supposed to air, the press leaked the story and Granada was bombarded with complaints. The story was quickly changed and Sheila never did try to kill herself.

Meanwhile Doreen started to work evenings in the Rovers, where she thrived on shooting-down the lecherous comments from the male customers. Doreen is actually one of my favourite characters! Angela Crow decided to leave the programme in 1963 to immerse herself into new wave film and theatre.

After her breakdown, Sheila left Weatherfield to live with her parents in Rawtenstall, and Doreen moved away to join the army. Sheila reappeared in 1966 and started to romance Jerry Booth again. Sheila confessed to Jerry that she had a young son who was living in foster care and that Neil Crossley was the father. Sheila lodged with Elsie Tanner and took a job at the PVC factory, but hastily moved to Sheffield after bumping into Neil Crossley on a train who proposed to her. Sheila made her last appearance in 1974, this time as Sheila Crossley, and caused a rift between Jerry and his new lady friend, Mavis Riley.