Alan Bradley
| Alan Bradley | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coronation Street character | |||||||
| Portrayed by | Mark Eden | ||||||
| Introduced by | John G. Temple | ||||||
| Duration | 1986-89 | ||||||
| First appearance | 15 January 1986 | ||||||
| Last appearance | 8 December 1989 | ||||||
| Classification | Former; regular | ||||||
| Profile | |||||||
| Date of birth | 20 July 1939 | ||||||
| Date of death | 8 December 1989 | ||||||
| Occupation | Businessman | ||||||
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Alan Bradley is a fictional character from the British soap opera Coronation Street. He was played by Mark Eden.
Alan is one of the most famous villains in the history of the Street. He made his first appearance in 1986 when his wife Pat was killed in a road accident. Because of his absence, working away from home, his daughter, Jenny Bradley, had to be temporarily fostered by Rita Fairclough. Alan soon began a relationship with Rita, and tried unsuccessfully to persuade her to marry him. He was aware that Rita had inherited money and owned a business, but at first he appeared to be genuinely in love with her.
Later, Alan left Rita for another woman, but she coaxed him back to live with her. The woman in question warned Rita that Alan was only interested in her money. Rita did not know that Alan had stolen the deeds to Rita's house, and had impersonated her dead husband Len Fairclough in order to obtain a mortgage to support his small business.
In 1989, when Rita discovered Alan's deception, he tried to kill her. At the conclusion of his trial, his plea bargain resulted in his walking free that very day. He proceeded to conduct a campaign of harassment against Rita, who had a breakdown and left the Street for Blackpool, having lost her memory. Many of the residents believed that Alan had murdered her, and he became the object of widespread hatred and suspicion.
Alan famously met his end after being hit and killed by a Blackpool tram while chasing a distressed Rita across the tracks. 26.93 million viewers watched the character meet his untimely demise in 1989. As of 2010, it is the 9th most-watched UK broadcast of all time.[1]
The first episode of series 2 of Phoenix Nights contains a visual reference to the death of Alan Bradley, where flowers with a sign 'In Memory of Alan' are tied to a lamp-post beside the tram line.
On 8 December 2009, Mark Eden unveiled a blue plaque to mark the 20 year anniversary of the screening of the famous Coronation Street episode. The plaque is located outside The Strand Hotel, North Promenade, Blackpool which was the venue chosen for the filming of much of the footage.[2]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Tapper, James (1 May 2005). "The biggest TV audience ever ... it is now". Daily Mail. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/showbiz/showbiznews.html?in_article_id=346942&in_page_id=1773. Retrieved 2007-09-05.
- ^ Helen Steel (5 April 2010). "Blackpool: A love affair with the nation's favourite street". Blackpool Gazette. http://www.blackpoolgazette.co.uk/CustomPages/CustomPage.aspx?Pageid=81535.
