Bet's tough-but-glamorous image was loved by viewers

A spell at Oldham Rep followed - reputedly after Pat Phoenix advised her to get some formal training - and Goodyear returned to the Street in 1970.

Now working behind the bar at the Rovers, Bet Lynch's character was built up with a series of hard-hitting storylines - featuring a string of failed love affairs with, among others, Len Fairclough and Mike Baldwin.

She was also revealed to have a son, Martin, who was killed in a car crash while serving as a soldier in Northern Ireland. Bet had never had the chance to meet him.

Love life

Goodyear's own private life was eventful too - the ups and downs of her love life were keenly followed by the press.

In 1979 she discovered she had cervical cancer, but she overcame the disease and set up a trust fund to help other sufferers.

Bet became landlady of the Rovers in 1985, and storylines saw her marry theatre agent Alec Gilroy, and nearly die in a fire at the pub.

Bet's 1999 return in After Hours

Goodyear quit the show in 1995 - Bet was unable to raise the �67,000 needed for a new tenancy at the Rovers.

Coronation Street's producers said she was welcome to return to the show, and she took part in a 1999 spin-off, After Hours, which saw her run a bar in Brighton.

Stage appearances and a satellite TV chat show followed, but Goodyear has spent most of her time living quietly on her farm in Heywood, Lancashire - where she is a member of the National Farmers Union.

Before she returns to the Street, she is appearing in camp musical La Cage Aux Folles at the New Theatre in Cardiff.