Known for her longest-running role as Rita Tanner on British soap opera "Coronation Street."
As a teenager, she worked as a telegraphist in the UK Retail post office company Post Office.
In 2004, she was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the British Soap Awards.
She married second husband John Knox in 1977, but divorced in 1994.
She has appeared on "Coronation Street" with Malcolm Hebden.
