Coronation Street fans were left in tears after a legendary character made a swift exit on Wednesday night with some saying she deserved a better goodbye to the cobbles
Coronation Street devotees were left gobsmacked after a legendary character made a hasty departure on Wednesday night, nearly 40 years following her first appearance. Sally Ann Matthews initially graced the cobbles as Jenny Bradley, now known as Jenny Connor, in January 1986 and stayed with the soap until the early 1990s before making a permanent return just over 10 years ago.
In midweek scenes from the world’s longest-running TV soap, it became clear that the character, who was introduced as Rita Tanner’s (Barbara Knox) foster daughter years ago, had bid farewell to Weatherfield for good, leaving some fans ‘in tears’ while others remained unmoved.
Recently, Jenny seemed to have developed feelings for George Shuttleworth (Tony Maudsley), but he has been preoccupied with Christina Boyd (Amy Robbins), her competitor. Jenny, who previously co-managed the Rovers with stepdaughter Daisy Midgeley (Charlotte Jordan), was taken aback when Rita handed her an envelope filled with cash.
Rita had planned to send Jenny and George on a date to clear the air.
Earlier that day, George had dropped by The Kabin with some soup, and Jenny misled him into believing that Rita was gravely ill. When he discovered the truth later, he was far from pleased, and neither was Rita, which led Jenny to confess some uncomfortable truths, reports the Mirror.
She admitted to her former foster mother that she wasn’t entirely content since losing the Rovers and had simply enjoyed the attention that George had given her.
“I like him and I wish that I really did want him, but I know what I’m like. I’ll get bored and try to change him into something more exciting. Christina doesn’t deserve him.”
An irate Rita retorted: “That’s not a good reason to try and snare him, and I still think you should apologise for the way you’ve behaved. And not just to George!”.
Jenny joined the ranks of iconic characters who have taken over the reins of the nation’s most beloved pub, following in the footsteps of Annie Walker (Doris Speed), Bet Lynch (Julie Goodyear) and Liz McDonald (Beverley Callard). However, her tenure took a disastrous turn when Christina and Daisy were involved in a complex scam that left her out of pocket and forced to relinquish control.
Later, Jenny mused: “If this was my last year on earth, what would I do? I can only think of what I wouldn’t do. You know when you’ve been happy somewhere? I had a job in the Rovers when I first lived round here. Bet Lynch, well Bet Gilroy as she was then, gave it to me. I’d watch her swanning around, Queen Bee, in this world that was all hers and I never imagined one day it would be me or that I’d feel like I really belonged there. I’ve still got the name plate.”
Jenny had a final confrontation with Christina, branding her ‘rude and selfish,’ before Rita handed her a one-way ticket to Tenerife. Rita proposed a last drink at the Rovers, but an emotional Jenny couldn’t face it, leading to a tearful farewell outside the pub.
Rita then went in for a drink with Brian Packham, and eventually, Jenny peeked through the door, played Total Eclipse of the Heart on the jukebox, and Rita silently, yet tearfully, toasted her. After her final departure, Jenny discarded her licensee plate in the bin and walked away for the last time.
However, fans felt this type of exit was insufficient for someone who had become such an icon of the Street during her tenure. One commented: “That Jenny exit! Literally had to double check I didn’t miss something!” while another remarked: “It was such a poor exit jenny deserved better.”
A third fan expressed: “Was I prepared for Jenny to leave #Corrie? Maybe, but I wasn’t ready for her and Rita to say goodbye. Long live Barbara Knox” and a fourth confessed: “oh my god im tearing up on the train why did jenny have to leave”.
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