And you need that. Hayley and Roy were also interested in seeing the world. All the pain they had gone through was forgotten as Hayley and Roy began a new life with their daughter, whom they named Patience Cropper. Hayley is devastated and furious with Roy. When he transforms himself, it transforms me." Well, I was gobsmacked, of course, but I thought it was a fantastic idea. Strange happenings begin occurring in the caf and Roy thinks Beth Tinker (Lisa George) and her family are responsible. Additionally, Mike discovered her secret when Alma told him why the DSS was insisting that Hayley was called Harold. Hayley Patterson was a shy shop supervisor at Firman's Freezers. Once there, Hayley sees Carla bound and gagged but Robbie pulls out a gun on her before she can escape, and ties her to a chair too. Ben's identity as a gay man, from bullied schoolboy to revenge-seeking hardman to fianc, has always been tied to his plot lines and his popularity. Roy and Fiz go too. The result of this was the tabling, in 2004, of the Gender Recognition Act, granting trans people full legal status in their acquired sex. Hayley says she would love to meet them but Christian wants to wait until they are 16 years of age, upsetting Hayley. In an interview with Hesmondhalgh in August 2015, it was revealed that in tribute to Wallace, the writers gave Hayley's middle name as Anne, and gave her the same birthday, as well as a mutual love for rock music, especially Queen. She shares a very ordinary family life in Derbyshire with her husband, screenwriter and actor Ian Kershaw (they met on the soap, when he played a reporter on the Weatherfield Gazette) and their two daughters, aged 13 and 10. Leading a terrified Roy into the bedroom, Hayley lay on the bed, while Roy played The Lark Ascending by Vaughan Williams, a mutual favourite of theirs, before laying down beside her. Calling out, Anna and Carla go to the bedroom and, to their shock, find a deceased Hayley on the bed, with Roy's arm around her. The actor was born in Loughborough on March 13 1949. Devastated but philosophical, Hayley begins to make a bucket list of everything that she wants to do before she dies, one of which is teaching Roy how to drive. During their last conversation, Hayley thanked Carla for giving her three extra years of life. These complaints were rejected, with the ITC commenting that the issue had been handled with "tact and great sensitivity". In 2004, Roy bought Hayley an old globe and suggested they travel the world, starting with Kent, although they were tired out by one day's travelling and sold their camper van to Harry Flagg. Realising that Hayley had no other friends, Alma searched for a way to free herself of her without hurting her feelings, succeeding when Hayley was introduced to Roy Cropper at dinner at Alma and Mike's flat. Her anger was typically directed at her circumstances, rather than her tormentors. He decides to call her but she left her phone behind. However, their first experience with a foster child wasn't an official one - on Christmas Day, they caught Wayne Hayes stealing food from the cafe, having run away from home. She hires a private investigator to track him down and introduces herself as his aunt. Traumatised by the incident, Roy's sleepwalking episodes intensified, and on one occasion the cafe smoke alarm went off when Roy cooked in his sleep. Mary Taylor (Patti Clare) intervenes in the wedding preparations and, after weeks of muscling in, Hayley and Roy tell her they do not want her to be a part of the wedding, despite Hayley wearing her vintage wedding dress. She was a kind woman who always put others first, at times such that she could be seen as a pushover, as evidenced by doing her colleagues work for them to meet quotas. Shortly after this storyline was transmitted, Hesmondhalgh took a year off to concentrate on family. Carla Connor became the Underworld co-manager in 2007 following the death of her husband Paul. In 1998, they took evening classes in Spanish, which led to hilarity when, on their way to their way to their inaugural lesson, they stumbled into a "life class" with a nude Nick Tilsley as the model. Suppressing his feelings of grief, Roy slumped into a depression. At the given address, they were met by Margaret Cropper, St. John's second wife, who informed them that her husband had recently passed away. Hayley was the first transgender character in a British soap opera and was the first permanent transgender character in the world of serialised drama. Their row led to Hayley leaving Roy to stay with Fiz and Tyrone Dobbs at 9 Coronation Street, where she had a collapse due to an infection and was taken to hospital. She is terrified of anything that might give her away." Although the factory staff and Street residents initially taunt her, she eventually gets her job back and most Street residents gradually accept her. (50 Years), News that Coronation Street was set to introduce British soap's first transsexual character broke in the papers two weeks before Hayley's on-screen debut in Episode 4341 on 26th January 1998. Roy and Hayley's role in Fiz's life was as surrogate parents although in contrast to Becky Granger, Fiz rarely leaned on the Croppers for emotional support and her job alongside Hayley in the factory meant that they were as much friends as mother and daughter figures. Hayley later breaks down in Roy's arms, saying that she does not want to die and does not want to leave him. In 2010, following a discussion of the ramifications of their not being legally married, Roy and Hayley decided to make it official. In desperation, Hayley and Roy hatched a plan to catch a ferry to Ireland, before coming to their senses and opting to turn themselves in and put their faith in the British justice system. In the wake of the Wayne incident, Peter Hartnell told the Croppers that their fostering suspension would be lifted, but the couple never fostered again. A small Registry Office ceremony was arranged with Roy signing his assets over to Hayley beforehand in case Tracy tried to get hold of the cafe in the divorce. As the year came to a close, Hayley started her chemotherapy sessions and began planning her funeral. The characters were first friends and they started a relationship, until Hayley revealed her past history. They've got to be a bit more imaginative, so it's great - it works out good for us." In 2007, she assaulted Christian Gatley due to his violent reaction to Hayley's revelation about being his father, causing Christian to flee the area and lose touch with Hayley. Hayley has a nightmare about being "Harold" again, making her regret the way things ended with her son, Christian. In 1999, the actress responded to suggestions that it was time to pack away her trusty anorak: "A charity shop sent me a new one the other week. Roy and Hayley felt protective of Wayne and, when he confessed that Alex often lashed out at him and his mum, they decided to act and reported Alex to Peter Hartnell, their contact from Social Services. The unlucky-in-love shop assistant, played by Cheryl Fergison, plucks up the courage to tell the mystery man hes become a father just hours after giving birth. Hayley insists on visiting Jane in the hospice and Jeff reveals that Jane has died. Granada received three letters of complaint, all which were about Hayley being played by a cis-gendered woman and not a transwoman. The Croppers' charity work included organising a Christmas lunch for the homeless at the cafe. The character first appeared in the episode first broadcast on 26 January 1998. Brian Park: We had hoped for her to be a sympathetic character and we didn't want to make her big and blowsy and looking like Pete Burns." Unable to return to Firman's Freezers, Hayley got a job at Underworld knicker factory when Roy won a bet with Mike Baldwin that Hayley could out-machine any of his girls. Another friend of Hayley's from this period was Ruth Audsley, who hid her attraction to Harold. Hayley confides in Sylvia on the day of her scan but swears her to secrecy. Born as a male named Harold Patterson in 1966, Hayley started treatment to physically become female when she was in her twenties. 50 Years of Coronation Street: The (very) Unofficial Story. Hayley and Roy enjoy their last Christmas together. What happened to Anne Malone in Coronation Street? Her character Hayley took her own life - with the help of beloved husband Roy - after a hellish battle with pancreatic cancer. Carla was absent from Weatherfield throughout these events, as she had fled to California when Tony admitted the truth to her months earlier. In December 2011, when Tracy Barlow had a miscarriage which she claimed was caused by Becky pushing her down the stairs, Becky defiantly refused to take the blame, claiming that Tracy had lost the babies before the stairs incident and slipped down her staircase of her own accord. Hayley was therefore sceptical when Becky tried to befriend her when Hayley was doing voluntary work with ex-offenders later in the year, but she decided to give Becky a chance, feeling that everyone could be rehabilitated. In 2010, Hayley took dance classes with Anna Windass, and two years later learned ballroom dancing with Norris Cole and Mary Taylor. Roy plays "The Lark Ascending" by Vaughan Williams, and sits on the bed with Hayley. But I was really conscious that I didn't want it to be making fun of her, and as it happened it was beautifully written and David [Neilson] and I played it, and continue to play it, as a delicate love story. (Fifty Years) On their relationship, David Neilson: "Everything just clicked and the two characters just seem to sparkle together," (Inside Soap). The pair argue again about the way Hayley wants to die. This causes an argument and Hayley moves in with Fiz and Tyrone. By law they were still unwed, but with Hayley changing her surname to "Cropper" by deed poll, they considered themselves a married couple. Carla drove her to the hospital, where she found out she had pancreatic cancer. When Sylvia leaves Roy and Hayley alone, Roy holds Hayley's hand and starts pestering Hayley to drink herbal tea, so she confides in Carla again. Hayley then had the operation to remove her tumour, giving Roy her wedding ring to look after while she was in the operating theatre. After one last moment together, she drinks the cocktail. It wasn't until 2009 that Hayley took on a greater significance in her life; when Carla's husband Tony Gordon made a deathbed confession to arranging the murder of Liam Connor to Roy, only to recover, Roy became obsessed with exposing him. The Croppers struck up an instant bond with Wayne, but although the quiet lad hadn't said why he ran away from home, as Alex left with Wayne, Roy saw him hit the boy through the cafe window. After her operation, Hayley remained in Amsterdam and rented a houseboat, intending to stay for a while. The actor has played the legendary character on the ITV soap for a number of years and has become a big part of culture but he has appeared to hint that he has made his last appearance on the programme. When her family moved to Coronation Street in 2002, they were known as the Nelsons due to being in the witness protection programme. On their return, Hayley found out that Jane had been taken to a hospice for round-the-clock care. On their return, the Croppers discovered that Sylvia had departed the Street to live with her sister. Hayley Patterson was a shy shop supervisor at Firman's Freezers. The following week, Carla insists on going with Hayley for a CT scan where Hayley is diagnosed with stage-two pancreatic cancer. Hesmondhalgh won numerous awards for her portrayal of Hayley, but announced her departure from the show on 11 January 2013. With Hayley behind him, Roy bought a new unit in Victoria Street, No.16, and the flat above, and moved the cafe there. While Tracy felt no guilt over her treatment of the Croppers, Ken and Deirdre forced her to pay back the money and make the Croppers godparents to Patience, whose name was changed to Amy Barlow. They successfully applied and were taken on as foster parents. Hayley Anne Cropper (ne Patterson) was the late wife of Roy Cropper. They seemed to be back on the road to normality when Tracy dropped a bombshell she was pregnant, and Roy was the father. We'll get to know Hayley as a person, not a soap-box cause." Producer Brian Park: [We] didn't want to be seen as chasing their tails so much. I know you do!" In January 2001, the Croppers were accepted as foster parents and received their first foster child: Jackie Mosley, who stayed for two weeks while her mother was in hospital. Roy and Hayley see an opportunity to raise a child and pay Tracy 25,000. Fiz Brown was the second of the Croppers' foster children in 2001. No. Christian repeatedly makes inappropriate remarks unintentionally so Roy shouts at him, before taking Hayley home. They eventually worked out their differences. Upset, Hayley runs home and is followed by Sylvia. While waiting for him to call back, she focuses on throwing a birthday party for Roy in The Rovers. January 8, 2022. was hayley cropper a man in real life. With the return of Hayley Cropper to Coronation Street on Monday 17th November, emails are coming in asking where the actress who plays Hayley, Julie Hesmondhalgh, has been in real life for a whole year. Over time, Hayley came to better understand her feelings about her mind and body and she decided to become physically a woman. The letters, authored by Hayley's old friend Cath, revealed to "Harold" the existence of his son. In 2004, she joined the Rovers Ravers, and ended up carrying the team as she was the only one with any experience at the sport. Hayley was the first transgender character in a British soap opera and was the first permanent transgender character in the world of serialised drama. She'd never do it. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. [9] For a short period of time, after the actor took a one-year break from the show, the producers decided to change her ways. Hayley was the first Street resident to find out their secret, learning the truth when Angela confided in her, after Hayley took her to casualty when Angela hurt her finger on the sewing machine. I did think that people might be angry about it because a lot of people don't want to be watching Corrie and to be seeing this sort of thing, especially with a character that's likable like Hayley. Following the death of her aunt Monica in September 2007, Hayley discovers that she has a son, Christian Gatley (Andrew Turner). On her return to the caf, she makes it clear that she blames Roy and this causes problems. The Croppers' relationship becomes increasingly strained, including a suicide attempt by Roy, but they pull through. During Hayley and Roy's relationship, it often fell to Alma to talk sense into them during difficult moments, the most significant one being Roy's rejection of Hayley when she confessed her sexuality to him. Mike fires her as a result. Hayley made her own dress, while the train was made by the other girls and presented to her at her hen party at No.5, with Janice Battersby selling Les's records to pay for it. She subsequently writes him a cheque. Although devoted to Hayley, Roy could sometimes be insensitive. Jane shocked the couple by making jokes about her pancreatic cancer, but while Roy found her attitude inappropriate, Hayley was inspired and befriended the couple. Tracy then announced to the entire congregation that her baby was in fact Steve's, and she never had sex with Roy at all. In 2012, she took three months off to appear in Black Roses: The Killing Of Sophie Lancaster at the Royal Exchange Theatre. This drew the attention of Tracy Barlow, who let the cat out of the bag that Hayley was a transsexual. Newborn George Michael, named after Heathers idol, was conceived after her drunken night out at the R&R nightclub on Valentines night. Rising Stockholm -based designer Jade Cropper is debuting her Fall/Winter 2023 collection in a short film. Taking his duties very seriously, Roy upset Hayley by repeatedly critiquing her technique, resulting in her sticking a plaster over his mouth. On the reaction from the LGBT community: "There's no way either me or Granada see this as a funny subject. At the hospital, the consultant explains that Hayley has an infection and needs to stay overnight. Hesmondhalgh's portrayal of Hayley, and her on-screen chemistry with fellow actor David Neilson, encouraged the writers to allow the character to evolve from a brief love interest for Roy to a popular long-term character. The manner of Hayley's send-off was entirely appropriate for a woman who always looked to the positive; a woman who had lit up people's lives with her boundless enthusiasm and kindness. Hayley thought the day ruined but to her great surprise, Roy hastily re-organised the day's events, moving the ceremony to the cafe. 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