Jane Hazlegrove, who plays Bernie Winter on Coronation Street, has been married to Emmerdale actress Isobel Middleton for over a decade. The couple met in 1995 at London's Bush Theatre, where Jane was starring in a production of Boom Bang-a-Bang. They married in 2015 and have been together for over 28 years.
Jane's Career Before Corrie
Jane has appeared in numerous TV shows since 1984, including Silent Witness, The Bill, Dinnerladies, and Heartbeat. She played Kathleen 'Dixie' Dixon in Casualty from 2006 to 2016, briefly returning in 2019 for co-star Iain Dean's exit.
Interestingly, Jane is one of the few actresses to have played a regular character in Corrie before taking on another regular role. In 1985, she played Sue Clayton, daughter of Harry and Connie Clayton, who lived at 11 Coronation Street. The Clayton family were written out after less than a year.
Joining Corrie for a Bathroom
In 2019, Jane joined Coronation Street again as Bernie Winter. She revealed to My Weekly magazine that her decision was initially motivated by needing a new bathroom: "I only came into Coronation Street for 10 episodes to get a new bathroom." She added, "I'd run out of money and when they said: 'Will you come and do Corrie for a bit?' I thought 'Yes! That will pay for a nice white suite.'"
She continued, "I've been here for six years now and I've just signed for another year. It's a lovely place to work. I feel very blessed."
Her Wife Isobel Middleton
Isobel Middleton is an accomplished actress who has played three different characters on Emmerdale: Dr Lane in 2014, a barrister in 2018, and Jean Rawson in 2020. She also appeared on Coronation Street in 2022 as feminist author Persephone Braxton, who held a book launch in Roy's Rolls.
Speaking about her wife's stint on Corrie, Jane said: "I wanted to come in and be her chaperone for Got It Day, but she was having none of it. She was in the café chatting with Ken Barlow and there was a fight when Tracy comes in and catches him with his mistress. I wasn't in work that day unfortunately. Probably just as well, I don't think her character would have liked Bernie very much!"
Heartbreaking Family Loss
In 2023, Jane opened up about the real-life grief she faced while filming on-screen son Paul's storyline about motor neurone disease. She told Inside Soap, "I lost my dad recently, so I know what this kind of grief is like. It has been very emotional."
She also expressed her sadness over saying goodbye to Paul actor Peter Ash: "I was very upset because I adore Peter Ash [aka Paul], so I was gutted this meant he would be going. My Corrie family are a tight unit."
Coronation Street airs Monday to Friday at 8:30pm on ITV1 and ITVX.
