Margi Clarke, best known for playing Jackie Dobbs on Coronation Street, has experienced significant life changes since her character's permanent departure in 2010. The actress has faced health struggles, worked in a pub, and largely stepped away from the screen.
Jackie Dobbs' Storyline on Coronation Street
Jackie Dobbs first appeared in Weatherfield in 1998 after serving a prison sentence alongside Deirdre Barlow (Anne Kirkbride). She settled on the cobbles with her teenage son Tyrone (Alan Halsall). Throughout her tenure, Jackie was involved in several major storylines before returning to Liverpool in 1999. Tyrone remained under the care of Jack and Vera Duckworth.
Jackie made a comeback in 2008 with vibrant pink hair, causing trouble for Tyrone and Molly Dobbs (Vicky Binns) before their wedding. She left the soap permanently in 2010. In 2018, viewers learned that Jackie had died and was not Tyrone's biological mother; that distinction belongs to Cassie Plummer (Claire Sweeney). In a recent twist, Tyrone's biological father Ross Wilkes (Ian Burfield) arrived on the scene, according to the Mirror.
Margi Clarke's Acting Career Before and After Corrie
Before joining Coronation Street in 1998, Clarke was known for her role on Channel 4's Brookside and the 1985 cult film Letter to Brezhnev. Her other credits include Casualty, BBC's Making Out, and the Pet Shop Boys' music video for Rent (1987). She also hosted the daytime programme Swank in the 1990s and performed stand-up comedy at the Edinburgh Festival in 1994 with her show 21st Century Scutt.
After leaving Corrie in 1999, Clarke joined Five's soap Family Affairs for nearly a year. She appeared in the 2002 films Revengers Tragedy and 24 Hour Party People. In 2008, she returned to prime-time television in the second series of ITV's Benidorm, playing Dorothy, mother of Gavin (Hugh Sachs). Her final TV appearance, according to IMDb, was in 2014 as Heaven Jones in the BBC comedy Puppy Love.
Health Struggles and Personal Loss
In the 1990s, Clarke took a three-year break after the death of her mother, Frances Clarke, from lung cancer in 1995. She later revealed that she struggled with alcohol following her mother's death. "My drinking began in 1996 and was triggered by my mother's death from lung cancer, which left me devastated," she told The Northern Echo in 2010. "The drinking had a real impact on my health. I ended up with a nasty yeast infection which left me feeling really sick with IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) and covered in blisters on my skin and in my mouth, and with painful athlete's foot."
Clarke admitted to the Liverpool Echo that she was still grieving when she landed the role of Jackie Dobbs in 1998, and she felt her performance was not her best.
Working in a Pub and Career Challenges
In 2012, Clarke disclosed that she was working as a barmaid at Ma Egerton's pub in Liverpool. "Every actor takes on other work when they are waiting for the next big job," she told Liverpool Confidential. She also told the Mirror: "With my strong accent getting roles in straight theatre has always been a bit difficult. But it's become a whole lot harder now because the drama schools are packed full of so many talented kids. Everybody wants to be famous these days but there aren't many roles for older Scouse women."
Coronation Street airs Monday to Friday at 8:30pm on ITV1 and ITVX.
