The Rovers Return Inn, Coronation Street's iconic pub, has a rich history of landladies and landlords, from Annie Walker to Bet Lynch, and more recently, Maggie Driscoll. However, the first barmaid to serve behind the bar was Concepta Riley, played by Irish actress Doreen Keogh, who made her debut two weeks after the soap's launch in December 1960.
The First Barmaid: Concepta Riley
Concepta Riley, later Concepta Regan, first appeared in the fifth episode of Coronation Street, returning from a Christmas visit to her family in Ireland. She remained on the show for four years, returning in 1967 and making several appearances in the 1970s. Her character dated Harry Hewitt, a widowed bus driver played by Ivan Beavis, and was involved in a major storyline involving the kidnapping of the Hewitts' son, Christopher, in 1962. In 1967, during a visit for Elsie Tanner's wedding, Harry was killed when a jack collapsed under Len Fairclough's van, crushing him.
Doreen Keogh's Career and Legacy
Doreen Keogh, who died on New Year's Eve 2017 in Ireland at age 91, also appeared in Father Ted, Cold Feet, and The Royle Family, where she played neighbour Mary Carroll. Her role as the first barmaid set a precedent for Irish actors in the Rovers Return.
Current Landlady Pauline McLynn on Irish Tradition
Current landlady Maggie Driscoll, played by Irish actress Pauline McLynn (known for Father Ted), acknowledged the Irish connection when she joined the show in 2023. She told the Manchester Evening News: "Somebody got in touch with me on social media and sent me a picture of the first-ever barmaid in the Rovers Return, between 1960 and 1964, played by an Irish woman, Doreen Keogh, and she was in lots of other things. She was the Irish neighbour in The Royle Family, she's also the woman Mrs Doyle wrestled to the floor about paying a bill... And she was the first-ever barmaid, and she was called Concepta Riley. So there's a long tradition of the Irish in the Rovers."
History of the Rovers Return Inn
The pub, located at the corner of Coronation Street and Rosamund Street, first opened in 1902 as part of a chain owned by brewery Newton & Ridley. The first tenants were Jim and Nellie Corbishley. The brewery sold the pub in 1995, making it a free house, and Jack and Vera Duckworth became the first owners of the freehold. The pub originally had three areas: the public, snug, and a select function room. It was modernized after a fire in 1986, and another fire in 2013 resulted in the death of barmaid Sunita Alahan.
