Betty's secret revealed

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Soap bosses confirm what the barmaid was hiding...

Coronation Street producers have finally revealed the secret that late barmaid Betty Williams kept.

Actress Betty Driver, who played Betty Williams in the ITV1 soap, died last year at the age of 91 after a period of bad health.

Show bosses wanted to give the much-loved Betty a memorable send-off, the details of which have only just been revealed.

In scenes due to air next month, Betty’s son Gordon will return to the cobbles to break the news of his mother’s death, as well as expose a big secret that the popular character had kept for decades.

Producer Phil Collinson confirmed the secret, explaining:

"What they discover as they're clearing out her house is that Annie Walker, who was the landlady of the Rovers Return for the first 20 years of the show, actually bequeathed The Rovers to Betty in her will.

"Betty carried this secret and never took up this bequest. So she's left behind a bit of a bombshell, really! Certainly for Stella in terms of who owns the pub now and what happens going forward.

"But more brilliantly I think, she'll always be the longest-serving landlady of the Rovers Return by right, which I think is such a brilliant tribute to her."

Collinson also revealed that Bill Kenwright is to reprise his role of  Betty’s son, Gordon.

He added:

"Bill had become very close to Betty since being her on-screen son - he talked about her as being another mother. He came back to say goodbye to her, and it feels so personal and raw.

"It was for everybody, actually, as she was a very much-loved member of the team."