The creator of 'Coronation Street' Tony Warren has died aged 79.
Producers have confirmed the sad news this morning, with this message:
Formerly a child actor, Tony Warren's life changed forever in 1960, when he was commissioned by Granada Studios to write a script about "a street out there".
Many of the stars of the show, including Violet Carson who played Ena Sharples and Doris Speed who played landlady Annie Walker of the Rovers Return, were people Tony had worked with on radio plays during his time at the BBC in Manchester.
The 13 scripts he produced for the initial run became the backbone of a show that would go on to help define British television, and become an integral part of its culture, for the next half-century.
Following his creation, Tony Warren continued to write scripts for the serial until the late 1970s, although his success with it meant he was able to turn his hand to other personal projects.
Tony Warren with one of his many leading ladies, Julie Goodyear
He became a novelist in the 1990s, with a series of well-received books, including 'The Lights of Manchester' (1991), 'Foot of the Rainbow' (1993), 'Behind Closed Doors' (1995) and 'Full Steam Ahead' (1998).
As recently as 2008, his contribution to Northern culture was recognised with an honorary degree from Manchester Metropolitan University "in recognition for his contribution to ground-breaking television and creative writing which has helped put Manchester and Salford on the cultural map".