Seven, Bessie Street (partially found soap opera script of Coronation Street creator; pre-1957)

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Sevenbessiestreet1.png

Cover page of the Seven, Bessie Street script.

Status: Partially Found

Synonymous with the long-running ITV soap opera, Coronation Street creator Tony Warren had previously written a few scripts for a show set around the back streets of northern England. After having Our Street be rejected twice by the BBC in the late 1950s, his Florizel Street proposal was greenlit by Granada Television in 1960. Following his death on 1st March 2016, it was revealed an even earlier soap opera draft had been written by Warren. Titled Seven, Bessie Street, Warren's friend David Tucker confirmed its concepts deviated considerably from Coronation Street's format.

Background

Tony Warren, real name Anthony McVay Simpson, never actually grew up in the back streets.[1][2] However, his family had deep working-class roots, particularly his grandmother who lived in inner Salford.[1][2] Simpson recalled listening in to conversations between his grandmother and his other female relatives, cultivating his knowledge and interest of the working-class northern culture.[3][2] After his studies at Eccles Grammar School and the Shelagh Elliott-Clarke School of Dance and Dramatic Art, Simpson followed several family members into the theatre world, becoming an actor under the Tony Warren stage name.[4][5][2] A big break occurred when he became a child actor for the BBC Radio show Children's Hour.[6][2][4] There he worked alongside future Coronation Street actresses Doris Speed and Violet Carson.[7][2] An incident where Carson threatened to smack Warren's bottom if he failed to control his excitement certainly intimidated him for years, making him especially reluctant to cast Carson as Ena Sharples.[8][7]

However, her rendition of the Sam Laycock poem "Bowton's Yard" for Children's Hour, which was all about working-class Stalybridge neighbours at each numbered accommodation, intrigued Warren greatly.[9][7] It has subsequently been credited for inspiring Warren to create a soap opera centred around the lives of those living in the northern back streets.[7] Prior to March 2016, it was believed that his first attempt to write a soap opera came in 1956, with Where No Birds Sing.[10][1] The name, according to Warren, reflected the absence of birds in Salford.[10] A year onwards, he decided to adapt it into a comedy, which he coined Our Street.[1][10][4] The latter was sent off to the BBC; while Barney Coleham expressed some interest in the work, the television board clearly did not, not even sending a letter of rejection back to Warren.[1][4][10][8] Two years later, Warren tried to convince BBC producer Olive Shapley of the concept's viability, but she found it lacked entertainment value.[1]

In 1958, Warren began working at ITV franchise Granada Television as a scriptwriter for shows like Shadow Squad and Biggles.[11][4] But after becoming disillusioned with the latter, he was finally allowed by producer Harry Elton to develop his soap opera proposal.[1][8] In just 24 hours, a script for Florizel Street was established, which Elton liked but Granada boss Sidney Bernstein initially shot down.[12][1][8] Eventually, after two dry runs were produced, the project was greenlit under the new title Coronation Street.[13][12] With Coronation Street having first aired on 9th December 1960, Warren is credited as the author of its first twelve episodes, with it quickly becoming the most popular television show in Britain.[12][4][8] To this day, new episodes of Coronation Street are being produced, immortalising Warren's legacy as its creator.[4][2][12]

Seven, Bessie Street

When The "Coronation Street" Story: Celebrating Thirty Five Years of the Street was published in 1995, its timeline of Warren's scripts appeared to be accurate.[1][5] Indeed, the only proposals Warren discussed in interviews were Where No Birds Sing, Our Street and Florizel Street.[10] However, a startling revelation emerged following Warren's passing on 1st March 2016.[2] After his death, Warren's estate was transferred over to long-term close friend David Tucker. Tucker obtained all of Warren's unpublished creative works, many of which no longer exist as he complied with the writer's posthumous request to have them be destroyed. However, upon reading one such work, Tucker realised it contained historical value concerning the timeline of events that led to Coronation Street's creation.[14][5]

Called Seven, Bessie Street, this script is now believed to be Warren's inaugural attempt to create a British soap opera. It shared some similarities with Coronation Street, with episodes planned to last 30 minutes and be set within a back street. However, Tucker's assessment indicated substantial differences; particularly, the show would exclusively focus on one family.[5][14] As per the memo Warren established, Coronation Street centres around the lives of multiple working-class families, whose stories are interconnected.[1] However, not only are zero characters from the actual show documented in Seven, Bessie Street, but the family members discussed are all somewhat connected to the world of theatre. Tucker and the BBC both suspect that Warren subsequently based the characters on his own family.[5][4][2][14]

Ultimately, Warren abandoned his early concepts in favour of Where No Birds Sing and never discussed Seven, Bessie Street during his lifetime. Tucker believes the lack of scenarios and how the characters would probably not connect with the general audience, were the main reasons behind Warren's change of course.[5][14] Nevertheless, Warren later named Weatherfield's primary school as Bessie Street School, the only known reference to his original script.[5]

Availability

Because of Tucker's decision, Seven, Bessie Street was preserved against Warren's wish. It was later showcased at the Salford Museum & Art Gallery as part of its Four Miles from Manchester: Tony Warren’s Coronation Street exhibition from 21st October 2017 to 3rd July 2018.[15][5][14] However, recognising that his friend never wanted the work publicly unveiled, Tucker partially honoured Warren's request. The Museum was only allowed to publicly display the cover page; the rest of the script will remain locked away from the public.[14] Since then, Tucker has stuck to that decision resolutely, having only summarised a few key details about the script in October 2017.[5]

See Also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 The "Coronation Street" Story: Celebrating Thirty Five Years of the Street detailing Warren's early rejected soap opera scripts before succeeding with Coronation Street. Retrieved 14th Jan '24
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 The Guardian's obituary for Warren. Retrieved 14th Jan '24
  3. ↑ ITV summarising how Warren's interactions with his grandmother and other female relatives shaped his interest in working-class northern culture. Retrieved 14th Jan '24
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 British Film Institute documenting the life and career of Warren. Retrieved 14th Jan '24
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 5.8 BBC News reporting on the discovery of the Seven, Bessie Street script. Retrieved 14th Jan '24
  6. ↑ Whirligig Radio summarising Children's Hour. Retrieved 14th Jan '24
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Manchester Evening News detailing Warren's interactions with Carson and how her "Bowton's Yard" song inspired him to write Coronation Street. Retrieved 14th Jan '24
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 As depicted in The Road to Coronation Street. Retrieved 14th Jan '24
  9. ↑ Talking About My Generation detailing Bowton's Yard. Retrieved 14th Jan '24
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 Life of Wylie where Ian Wylie interviewed Warren regarding his earlier scripts prior to Coronation Street. Retrieved 14th Jan '24
  11. ↑ The "Coronation Street" Story: Celebrating Thirty Five Years of the Street summarising Warren's early career at Granada. Retrieved 14th Jan '24
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 16th April 2000 issue of the Sunday Mail on the creation of Florizel Street, later Coronation Street. Retrieved 14th Jan '24
  13. ↑ The "Coronation Street" Story: Celebrating Thirty Five Years of the Street detailing the production and casting for Coronation Street's dry runs. Retrieved 14th Jan '24
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 14.5 Digital Spy reporting on the discovery of Seven, Bessie Street and how it will likely remain inaccessible to the public. Retrieved 14th Jan '24
  15. ↑ I Love Manchester reporting on the Four Miles from Manchester: Tony Warren’s Coronation Street exhibition. Retrieved 14th Jan '24
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