Coronation Street stars say farewell to Liz Dawn at funeral in Manchester

STARS of Coronation Street have gathered for the funeral of much-loved soap actress Liz Dawn.

Cast members past and present arrived at Salford Cathedral to pay their respects to the 77-year-old, who played the part of Vera Duckworth on the cobbles for 34 years.

A coach of Coronation Street stars arrived at the church ahead of the service.

Weatherfield has closed for the day, as we say goodbye to our friend Liz Dawn. I’m wearing rainbow striped socks for her. She’ll like that x

— Antony Cotton (@antonycotton) October 6, 2017

Among the mourners were Samia Longchambon, who plays Maria Connor, and her husband Sylvain, a professional ice skater.

Alan Halsall, whose character Tyrone Dobbs was taken in by Vera and husband Jack on the soap, attended with wife Lucy-Jo Hudson, who played Katy Harris in the soap.

Helen Worth, who plays Gail Rodwell, Jack P Shepherd, who plays David Platt, and Chris Gascoyne, the soap’s Peter Barlow, were also present for the service.

Former stars Ken Morley, who played Reg Holdsworth, Bruce Jones, who played Les Battersby, and Alison King, who played Carla Connor, also turned out to pay their respects.

In her role as the wife of on-screen husband Jack, played by the late Bill Tarmey, the duo endeared themselves to millions of the Street’s fans, becoming a staple of the ITV soap.

A former Woolworths shop girl from Leeds, who first set foot on Weatherfield’s famous cobbles in 1974, Dawn, who had four children, died peacefully last week at home with her family around her.

She had been diagnosed with the lung disease emphysema and was written out of the show in 2008 at her request.

Jennie McAlpine, who plays Fiz Stape in the soap, Sally Dyvenor (Sally Metcalfe), Michael Le Vell (Kevin Webster) and Andrew Whyment (Kirk Sutherland) were also at the cathedral for the service, which was due to be followed by a private family committal.

The funeral cortege arrived at the cathedral shortly before 2pm.

Dawn’s husband Don Ibbetson was in tears as he arrived for the service.

Floral tributes, including one spelling out the word “Mum”, were placed on and around the coffin in the hearse.

The wooden coffin was blessed before being carried into the cathedral, with family members following behind.

Members of the public and camera crews gathered outside the church to see the funeral procession arrive.

Other Coronation Street cast members in attendance included Kym Marsh, who plays Michelle Connor, Sally Ann Matthews (Jenny Bradley) and David Neilson (Roy Cropper).