It's almost been three years since viewers first saw Paula Wilcox make her debut on Coronation Street as Elaine Jones, the long-lost mother of show favourite Tim Metcalfe. Formerly known as Philippa, Elaine suffered at the hands of Tim's dad Geoff and was forced to leave him and his abuse, sadly leaving her son behind.
Geoff told Tim his mother had died from cancer, but the mother and son were reunited once Elaine came out of hiding to help his third wife, Yasmeen Nazir. Yasmeen had also been abused by Geoff, and he fell to his death from a roof whilst trying to attack her.
Elaine was able to develop a good relationship with her son, until she recently got engaged to serial killer Stephen Reid, reports The Daily Mirror. Unlike Corrie fans, Elaine does not know yet that Stephen is only with her for the money. However, fans of the show may be shocked to know that playing Elaine wasn't Paula's first time on the cobbles.
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Paula began her career on the ITV soap back in 1969, playing Tracy Barlow's aunt Janice Langton who left home to move in with her brother Ray. However, three weeks after her debut, Janice ran off with Ray's money and left the soap.
The veteran actress went on to enjoy a career which has so far spanned more than 50 years. After the role, Paula went on to star in the Granada TV show The Lovers in the 1970s alongside Kate Beckinsale's actor dad, Richard Beckinsale.
They played the loved-up couple Geoffrey and Beryl in the comedy series, before it was later made into a film. However, Paula is perhaps most famous for her role as Chrissy Plummer in Man About The House in the 70s, which quickly earned her "sex symbol" status and she became a household name.
The Manchester-born actress previously told Woman's Weekly magazine: "I definitely still get recognised from Man About the House. I get taxi drivers saying they used to be in love with me, and I say, 'What do you mean, used to be?'"
She added: "It's very flattering after all this time. It was a lovely programme and it's nice to be recognised for something that was dear to people's hearts." Paula also went on to star in the sitcom The Liver Birds, Only Fools and Horses and in Emmerdale as Laurel's mum Hilary.
Despite her successful career, Paula has dealt with some personal tragedies including the death of her first husband when she was just 29 years old. The TV star was married to fellow actor Derek Seaton for 10 years after meeting him whilst he was producing a play at the National Youth Theatre.
They tied the knot in 1969 when Paula was 19 and they went on to star together in Man About The House, but Derek sadly died in 1979 from a brain haemorrhage aged just 35.
Paula later said the tragedy made her a "different person" and revealed it taught her to cope with whatever life threw at her. She told The Telegraph in 2014: "It was bloody young. I was thinking about this the other day and I realised that at the time I had spent a third of my life with him [Derek]. It was a shock.
"But I think with any kind of tragedy or setback – and you know, we’ve all had them - it's really about how you deal with it. Any tragedy becomes part of you. It becomes part of who you are."
Paula threw herself into work to cope with the devastating loss. However, she found love again 12 years later with her second husband Nelson 'Skip' Riddle, who she lives with in south London.
Skip has his own claim to fame, as he is the son of American composer and arranger Nelson Smock Riddle. His father worked with some of the most famous singers in the world in the 1950s and 1960s including greats like Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland, Dean Martin, Ella Fitzgerald and Nat King Cole.
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