Hayley Cropper
Encyclopedia
Hayley Anne Cropper is a fictional character
in the UK television ITV
soap opera
, Coronation Street
. Portrayed by actress Julie Hesmondhalgh
, the character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 26 January 1998 as the first transsexual character in a British soap and was the first permanent transsexual character in the world of serialised drama.
. Actress Julie Hesmondhalgh was first spotted by the casting director while dressed in drag in a production of 'Much Ado About Nothing'. Hesmondhalgh only knew she was auditioning to play a "fun" character, so she arrived as, "all Bet Lynch
, in my leopard skin and red lippy". When she learned Hayley would be transgender, she was nervous, but "then it dawned on me that this was actually my ’dream job’ and I desperately wanted it."
Roy later proposed to Hayley at a fancy-dress disco on St. Valentine's Day 1999. At that time, unfortunately, they could not legally marry, since Hayley was still seen as a male in the eyes of the law. Eventually they found a female vicar who would help them, and they were united in a blessing ceremony held in Roy's Rolls on the 23rd April 1999. As a wedding present to Roy, Hayley officially changed her name by deed poll
to Hayley Anne Cropper.
Since 2004 it has been possible for transgendered people to change their birth certificates and marry legally. In 2010, following a discussion of the ramifications of their not being legally married, Roy and Hayley decided to make it official. It was revealed that Hayley had applied for, and received, her new birth certificate, and so, after some disagreements about the cost and motives for marriage, the plans were made for the wedding. The couple finally married on the 30th August 2010 at a stately home in Cheshire, and almost everyone but the bride arrived by steam train.
Their relationship has been tested by various storylines including Tracy Barlow's deceit, Hayley's secret son and Hayley's absence from screen. Briefly, upon her return, there was a difficult situation where she had developed a crush on one of her co-workers in Africa (further reading below). They eventually worked out their differences.
) introduces her to Roy (David Neilson
), owner of Roy's Rolls, a greasy spoon
café. They form a strong friendship — until Hayley reveals, on a date, that she is a pre-operative transsexual woman, originally called Harold. Roy cannot handle this information, and rejects her but later relents, accepting that their friendship is more important than Hayley's secret. After affirming their mutual attraction, Hayley leaves for Amsterdam
to undergo private sex reassignment surgery
. After she returns to Weatherfield, she becomes a machinist in Mike Baldwin (Johnny Briggs
)'s lingerie factory Underworld.
Hayley's transsexual status is rarely referred to in current storylines, and usually only to new characters as they join the cast, and occasionally for comic effect. The most recent reference being done by Norris Cole
(Malcolm Hebden
) to new employee Joan, saying that Hayley may turn into a vampire during her trip to Romania, as she has changed gender in the past. In June 2010, Tony Gordon
(Gray O'Brien
) holds Hayley and Carla Connor
(Alison King
) hostage at Underworld, Hayley continuously whimpers and cries, Tony then tells her to be a man about the whole ordeal, saying that doing so isn't hard for her.
In June
2011 Roy's mother Sylvia Goodwin - who moved in with the Cropper's earlier in the year - is suspicious when, after expressing a longing for grandchildren, finds out Hayley is infertile. After rummaging through her things, she finds a prescription for some hormone
tablets and assumes Hayley is going through the menopause
only for Tracy Barlow
to tactlessly blurt out that Hayley is a transexual. Sylvia is initally outraged that her her son is married to a man but, as of July
2011, appears to be slowly coming round to the idea and accepting Hayley for who she is and not who she was.
In a later storyline, Roy and Hayley foster a couple of children (including Fiz Brown
(Jennie McAlpine
), who later returns to the Street after moving out of Roy and Hayley's home), but have not had any children placed with them after they fled with a young boy, Wayne Hayes, attempting to protect him from his abusive stepfather. They are arrested for kidnap and Hayley is held on remand as she objects to her bail conditions but is released when Wayne's mother finally makes a statement about her marriage. This has prevented Roy and Hayley fostering, or working with, any young people.
In 2003, while Hayley is away, nursing her sick aunt, scheming Tracy Barlow
(Kate Ford
) bets one penny
that she can bed the man supposedly least likely to be unfaithful — Roy. Despite the extremely unlikely pairing, Tracy drugs Roy by slipping Rohypnol into his drink at Peter Barlow
(Chris Gascoyne) and Shelley Unwin
(Sally Lindsay
)'s wedding reception, takes him home and claims to have slept with him. Roy is desperate to keep the news from Hayley but breaks down and admits everything. Upon confronting Tracy, the Croppers are stunned when (attempting to extort money), Tracy reveals that she is pregnant
with Roy's baby. She then reveals plans to have an abortion if the Croppers don't want to adopt it. Roy and Hayley see an opportunity to raise a child and pay Tracy £25,000 for the baby.
The marriage becomes increasingly strained, including a suicide attempt by Roy, but they pull through. Roy grows suspicious when Tracy goes on holiday for three weeks. Realising how easy it would be for Tracy to disappear with the cash and the baby, Roy insists she either marry him (to stop her and the child leaving the country without his permission) or the deal is off. She reluctantly agrees, and they marry while Tracy is pregnant.
After the baby is born, Tracy confesses to her bigamist
brother, Peter, that Steve McDonald
(Simon Gregson
) is the father (they had a one-night stand shortly before she says that she slept with Roy), and admits that she did not have sex with Roy. This emerges at Steve's wedding to Karen
(Suranne Jones
), when Tracy demands baby Patience be returned (she'd developed maternal feelings for her daughter). The Croppers, heartbroken, are forced to do so and Roy tells Tracy to keep the cash. Steve and Karen marry regardless of Tracy's bombshell and Karen gets her revenge by gatecrashing the christening
. Patience Cropper is renamed Amy Barlow and the Croppers are her godparents.
Following the death of her aunt Monica in September 2007, Hayley discovers she has a son Christian Gatley (Andrew Turner) as a result of a forgotten pre-operative liaison. She hires a private investigator to track him down, and eventually introduces herself as his aunt. Roy becomes suspicious when he sees that money has been withdrawn from their joint bank account, and confronts Hayley, at which point she tells Roy everything. He is upset at the deception, as he had thought Hayley was a virgin.
Following pressure from Roy to confront Christian, Hayley finally reveals the truth during a private moment by the river. Christian does not take it well, and storms off. Hayley pleads with him to understand, but during her protests, Christian lashes out and hits Hayley across the face. On her return to the cafe, she makes it clear that she blames Roy for both the attack, and for the probable loss of contact with her son. This has caused problems in their marriage. The couple then decide to take a three-week break from their jobs and go camping in a bid to mend their issues. Following this, in October 2007, Hayley leaves the Street to go on volunteer work in Mozambique
for a year.
In May 2010, Hayley encounters problems with Roy when she suggests that they have a lavish wedding, now that the law has changed and their union can now be officially recognised. However, Roy appears insensitive as he wishes to marry on legal grounds of inheritance law causing Hayley to be upset. She dismays at his behaviour and subsequently moves in with friend Anna Windass
(Debbie Rush
).
On 1 June 2010, Hayley is tricked into going to Underworld by Robbie Sloan (James Fleet
) who says that boss Carla Connor has had an accident. He then pulls out a gun and ties her to a chair. Killer Tony Gordon, who has escaped from prison, arrives and threatens them both. He reveals that Hayley is only there in order to be used as revenge against Roy, who was instrumental in sending Tony to prison, and says he will kill both her and Carla. After Maria Connor (Samia Smith
) raises the alarm, Roy rushes to Underworld but can't help her, while Carla pleads with Tony to let Hayley go – Tony eventually relents and throws Hayley out onto the street where the police have now arrived. She is taken care of by paramedics and she and Roy tell one another they love each other before watching Underworld blow up, after Tony sets fire to the building, blowing himself up, but Carla escapes. Later that week, Roy proposes to Hayley, to which she accepts.
During the next few months, Mary Taylor
intervened in her wedding preparations and after weeks of muscling in, Hayley and Roy tell her they don't want her to be a part of the wedding; even though Hayley is wearing her vintage wedding dress. On 30 August 2010, the train carriage that Hayley, along with bridesmaids; Becky
and Fiz decouples from the steam train that is transporting the groom and wedding guests to the venue due to Mary's meddling. However, after using a pump wagon, they manage to get to the venue on time and Hayley marries Roy legally.
Transgender campaigners were upset that a cissexual
woman had been chosen for the part yet they had nothing but praise for Hesmondhalgh's dedication and sensitivity. Hayley was, for many viewers, the first transsexual woman whose story they had really seen unfold on TV. Hesmondhalgh has become an outspoken activist for trans rights, including becoming the first Friend of campaign group Trans Media Watch
and as Hayley, she has heralded a new level of acceptance among people across the country. The official LGBT History Month website states the character as one of the important famous LGBT people in their history, even though she is a fictional character.
was also tabled in Parliament by Lynne Jones
, MP, praising the story team and researchers, and Julie Hesmondhalgh for her portrayal."
Following the screening of the "wedding" in 1999, the Labour Government announced that a Parliamentary Working Group was being created to assess how the United Kingdom could grant trans people the legal rights for which they had fought for decades. The result of this was the tabling, in 2004, of the Gender Recognition Act
, granting trans people full legal status in their acquired sex. It has been said that the character of Hayley Cropper deserves partial credit for bringing the issues faced by trans people to public attention in a sympathetic manner, rather than the sensationalist coverage that had previously existed. It is also alleged that the resultant public support for this fictional character
went in favour of the Bill.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
in the UK television ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
, Coronation Street
Coronation Street
Coronation Street is a British soap opera set in Weatherfield, a fictional town in Greater Manchester based on Salford. Created by Tony Warren, Coronation Street was first broadcast on 9 December 1960...
. Portrayed by actress Julie Hesmondhalgh
Julie Hesmondhalgh
Julie Hesmondhalgh is an English actress.Hesmondhalgh was born in Accrington, Lancashire. As a teenager, she was moderately interested in acting, but wished to become a social worker. She applied to drama school to be with her friends, and studied at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art...
, the character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 26 January 1998 as the first transsexual character in a British soap and was the first permanent transsexual character in the world of serialised drama.
Casting
Hayley was initially intended only for a two-month stay, designed to help increase ratings as well as show a new side to Roy CropperRoy Cropper
Royston "Roy" Cropper, is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. Portrayed by actor David Neilson, the character was introduced during the episode airing on 19 July 1995. Originally a secondary character, he was given a more prominent role in 1997, by the...
. Actress Julie Hesmondhalgh was first spotted by the casting director while dressed in drag in a production of 'Much Ado About Nothing'. Hesmondhalgh only knew she was auditioning to play a "fun" character, so she arrived as, "all Bet Lynch
Bet Lynch
Elizabeth Theresa "Bet" Lynch is a fictional character from the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. The character is no longer part of current storylines. Portrayed by actress Julie Goodyear the character first appears onscreen during the episode airing on 23 May 1966. The character...
, in my leopard skin and red lippy". When she learned Hayley would be transgender, she was nervous, but "then it dawned on me that this was actually my ’dream job’ and I desperately wanted it."
Personality and identity
What's on TV describes the character as quiet, and kind-hearted. For a short period of time, after the actress took a one year break from the show, the producers decided to change her ways. After a brief period of resettlement, she has resumed her now-traditional role of being generally supportive and friendly to the other characters.Relationships
Hayley's only romantic relationship has been with Roy Cropper. The characters were first friends and they started a relationship, until Hayley revealed her past history. Out of fear and ignorance, Roy initially rejected her, but missed their friendship and three months later, he followed her to Amsterdam where she was living on a houseboat, recuperating from her surgery. He persuaded her that they should work on their relationship, and as a result,she returned to Weatherfield where she became a machinist in Mike Baldwin's lingerie factory, Underworld.Roy later proposed to Hayley at a fancy-dress disco on St. Valentine's Day 1999. At that time, unfortunately, they could not legally marry, since Hayley was still seen as a male in the eyes of the law. Eventually they found a female vicar who would help them, and they were united in a blessing ceremony held in Roy's Rolls on the 23rd April 1999. As a wedding present to Roy, Hayley officially changed her name by deed poll
Deed poll
A deed poll is a legal document binding only to a single person or several persons acting jointly to express an active intention...
to Hayley Anne Cropper.
Since 2004 it has been possible for transgendered people to change their birth certificates and marry legally. In 2010, following a discussion of the ramifications of their not being legally married, Roy and Hayley decided to make it official. It was revealed that Hayley had applied for, and received, her new birth certificate, and so, after some disagreements about the cost and motives for marriage, the plans were made for the wedding. The couple finally married on the 30th August 2010 at a stately home in Cheshire, and almost everyone but the bride arrived by steam train.
Their relationship has been tested by various storylines including Tracy Barlow's deceit, Hayley's secret son and Hayley's absence from screen. Briefly, upon her return, there was a difficult situation where she had developed a crush on one of her co-workers in Africa (further reading below). They eventually worked out their differences.
Backstory
She is originally introduced as Hayley Patterson, a shy shop supervisor (played by Julie Hesmondhalgh) at Firman's Freezers. Mutual friend Alma Baldwin (Amanda BarrieAmanda Barrie
Amanda Barrie is an English actress.-Career:Born as Shirley Anne Broadbent, Barrie attended St Anne's College, St Anne's on Sea. She then trained at the Arts Educational School in London and later at Bristol Old Vic Theatre School...
) introduces her to Roy (David Neilson
David Neilson
David Neilson is an English actor best known for portraying Roy Cropper in Coronation Street from 1995 onwards....
), owner of Roy's Rolls, a greasy spoon
Greasy spoon
Greasy spoon is a colloquial or slang term originating in the United States to mean a small, especially cheap, archetypal working class restaurant or diner. The term is now used in many English speaking countries to mean the same thing...
café. They form a strong friendship — until Hayley reveals, on a date, that she is a pre-operative transsexual woman, originally called Harold. Roy cannot handle this information, and rejects her but later relents, accepting that their friendship is more important than Hayley's secret. After affirming their mutual attraction, Hayley leaves for Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
to undergo private sex reassignment surgery
Sex reassignment surgery
Sex reassignment surgery is a term for the surgical procedures by which a person's physical appearance and function of their existing sexual characteristics are altered to resemble...
. After she returns to Weatherfield, she becomes a machinist in Mike Baldwin (Johnny Briggs
Johnny Briggs (actor)
Johnny Briggs, MBE is an English actor. He is best known for his role as Mike Baldwin in the soap opera Coronation Street, in which he appeared from 1976 to 2006...
)'s lingerie factory Underworld.
Hayley's transsexual status is rarely referred to in current storylines, and usually only to new characters as they join the cast, and occasionally for comic effect. The most recent reference being done by Norris Cole
Norris Cole
Norris Benjamin Cole is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. Portrayed by actor Malcolm Hebden, the character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 11 March 1994 and remained until his departure on 14 April 1997, only to return on 1 December...
(Malcolm Hebden
Malcolm Hebden
Malcolm Hebden is an English television and stage actor best known for his role as Norris Cole in the long-running ITV soap opera Coronation Street.-Early life:...
) to new employee Joan, saying that Hayley may turn into a vampire during her trip to Romania, as she has changed gender in the past. In June 2010, Tony Gordon
Tony Gordon
Anthony "Tony" Gordon was a fictional character in the itv soap opera Coronation Street, portrayed by actor Gray O'Brien. The character first appeared on screen on 16 September 2007 and making his final appearance on 9 June 2010 after deciding to sacrifice himself in the Underworld fire. He is a...
(Gray O'Brien
Gray O'Brien
Gray O'Brien is a Scottish television and film actor, best known for his portrayal of the villainous Weatherfield businessman Tony Gordon in the popular British soap opera Coronation Street from 2007 to 2010, and as Dr Richard McCaig on Casualty from 1996 to 1998.O'Brien was born in Stewarton,...
) holds Hayley and Carla Connor
Carla Connor
Carla Connor is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street, a long-running serial drama about working class life in the fictional town of Weatherfield. She is portrayed by actress Alison King. Carla was created by producer Steve Frost as part of the new Connor family....
(Alison King
Alison King
Alison King is an English actress. She has had major television roles as Lynda Block in the Sky One television series Dream Team, and as Carla Connor in Coronation Street since 2006.- Early life and education :...
) hostage at Underworld, Hayley continuously whimpers and cries, Tony then tells her to be a man about the whole ordeal, saying that doing so isn't hard for her.
In June
June
June is the sixth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and one of the four months with a length of 30 days. Ovid provides two etymologies for June's name in his poem concerning the months entitled the Fasti...
2011 Roy's mother Sylvia Goodwin - who moved in with the Cropper's earlier in the year - is suspicious when, after expressing a longing for grandchildren, finds out Hayley is infertile. After rummaging through her things, she finds a prescription for some hormone
Hormone
A hormone is a chemical released by a cell or a gland in one part of the body that sends out messages that affect cells in other parts of the organism. Only a small amount of hormone is required to alter cell metabolism. In essence, it is a chemical messenger that transports a signal from one...
tablets and assumes Hayley is going through the menopause
Menopause
Menopause is a term used to describe the permanent cessation of the primary functions of the human ovaries: the ripening and release of ova and the release of hormones that cause both the creation of the uterine lining and the subsequent shedding of the uterine lining...
only for Tracy Barlow
Tracy Barlow
Tracy Lynette Barlow is a fictional character in the British television soap opera Coronation Street. She is currently portrayed, since 2002, by Kate Ford, the latest in a series of actresses who have played Tracy at various ages...
to tactlessly blurt out that Hayley is a transexual. Sylvia is initally outraged that her her son is married to a man but, as of July
July
July is the seventh month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars and one of seven months with the length of 31 days. It is, on average, the warmest month in most of the Northern hemisphere and the coldest month in much of the Southern hemisphere...
2011, appears to be slowly coming round to the idea and accepting Hayley for who she is and not who she was.
1998–2007
Hayley, in a bid for privacy, choses not to disclose her transsexual status, but this is revealed when Mike Baldwin discovers a Tax Office error, showing her birth name, Harold. Mike fires her because of it, and although the factory staff and Street residents initially taunt her for being transsexual, she gets her job back, and most of the characters gradually accept her.In a later storyline, Roy and Hayley foster a couple of children (including Fiz Brown
Fiz Brown
Fiona "Fiz" Stape is a fictional character from the British ITV1 soap opera Coronation Street, played by Jennie McAlpine. She made her first on-screen appearance on 20 April 2001. Initially appearing for five episodes, McAlpine's contract was soon extended and Fiz became a regular character...
(Jennie McAlpine
Jennie McAlpine
Jennie Elizabeth McAlpine is a British television actress and comedienne. She is best known for her role as Fiz Stape in the well known British soap opera Coronation Street.-Early life:...
), who later returns to the Street after moving out of Roy and Hayley's home), but have not had any children placed with them after they fled with a young boy, Wayne Hayes, attempting to protect him from his abusive stepfather. They are arrested for kidnap and Hayley is held on remand as she objects to her bail conditions but is released when Wayne's mother finally makes a statement about her marriage. This has prevented Roy and Hayley fostering, or working with, any young people.
In 2003, while Hayley is away, nursing her sick aunt, scheming Tracy Barlow
Tracy Barlow
Tracy Lynette Barlow is a fictional character in the British television soap opera Coronation Street. She is currently portrayed, since 2002, by Kate Ford, the latest in a series of actresses who have played Tracy at various ages...
(Kate Ford
Kate Ford
Kate Connerty is a British actress best known for playing the role of Tracy Barlow in the long-running ITV soap opera Coronation Street from 2002 to 2007. Kate returned to Coronation Street on Christmas Eve 2010....
) bets one penny
British One Penny coin
The British decimal one penny coin, produced by the Royal Mint, was issued on 15 February 1971, the day the British currency was decimalised. In practice, it had been available from banks in bags of £1 for some weeks previously...
that she can bed the man supposedly least likely to be unfaithful — Roy. Despite the extremely unlikely pairing, Tracy drugs Roy by slipping Rohypnol into his drink at Peter Barlow
Peter Barlow (Coronation Street)
Peter Francis Barlow is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera Coronation Street. The character first appeared onscreen during the episode aired on 15 April 1965...
(Chris Gascoyne) and Shelley Unwin
Shelley Unwin
Shelley Victoria Unwin is a fictional character who appeared in ITV's British soap opera Coronation Street. She is the daughter of Bev Unwin and the late Charlie Unwin...
(Sally Lindsay
Sally Lindsay
Sally Lindsay is an English actress best known for playing the role of Shelley Unwin in the long-running ITV1 Soap opera Coronation Street...
)'s wedding reception, takes him home and claims to have slept with him. Roy is desperate to keep the news from Hayley but breaks down and admits everything. Upon confronting Tracy, the Croppers are stunned when (attempting to extort money), Tracy reveals that she is pregnant
Pregnancy
Pregnancy refers to the fertilization and development of one or more offspring, known as a fetus or embryo, in a woman's uterus. In a pregnancy, there can be multiple gestations, as in the case of twins or triplets...
with Roy's baby. She then reveals plans to have an abortion if the Croppers don't want to adopt it. Roy and Hayley see an opportunity to raise a child and pay Tracy £25,000 for the baby.
The marriage becomes increasingly strained, including a suicide attempt by Roy, but they pull through. Roy grows suspicious when Tracy goes on holiday for three weeks. Realising how easy it would be for Tracy to disappear with the cash and the baby, Roy insists she either marry him (to stop her and the child leaving the country without his permission) or the deal is off. She reluctantly agrees, and they marry while Tracy is pregnant.
After the baby is born, Tracy confesses to her bigamist
Bigamy
In cultures that practice marital monogamy, bigamy is the act of entering into a marriage with one person while still legally married to another. Bigamy is a crime in most western countries, and when it occurs in this context often neither the first nor second spouse is aware of the other...
brother, Peter, that Steve McDonald
Steve McDonald (Coronation Street character)
Steven James "Steve" McDonald, is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. Portrayed by actor Simon Gregson, the character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 6 December 1989.-1989–2004:...
(Simon Gregson
Simon Gregson
Simon Gregson is an English actor. He is known for being a cast member of the British soap opera Coronation Street in which he has played Steve McDonald since 1989....
) is the father (they had a one-night stand shortly before she says that she slept with Roy), and admits that she did not have sex with Roy. This emerges at Steve's wedding to Karen
Karen McDonald
Karen McDonald is a fictional character on the long-running British soap opera, Coronation Street from June 2000 to December 2004...
(Suranne Jones
Suranne Jones
Suranne Jones is an English actress. She first rose to prominence playing the role of Karen McDonald in ITV1's soap opera Coronation Street over a period of four years...
), when Tracy demands baby Patience be returned (she'd developed maternal feelings for her daughter). The Croppers, heartbroken, are forced to do so and Roy tells Tracy to keep the cash. Steve and Karen marry regardless of Tracy's bombshell and Karen gets her revenge by gatecrashing the christening
Infant baptism
Infant baptism is the practice of baptising infants or young children. In theological discussions, the practice is sometimes referred to as paedobaptism or pedobaptism from the Greek pais meaning "child." The practice is sometimes contrasted with what is called "believer's baptism", or...
. Patience Cropper is renamed Amy Barlow and the Croppers are her godparents.
Following the death of her aunt Monica in September 2007, Hayley discovers she has a son Christian Gatley (Andrew Turner) as a result of a forgotten pre-operative liaison. She hires a private investigator to track him down, and eventually introduces herself as his aunt. Roy becomes suspicious when he sees that money has been withdrawn from their joint bank account, and confronts Hayley, at which point she tells Roy everything. He is upset at the deception, as he had thought Hayley was a virgin.
Following pressure from Roy to confront Christian, Hayley finally reveals the truth during a private moment by the river. Christian does not take it well, and storms off. Hayley pleads with him to understand, but during her protests, Christian lashes out and hits Hayley across the face. On her return to the cafe, she makes it clear that she blames Roy for both the attack, and for the probable loss of contact with her son. This has caused problems in their marriage. The couple then decide to take a three-week break from their jobs and go camping in a bid to mend their issues. Following this, in October 2007, Hayley leaves the Street to go on volunteer work in Mozambique
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
for a year.
2008—
She isn't seen again until November 2008; upon her return to Weatherfield, it is clear that she isn't entirely happy. She appears evasive to her friends and to Roy. She tells him that she wants to return to her charity work much to his dismay; the real reason being that she has fallen for Olaf, the project team leader. When catching up with Tilly, one of the other volunteers, she discovers that Olaf wasn't the honourable man she thought he was and subsequently decides to stay on the Street with Roy. She decides not to return to Underworld and opts for a new challenge as a social worker. However, her chances are ruined when her police record (for the abduction of Wayne in 2001), is revealed, ruling her ineligible to work with children. She subsequently continues working in the cafe and then gets the job of supervisor at the factory in 2009.In May 2010, Hayley encounters problems with Roy when she suggests that they have a lavish wedding, now that the law has changed and their union can now be officially recognised. However, Roy appears insensitive as he wishes to marry on legal grounds of inheritance law causing Hayley to be upset. She dismays at his behaviour and subsequently moves in with friend Anna Windass
Anna Windass
Anna Windass is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. Portrayed by actress Debbie Rush, the character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 14 November 2008.-Creation and casting:...
(Debbie Rush
Debbie Rush
Debbie Rush is an English actress. She is currently playing the role of Anna Windass in Coronation Street.After training at the Manchester School Of Acting when she was in her thirties, she has also starred in Shameless and Hollyoaks in the City. Rush also filmed the role of "Pam" in the horror...
).
On 1 June 2010, Hayley is tricked into going to Underworld by Robbie Sloan (James Fleet
James Fleet
James Edward Fleet is an English actor. He is most famous for his roles as the bumbling and well-meaning Tom in the 1994 British romantic comedy film Four Weddings and a Funeral, and the dim-witted Hugo Horton in the BBC situation comedy television series The Vicar of Dibley.-Personal life:Fleet...
) who says that boss Carla Connor has had an accident. He then pulls out a gun and ties her to a chair. Killer Tony Gordon, who has escaped from prison, arrives and threatens them both. He reveals that Hayley is only there in order to be used as revenge against Roy, who was instrumental in sending Tony to prison, and says he will kill both her and Carla. After Maria Connor (Samia Smith
Samia Smith
Samia Maxine Ghadie , is an English actress best known for playing Maria Connor in the ITV Soap Coronation Street.-Early life:...
) raises the alarm, Roy rushes to Underworld but can't help her, while Carla pleads with Tony to let Hayley go – Tony eventually relents and throws Hayley out onto the street where the police have now arrived. She is taken care of by paramedics and she and Roy tell one another they love each other before watching Underworld blow up, after Tony sets fire to the building, blowing himself up, but Carla escapes. Later that week, Roy proposes to Hayley, to which she accepts.
During the next few months, Mary Taylor
Mary Taylor (Coronation Street)
Mary Taylor , is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. played by Pattie Clare, made her first onscreen appearance on 26 November 2008 and departed on 15 May 2009 but returned in March 2010 and has appeared on the show ever since...
intervened in her wedding preparations and after weeks of muscling in, Hayley and Roy tell her they don't want her to be a part of the wedding; even though Hayley is wearing her vintage wedding dress. On 30 August 2010, the train carriage that Hayley, along with bridesmaids; Becky
Becky McDonald
Rebecca "Becky" McDonald is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street, a long-running serial drama about working class life in the fictional town of Weatherfield. She is played by actress Katherine Kelly. Becky was created by producer Steve Frost as a recurring...
and Fiz decouples from the steam train that is transporting the groom and wedding guests to the venue due to Mary's meddling. However, after using a pump wagon, they manage to get to the venue on time and Hayley marries Roy legally.
Reception
The appearance of a transsexual woman in a mainstream soap opera appeared to attract initial opposition from some members of the public, as expressed in calls to the Granada duty office, and letters written to magazines and newspapers. A minority of people expressed their concern at having such "bizarreness" brought into their homes on a prime-time television show. Transgender and transsexual groups were also largely unhappy with the storyline, and found Hayley's original character traits, as written, to be cliched and ill-informed. Press for Change, the transsexual campaign and information group, were particularly concerned with the direction of the storyline, but after the first two months a trans advisor connected to Press for Change was regularly consulted for eighteen months by scriptwriters and the actress, and trans groups appeared happier with the stories and scripts that resulted from this liaison.Transgender campaigners were upset that a cissexual
Cissexual
Cissexual is an adjective used in the context of gender issues to describe "people who are not transsexual and who have only ever experienced their mental and physical sexes as being aligned"...
woman had been chosen for the part yet they had nothing but praise for Hesmondhalgh's dedication and sensitivity. Hayley was, for many viewers, the first transsexual woman whose story they had really seen unfold on TV. Hesmondhalgh has become an outspoken activist for trans rights, including becoming the first Friend of campaign group Trans Media Watch
Trans Media Watch
Trans Media Watch is a campaign group which aims to ensure "that trans people are treated with accuracy, dignity and respect by media organisations in the UK". It started as a Facebook group in 2009, collecting examples of transphobia in the UK mainstream media and providing information...
and as Hayley, she has heralded a new level of acceptance among people across the country. The official LGBT History Month website states the character as one of the important famous LGBT people in their history, even though she is a fictional character.
Political impact
Coronation Street's handling of transsexual issues, the uncertainty of whether her partner would accept her transsexuality and the inability of transsexual people to adopt children or marry, has been praised by transgendered groups. An Early Day MotionEarly day motion
An Early Day Motion , in the Westminster system, is a motion, expressed as a single sentence, tabled by Members of Parliament for debate "on an early day" . Controversial EDMs are not signed by Government Ministers, PPS or the Speaker of the House of Commons and very few are debated on the floor...
was also tabled in Parliament by Lynne Jones
Lynne Jones
Lynne Mary Jones is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Birmingham Selly Oak from 1992 until the dissolution of parliament in April 2010.-Early life:...
, MP, praising the story team and researchers, and Julie Hesmondhalgh for her portrayal."
Following the screening of the "wedding" in 1999, the Labour Government announced that a Parliamentary Working Group was being created to assess how the United Kingdom could grant trans people the legal rights for which they had fought for decades. The result of this was the tabling, in 2004, of the Gender Recognition Act
Gender Recognition Act 2004
The Gender Recognition Act 2004 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that allows transsexual people to change their legal gender. It came into effect on 4 April 2005.-Operation of the law:...
, granting trans people full legal status in their acquired sex. It has been said that the character of Hayley Cropper deserves partial credit for bringing the issues faced by trans people to public attention in a sympathetic manner, rather than the sensationalist coverage that had previously existed. It is also alleged that the resultant public support for this fictional character
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
went in favour of the Bill.
See also
- Transgender in film and televisionTransgender in film and televisionThis article lists many films whose primary character are transgender. It also includes films of note who have a secondary transgender character.-Film and video:...
- List of transgender-related topics
- Coronation Street: Romanian HolidayCoronation Street: Romanian HolidayCoronation Street: Romanian Holiday is a DVD feature length film of the popular British soap opera Coronation Street released in October 2009.-Plot:...