Les Battersby-Brown
Encyclopedia
Leslie Nelson "Les" Battersby-Brown (ne Battersby) is a fictional character
on the British ITV
soap opera
Coronation Street
. He was played by Bruce Jones. The character was best known for his loud opinions and his following of British rock band Status Quo.
In May, it was confirmed that he would not return, and the character of Les would be written out later in the year. His absence has so far been covered by a storyline of Les going away on tour as a roadie for tribute band
"ZZ Top O' The Morning".
Since his departure, Les has never been seen (although he has been spoken to by Peter Barlow
on screen via a mobile phone) and has only been mentioned on a few occasions, by Fiz, Chesney, Leanne, and Peter.
(Vicky Entwistle
), teenage daughter Leanne
(Jane Danson
), and stepdaughter Toyah (Georgia Taylor
) (from Janice’s previous relationship), and were known as the family from hell. Les had spent six months in Strangeways prison for breaking and entering. In 1998, Les discovered that he had a son, Greg. Greg turned out to be psychotic and abused his girlfriend, Sally Webster
, until he was imprisoned. Les was frequently in trouble. He assaulted neighbour Curly Watts and constantly argued with Des Barnes
, until he helped Des out of a difficult situation one night. After the break-up of his marriage, he was sent to prison for six months for assaulting a police officer who was living with Les's wife, Janice, at the time.
Despite their constant rows, Les truly loved Janice (despite struggling to show it at times). When he embarrassed his wife by buying her a deep-fat fryer for their anniversary, it became obvious that their marriage was failing. In 2001, Janice finally realised that she’d had enough of Les’s antics and inability to show affection, and began an affair with their lodger, Les's biker friend Dennis Stringer, who was dating Eileen Grimshaw
. They admitted their love and moved in together. On New Year's Day 2002, Les drove under a viaduct
and sat in his car while trying to kill himself by drinking excessive amounts of alcohol. Dennis rescued him when he arrived on his motorbike and drove Les away, intending to take him to hospital. On the way, they were involved in a car crash which killed Dennis and left Les with a broken arm. Despite many an attempt to woo back Janice (to no avail), Les met loud-mouthed Cilla Brown in a local pub. She turned out to be the mother of Street resident Fiz Brown
, and had left her young son Chesney
alone in their home for days while she was in bed running Les ragged.
. In 2005, Les and Cilla decided to get married for the “luxurious” presents they would receive from their guests. Les’s dream came true when his favourite band, Status Quo, popped in the Rovers
after a concert in the area. As he approached the band with records for them to sign, they, in turn, thumped him (as they recognised him as the lunatic who jumped on stage in a concert some twenty years previous, causing a permanent neck injury to lead singer Francis Rossi
). He didn’t lose his faith in the Quo, and didn’t anticipate that they would soon meet again.
Cilla, however, quickly smelt a way to make money from this and told a reluctant Les to contact his solicitor in regards to suing the band for assault. In order to avoid the bad publicity, the band were eager to settle the case with Les quickly and quietly, but Cilla’s dreams of riches were quickly dashed when Les, rather than accept a cash offer, settled for the band to play at the wedding reception. On her hen night, Cilla found a younger bloke on her last night of freedom, but was interrupted by a drunk Les coming home, and she passed the man off as her son, Billy, who had turned up for the wedding. Les was too drunk to say anything and fell asleep, while the man ran off in disgust. The real Billy turned up on the wedding day morning, but told Les, who was baffled upon realising that the two men were different, that perhaps he was too drunk to even remember what he looked like. Les agreed and shrugged it off, and nothing more was said.
Les and Cilla finally arranged their wedding day, despite the fact that the priest was a de-frocked clergyman, and they had to distract the real vicar
while they “married.” Cilla smashed Tracy Barlow’s
window (due to the fact that she wouldn’t hand over the bouquet of flowers for the ceremony because Cilla wouldn’t pay up) and then ran to Dev Alahan
’s shop and stole some flowers, before jumping into the wedding car heading towards the church. Les was driving when he spotted a member of Status Quo, took his eyes off the road to stare in amazement, and crashed into their van (with the other band member inside).
Les put on a neck brace before “tying the knot” with Cilla, and they became known as the Battersby-Brown family. The Quo turned up at a back room in the reception (where the presents were being kept) to rest. Les walked in, and told his idols that his dream was to trash a room with expensive things in. He duly wrecked everything, and threw a wedding-present TV out of the window as Cilla walked in to inform him that he had just trashed the presents! She went berserk and started attacking Les as the Quo watched in bursts of laughter, and the reception ended with the band agreeing to put past differences with Les behind, performing “Rockin’ All Over the World” with Les as a member of the band. Cilla then went on the honeymoon with her friend, Yana Lumb, rather than Les.
Surprisingly it is only Les that has had affairs in the marriage, the first time with his ex-wife, Janice Battersby
during a drunken one-night stand; Cilla showed Les mercy although giving him a hard time first but forgave him. The second time was when Les suspected Cilla of cheating (when she wasn't). Cilla's best friend, Yana Lumb took pity on Les and showed anger at an absent Cilla who didn't ever confide in her. Yana and Les eventually slept together behind the sofa in the living room, only for Cilla's son Chesney to catch them. Cilla soon found out and pretended that she had malignant cancer, leaving Les devastated and guilty and ready to do anything for his "ill" wife. Cilla got Les and Yana to go into a bathtub full of mushy peas in the cold wind out on the street to raise money to send her on holiday. Cilla revealed that she lied about the cancer. After much grovelling, Cilla forgave Les and smacked Yana on the face, but also forgave her. A few days later, Les and Cilla made the marriage legal by registering at a local registry office.
(Michelle Collins
) turns up and tells Leanne that she is her mother.
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...
on the British 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...
. He was played by Bruce Jones. The character was best known for his loud opinions and his following of British rock band Status Quo.
Creation and development
In 1997, new producer Brian Park wanted to bring a tougher group into what he saw as a staid program. The Battersbys were dubbed "the family from hell", and their bitter clashes with the established characters alienated a number of longtime fans. In the Battersby Family Album special, actor Bruce Jones recounted being in a pub after the episode where Les headbutted Curly Watts, and being seriously threatened if Les ever went near Curly again.Departure (2007)
Actor Bruce Jones was suspended from the show in March 2007, following Sunday newspaper allegations of drunkenness and inappropriate comments made in the presence of an undercover reporter.In May, it was confirmed that he would not return, and the character of Les would be written out later in the year. His absence has so far been covered by a storyline of Les going away on tour as a roadie for tribute band
Tribute band
A tribute act is a music group, singer, or musician who specifically plays the music of a well-known music act - sometimes one which has disbanded, ceased touring or is deceased. Probably the largest class of tributes acts are Elvis impersonators, individual performers who mimic the songs and style...
"ZZ Top O' The Morning".
Since his departure, Les has never been seen (although he has been spoken to by 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...
on screen via a mobile phone) and has only been mentioned on a few occasions, by Fiz, Chesney, Leanne, and Peter.
1997–2003
Les first appeared in 1997 with his wife JaniceJanice Battersby
Janice Bernadette Battersby is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. Portrayed by actress Vicky Entwistle, the character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 6 January 1997....
(Vicky Entwistle
Vicky Entwistle
Vicky Entwistle is an English actress who is most famous for playing the role of "loudmouth" factory worker Janice Battersby in ITV1's long-running soap opera Coronation Street....
), teenage daughter Leanne
Leanne Battersby
Leanne Anika Barlow is a fictional character on the soap opera Coronation Street. Portrayed by actress Jane Danson, the character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 4 July 1997....
(Jane Danson
Jane Danson
Jane Danson is an English actress, most famous for playing the role of Leanne Battersby in Coronation Street.-Acting:...
), and stepdaughter Toyah (Georgia Taylor
Georgia Taylor
Georgia Taylor is an English actress, known for her role as Toyah Battersby in Coronation Street and currently for playing Ruth Winters on Casualty. She was born in Wigan, Greater Manchester....
) (from Janice’s previous relationship), and were known as the family from hell. Les had spent six months in Strangeways prison for breaking and entering. In 1998, Les discovered that he had a son, Greg. Greg turned out to be psychotic and abused his girlfriend, Sally Webster
Sally Webster
Sally Webster is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. Portrayed by actress Sally Dynevor, the character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 27 January 1986.-Casting:...
, until he was imprisoned. Les was frequently in trouble. He assaulted neighbour Curly Watts and constantly argued with Des Barnes
Des Barnes
Desmond Francis "Des" Barnes is a fictional character from the British soap opera Coronation Street, played by Philip Middlemiss.-Creation and development:...
, until he helped Des out of a difficult situation one night. After the break-up of his marriage, he was sent to prison for six months for assaulting a police officer who was living with Les's wife, Janice, at the time.
Despite their constant rows, Les truly loved Janice (despite struggling to show it at times). When he embarrassed his wife by buying her a deep-fat fryer for their anniversary, it became obvious that their marriage was failing. In 2001, Janice finally realised that she’d had enough of Les’s antics and inability to show affection, and began an affair with their lodger, Les's biker friend Dennis Stringer, who was dating Eileen Grimshaw
Eileen Grimshaw
Eileen Grimshaw, is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. Portrayed by Sue Cleaver, the character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 3 May 2000....
. They admitted their love and moved in together. On New Year's Day 2002, Les drove under a viaduct
Viaduct
A viaduct is a bridge composed of several small spans. The term viaduct is derived from the Latin via for road and ducere to lead something. However, the Ancient Romans did not use that term per se; it is a modern derivation from an analogy with aqueduct. Like the Roman aqueducts, many early...
and sat in his car while trying to kill himself by drinking excessive amounts of alcohol. Dennis rescued him when he arrived on his motorbike and drove Les away, intending to take him to hospital. On the way, they were involved in a car crash which killed Dennis and left Les with a broken arm. Despite many an attempt to woo back Janice (to no avail), Les met loud-mouthed Cilla Brown in a local pub. She turned out to be the mother of Street resident 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...
, and had left her young son Chesney
Chesney Brown
Chesney Brown is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. Portrayed by actor Sam Aston, the character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 14 November 2003....
alone in their home for days while she was in bed running Les ragged.
2004–2007
In no time, Cilla and Chesney moved in with Les (much to Fiz’s disappointment), but in 2004 she took a six-week break and dumped Chesney on Les, after a fiery row. In this time, he finally came close to winning back his true love, Janice, after she decided to cancel their divorce proceedings to re-unite with Les, but Cilla came on the scene and lured him back with her larger bust and by pretending to have come into money. Janice swore never to get involved with Les again, and divorced him. Around the same time, Les discovered his daughter, Leanne, lap-dancing in a nightclub, and brought her back to WeatherfieldWeatherfield
Weatherfield is a fictional town, based on Salford in North West England, which serves as the setting for the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street...
. In 2005, Les and Cilla decided to get married for the “luxurious” presents they would receive from their guests. Les’s dream came true when his favourite band, Status Quo, popped in the Rovers
Rovers Return Inn
The Rovers Return Inn is a fictional public house on the long-running British soap opera Coronation Street. The Rovers Return occupies the corner of Coronation Street and Rosamund Street. Since the first episode it has been the principal setting in the show and many of its most memorable moments...
after a concert in the area. As he approached the band with records for them to sign, they, in turn, thumped him (as they recognised him as the lunatic who jumped on stage in a concert some twenty years previous, causing a permanent neck injury to lead singer Francis Rossi
Francis Rossi
Francis Dominic Nicholas Michael Rossi, OBE is a British musician best known for being a co-founder of the English rock band Status Quo, in which he sings lead vocals and plays lead guitar.- Career :...
). He didn’t lose his faith in the Quo, and didn’t anticipate that they would soon meet again.
Cilla, however, quickly smelt a way to make money from this and told a reluctant Les to contact his solicitor in regards to suing the band for assault. In order to avoid the bad publicity, the band were eager to settle the case with Les quickly and quietly, but Cilla’s dreams of riches were quickly dashed when Les, rather than accept a cash offer, settled for the band to play at the wedding reception. On her hen night, Cilla found a younger bloke on her last night of freedom, but was interrupted by a drunk Les coming home, and she passed the man off as her son, Billy, who had turned up for the wedding. Les was too drunk to say anything and fell asleep, while the man ran off in disgust. The real Billy turned up on the wedding day morning, but told Les, who was baffled upon realising that the two men were different, that perhaps he was too drunk to even remember what he looked like. Les agreed and shrugged it off, and nothing more was said.
Les and Cilla finally arranged their wedding day, despite the fact that the priest was a de-frocked clergyman, and they had to distract the real vicar
Vicar
In the broadest sense, a vicar is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior . In this sense, the title is comparable to lieutenant...
while they “married.” Cilla smashed Tracy Barlow’s
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...
window (due to the fact that she wouldn’t hand over the bouquet of flowers for the ceremony because Cilla wouldn’t pay up) and then ran to Dev Alahan
Dev Alahan
Devendra 'Dev' Alahan is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. Portrayed by actor Jimmi Harkishin, the character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 10 November 1999.-Character development:...
’s shop and stole some flowers, before jumping into the wedding car heading towards the church. Les was driving when he spotted a member of Status Quo, took his eyes off the road to stare in amazement, and crashed into their van (with the other band member inside).
Les put on a neck brace before “tying the knot” with Cilla, and they became known as the Battersby-Brown family. The Quo turned up at a back room in the reception (where the presents were being kept) to rest. Les walked in, and told his idols that his dream was to trash a room with expensive things in. He duly wrecked everything, and threw a wedding-present TV out of the window as Cilla walked in to inform him that he had just trashed the presents! She went berserk and started attacking Les as the Quo watched in bursts of laughter, and the reception ended with the band agreeing to put past differences with Les behind, performing “Rockin’ All Over the World” with Les as a member of the band. Cilla then went on the honeymoon with her friend, Yana Lumb, rather than Les.
Surprisingly it is only Les that has had affairs in the marriage, the first time with his ex-wife, Janice Battersby
Janice Battersby
Janice Bernadette Battersby is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. Portrayed by actress Vicky Entwistle, the character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 6 January 1997....
during a drunken one-night stand; Cilla showed Les mercy although giving him a hard time first but forgave him. The second time was when Les suspected Cilla of cheating (when she wasn't). Cilla's best friend, Yana Lumb took pity on Les and showed anger at an absent Cilla who didn't ever confide in her. Yana and Les eventually slept together behind the sofa in the living room, only for Cilla's son Chesney to catch them. Cilla soon found out and pretended that she had malignant cancer, leaving Les devastated and guilty and ready to do anything for his "ill" wife. Cilla got Les and Yana to go into a bathtub full of mushy peas in the cold wind out on the street to raise money to send her on holiday. Cilla revealed that she lied about the cancer. After much grovelling, Cilla forgave Les and smacked Yana on the face, but also forgave her. A few days later, Les and Cilla made the marriage legal by registering at a local registry office.
2008—
In November 2008, Cilla wrote to Ches, Kirk, and Fiz that she was living in South Africa with Les. Ches was excited, as he believed his family had reunited. When they arrived, they learned Cilla's "Les" was a native South African. Cilla told them last she'd heard, Les was touring with a band called the Gypsy Creams, and she said she and Les had no desire to get back together. In June 2011, Les's ex girlfriend Stella PriceStella Price
Stella Price is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street, played by Michelle Collins. Collins' casting was announced in April 2011 and she began filming her scenes in May. The actress commutes from north London to Manchester for filming. Collins joined the show in...
(Michelle Collins
Michelle Collins
Michelle Danielle Collins is a British actress best known for her roles on television in the BBC soap opera EastEnders, as Cindy Beale, Coronation Street as Stella Price, and BBC dramas Sunburn and Two Thousand Acres of Sky...
) turns up and tells Leanne that she is her mother.
Reception
In Dorothy Catherine Anger's book "Other worlds: society seen through soap opera" she brands Les as one of the "middle aged men" who "over the years have, stymied their wives' efforts to be accepted as respectable".External links
- Les’s profile at www.corrie.net
- The Ballad of Les Battersby sing-along pub song by Dan LaRocque