Eileen Derbyshire

Eileen Derbyshire, MBE is an English actress, best known for her role as Emily Bishop in the soap opera Coronation Street. She has played the character for 55 years as she joined permanently in 1961, making her the longestserving female cast member in a British soap opera. She is the mother of sports journalist Oliver Holt. She was made an MBE in the 2010 Queens Birthday Honours list with her fellow costar and friend, Barbara Knox.

Derbyshire was born in Urmston, Lancashire and from the age of 17, was appearing in plays broadcast on the radio. After several small parts on television, she joined the cast of Coronation Street, firstly as an extra in episode 4, broadcast WednesdayDecember 1960. In episode 15, her character was named as Miss Nugent, then a year later she was given the forename Emily.

Source: Wikipedia