Minnie Caldwell

Minnie Caldwell (née Carlton) was a Coronation Street resident from 1962 to 1976. A widow by the 1960s, Minnie lived at No.5 with her beloved cat Bobby. She was a fixture in the snug of the Rovers Return Inn along with her pensioner friends Ena Sharples and Martha Longhurst.

A soft-spoken, simple-minded woman, Minnie appeared docile compared to her overbearing companions, and was frequently bossed around by them. She didn't share their obsession with complaining and criticising, preferring to enjoy life, even though she was not wealthy, continually struggling to live on her pension money. To help pay the bills, Minnie often took in lodgers at No.5, including Charlie Moffitt, Joe Donelli and her favourite, "Sunny Jim" Jed Stone, who became the son Minnie never had. Minnie's determination to follow her dreams occasionally led to disaster however as she battled a gambling addiction in 1969.

In 1976, Minnie moved to Whaley Bridge to live with her friend Handel Gartside.

1900-1960: Working life
Minnie Carlton was born on 26th September 1900 to Bob and Amy Carlton, and lived at 15 Jubilee Terrace, around the corner from Coronation Street, until 1962. During her schooling days at Hardcastle's Factory School in Silk Street, she met some of her lifelong friends including Handel Gartside, Ena Schofield and Martha Hartley. Her mother was a suffragette and she assisted her, they were moved on from Albert Square. She also worked as tram conductress and in the munitions factories in both World War I and World War II. She married Armistead Caldwell in 1925 after being bullied into it by Ena, but Minnie and Armistead never had any children and Armistead died in 1935.

By 1939 Minnie was living alone with her widowed mother. Amy Carlton could intimidate anyone, even Ena Sharples, but her health wound down and by war's end she rarely left bed.

In 1944, Minnie began hearing noises in her home and became convinced the place was haunted, leading Leonard Swindley to conduct an exorcism. The noises continued, and Elsie Tanner discovered a young, very weak boy hidden in Minnie's attic. Young (around four years old) Ken Barlow helped convince him to leave the attic, and they learned he was Dieter Holliman, a young German boy who had emigrated to Britain with his mother as World War II beckoned; after his mother's death he'd been put in an orphanage and had run away due to abuse. He'd been hiding in the house, stealing food when Minnie wasn't around. Minnie nursed him back to health, and Ena convinced the authorities to let him stay with Minnie. Dieter stayed with her for nearly a year, but as the war wound down, his uncle arrived to take him back to Germany.

By 1960, she was taking care of her elderly mother after retiring from Earnshaw's Mill.

1960-1964: The quiet one
When Minnie started collecting her pension, most of her time was spent either looking after her mother in Jubilee Terrace or spending time with Ena and Martha, who by now were also both widows. Generally they could be found drinking milk stout in the Rovers Return snug, slyly but shamelessly passing judgement on their neighbours (as well as each other). Minnie was the quietest of the three, and being quite satisfied with her life, usually spent most conversations on the defensive from the criticisms of her aggressive friends.

When Ena quit her job at the Mission Hall in 1961, she moved in with Minnie and her mother, and quickly dominated the house. It wasn't for a few months that Ena was offered her job back, and she went home, tired of Minnie's bossy mother and her cat, Bobby. In the coming months, Minnie's mother's health declined, and she died in her bed a short time later, aged 94. Unwilling to go on living in the same house, Minnie moved to 5 Coronation Street with Bobby.

Facing a rent increase, Minnie's finances were strained until she took in Jed Stone as a lodger. Childless Minnie's life was brightened by Jed's presence, even though he had a criminal past (which gave Ena a reason to dislike him). Jed looked upon Minnie as a mother figure and called her "Ma", and when he returned home to Liverpool, he didn't know how to tell Minnie and did a midnight flit. Minnie was devastated that "Sunny Jim", as she called him, had left so suddenly and left her in financial difficulty again.

In 1964, Minnie briefly took over Martha's job at Viaduct Street Social Club while Martha was away. Owing to dodgy building work, Minnie fell through the bannister and tore a ligament. Minnie was fine, but the guilty party paid for a holiday for Minnie while her solicitors sued Len Fairclough. An out-of-court settlement was reached, but while Minnie was away at the seaside Martha died of a heart attack. Minnie returned in time for the funeral.

1964-1967: Money troubles
Shortly after Martha's death, Minnie took in comic Charlie Moffitt as a lodger. With him came his greyhound Little Titch, six rabbits, and eight pigeons. Minnie enjoyed mothering the accident-prone, unfunny comedian, but wasn't pleased when he and Stan Ogden started brewing beer in her front room, telling her it was tonic wine. She and Emily Nugent opened one of the bottles and proceeded to get drunk, but were more than startled when all the remaining bottles exploded. When Charlie left to pursue a career in show business, Minnie was adamant that she wasn't going to have any more lodgers, as it upset her too much when they left.

1966 was a struggle for Minnie, who had spent her pension on a new coat instead of paying for enough coal for the fire to heat her home. She hid away from Ena, who would only disapprove of her spending habits, choosing instead to sit in a cold house. Ena found out and offered to pay the money she owed for the coat, but Minnie wouldn't let her. Eventually Jed returned and paid the money back with Ena's help. Unfortunately, Jed didn't stay long this time, as the police had a warrant for his arrest for handling stolen blankets. With Minnie confined to bed for exhaustion, Jed stayed until she was better, planning to leave after her birthday party the next day, but the police caught up with him at Number 5. To avoid upsetting Minnie, Jed convinced the police officer to pretend to be a friend of his, and that he was leaving to visit a friend. Though she was devastated, Minnie pretended to be fooled so Jed wouldn't feel bad.

Things started to improve for Minnie when she auctioned Jed's belongings, as Jed had requested, and a brooch turned out to be worth £15. Later that year, Minnie applied for a supplementary pension, allowing her to support herself without needing a lodger. However, in 1967, when Minnie's insurance policy matured and she received £72, Minnie was conned by two men who posed as plumbers to fix her chimney before taking £52 of the money when she wasn't looking.

1968-1971: Gambling problems and Handel's return
In 1968, the Mission and the vestry were demolished, leaving Ena homeless. Minnie took Ena in, but she got on Ena's nerves again, as Ena thought her mind was on Bobby the cat too much. Ena was frustrated because the demolition of the Mission Hall had forced her into retirement. Ena's stay was a brief one, and she moved into one of the maisonettes across the street.

Bobby went missing later in the year, but Minnie took in a stray cat, calling it Sunny Jim (after Jed).

Minnie was going through a phase where she was regularly going to the betting shop and betting on horses. Though she occasionally won, Ena made it clear how she felt about it, and was worried for Minnie. The local bookie Dave Smith encouraged Minnie, incurring Ena's wrath, but he put a stop to it when Minnie had run up a debt of £10 and was unable to pay it back. Elsie Tanner convinced Dave to cancel the debt, but when Ena rowed with him for picking on an old woman, he changed his mind and gave Minnie 24 hours to pay the money. Ashamed, Minnie fled Weatherfield. Ena found Minnie in hospital, suffering from pneumonia after sleeping rough. Dave arrived at her bedside, flowers in hand, telling her he was wiping the slate clean, but that he was limiting her betting to 2/- a week.

Minnie was thrilled in 1970 when her old flame Handel Gartside returned after 30 years living in Canada and briefly lodged with her. Ena had never been keen on Handel, but Minnie liked his company and was disappointed when he said he only wanted to be friends with her. Surprisingly, Albert Tatlock was jealous of Minnie's affection for Handel. When he left, Minnie took in Joe Donelli, who had been demobbed from the US army. Minnie didn't know that in 1968 Joe killed Steve Tanner, Elsie's husband, and wasn't of a sound mind. After threatening Irma Barlow, Joe took refuge in No.5, holding Minnie hostage, scared of being prosecuted for Steve's murder. Minnie and Sunny Jim (now called Bobby) were freed when Stan Ogden offered to remain in her place. Rather than face arrest, Joe took his own life.

Unwilling to live alone, Minnie stayed with Albert for a while. Albert's jealousy was brought back when Handel returned to check on Minnie after the ordeal, ultimately offering to move in with her. Again, he only stayed briefly, returning to Whaley Bridge when she was settled back into her house.

1971-1976: Later years in the Street
In 1971, Minnie swore she'd never take another lodger again, but this, coupled with the confusion brought on by decimalisation, made this a difficult time for her. Ena started spending long periods away from the Street, so Minnie spent more time with Albert. In 1973, Albert popped the question, hoping that if Minnie and he were married and living in the same house their money troubles would be sorted. Minnie wanted to ask Ena first, but in a misunderstanding Ena thought Albert was proposing to her, and accepted! Minnie said yes to Albert, glad to have someone to spend her old age with. After three months of engagement, Minnie asked Albert to fix a date for the wedding, but Ena warned her that despite what they thought, they would be financially burdened, receiving less as a married couple than individually. Already growing annoyed by Albert's habits, Minnie told him she didn't want to marry him anymore. After hearing about the money situation, Albert was happy it was over.

Late in 1974, Minnie was expecting a visit from Sunny Jim himself, Jed Stone, but his cellmate Eddie Yeats, on parole, showed up instead and told her Jed couldn't make it. Remembering Jed fondly, Minnie took Eddie in. Well-meaning Eddie made extra money by burgling houses, but Minnie didn't know about it and inadvertantly shopped Eddie to the police by handing over a suitcase containing stolen goods. In the mid-1970s, Minnie visited Handel Gartside in Whaley Bridge more and more often. After one visit in 1976, she never returned to Coronation Street - she decided to stay with Handel and sell No.5, all without telling Ena, who was horrified to see a 'for sale' sign go up in the Street. Handel visited Weatherfield and told Ena that Minnie was afraid that if she came back, Ena would talk her out of going. As he took Minnie's belongings out of her old house, he told Ena he would take care of her.

How long Minnie lived after she left is not certain. But when Jed Stone returned in 2008, he and Emily talked about Minnie and a conversation between the two confirmed Minnie died sometime between 1976 and 2008. Jed later visited her grave offscreen later that year.

Personality
- Minnie Caldwell
 * "I know folk think I'm simple. What I say to them is that I'd rather be simple and 'ave my pleasures than know everything and be miserable, like Ena."

Minnie Caldwell appeared most of the time to be a quiet and simple old lady. Concerned mainly with her friends and her cat, Minnie tended to obsess with matters others thought trivial at best, especially if they were important to her. Despite her many hardships, what affected Minnie most was the loss of something that held fond memories for her. Much to her friend Ena’s frustration, Minnie had aspirations to improve her lifestyle that were perhaps foolhardy and weren’t practical, such as making major purchases even though she couldn't afford it. Her gambling phase started from her desire to live out her lifelong dreams.

A vulnerable person, Minnie didn't like conflict or confrontations, but she wasn't afraid to speak her mind if she felt her words needed to be heard. Most of the time, she had a smile on her face and was a fixture in the community in Coronation Street, regularly helping her neighbours if they needed it.

Ena Sharples
- Minnie, about Ena
 * "She bullies me. She always has... in the name of Christianity."

Minnie was a year below Ena Sharples at school, and their friendship dated from that time. As pensioners, Ena and Minnie had many disagreements, brought on by the fact that both were so different. Whereas Minnie had a rather simple view of the world and went out of her way to help people, Ena was a cynic and thought Minnie was naïve. Ena tended to boss Minnie around, mainly to talk her out of her daft ideas, but Minnie thought Ena was too closedminded and interfering.

Despite this, Minnie and Ena were very close. Ena's intrusiveness was part of her nature, but with regards to Minnie it was also partially borne out of protectiveness, as she knew others would take advantage of the impulsive and overly trusting Minnie. While Minnie was also fond of Ena, looking upon her as her best friend, she generally coped well in Ena's absence, even when she was worried about her, such as when Ena was missing after a train crashed through the viaduct over the Street in 1967. However, on occasions where Minnie's wellbring was in doubt, Ena was beside herself with worry.

Perhaps crucially, Minnie was one of the few Street residents who could silence Ena, usually with a cutting remark delivered with finesse worthy of Ena herself, once Ena had sounded off.

Though their friendship was a constant battle, Minnie and Ena were always there for each other and whenever Ena was ill, or was unable or unwilling to live at the Mission, Minnie provided her with a bed, though always hoped it was temporary!

Martha Longhurst
Until her death in 1964, Martha Longhurst was also close to Minnie. Martha was a gossip, as Ena was, so conversations between the three women were usually dominated by Ena and Martha, with Minnie taking on a minimal role. However, Ena was very much the ringleader of the group, and could easily talk over Martha, and as such Martha usually opted to seek out Minnie for day-to-day chitchat rather than Ena, who would turn the conversation into something negative. When with Martha only, Minnie was more talkative than when Ena was around.

During Martha and Ena's (frequent) disagreements, Minnie usually sided with Martha, as Ena was usually resentful of them both when either had let her down.

Jed Stone
Minnie often lamented the fact that she had never had children. She took in Jed Stone as a lodger in 1961 in sympathy when his friend Dennis's mum Elsie Tanner refused to put him up. Jed had a criminal background but he had turned over a new leaf, trying out a variety of get-rich-quick schemes in an effort to make money. Minnie was excited by his lifestyle and his antics were a frequent point of reference for her during her conversations with Ena and Martha, much to their chagrin. Minnie called Jed "Sunny Jim", and later gave her cat the same name in his honour.

Although Jed left Weatherfield abruptly later in 1961, he returned several times and Minnie was always glad to have him back. She came to look upon him as the son she never had, and she had a constant smile on her face when he was around. Although Jed cared about Minnie and looked out for her, he was not above lying to her when his activities weren't legal. He stored stolen goods at No.5 without Minnie's knowledge and was caught by the police. This didn't tarnish Minnie's opinion of him, and memories of Jed continued to bring delight to her in later years.

Other information

 * In 1969, the Street residents went on a coach trip to the Lake District, but the coach crashed on the way back. Minnie was one of the worst hit, still unconscious when most of the others had been discharged. Ena, who had only suffered bruising, prayed at her bedside until she came to.
 * In 2008 when Tony Gordon attempted to throw Minnie's former lodger Jed Stone out of his home, Jed has a picture of him and Minnie in his house and also a box full of photos of Minnie.

Background information

 * Minnie was one of the original characters of Coronation Street. Margot Bryant was a regular cast member from 1960 to 1976, when she had to leave the programme due to ill health. Her final appearance came several months before Minnie's decision to live in Whaley Bridge was written into the storyline, and as such it was not a big event.
 * Additional information on Minnie from 1939-1945 was found in Coronation Street at War by Daran Little and The Way to Victory by Christine Green.

Quotes
"If it's anything like that, don't tell me, I don't want to 'ear." (First line)

"I hope she does like it. Thank you very much." (Final line, to Rita Littlewood)