Jeff Longton

Jeff Longton was a Gazette reporter who penned a glowing article on Councillor Deirdre Barlow in the run-up to the local elections in 1991.

Jeff was an associate of Phil Jennings, Deirdre's boyfriend, and wrote the article to give her campaign a boost in order to repay a debt to Phil. As Jeff conducted the interview at 1 Coronation Street, Deirdre had no clue that he'd been put up to it by Phil, but even so he tried to throw her off the scent by asking her about her battle against Phil over underage gambling at his amusement arcades. Acting the part of a Councillor Barlow admirer, Jeff went easy on Deirdre with his questions, praising her both as a devoted single mother and a conscientious councillor.

After concluding the interview, Jeff met Phil outside PJ Leisure to pass on some inside gossip: that Deirdre's opponent, Alf Roberts, had a bit on the side called Vivian Barford.