Cyril Turpin was Betty Turpin's police sergeant husband.
The Turpins were married sometime after 1950 and had no children. In 1969, they moved from Birmingham to Weatherfield to support Betty's sister Maggie Clegg, with Cyril transferring to the Weatherfield Police. As a copper, he would keep his neighbours in Coronation Street on their toes, while providing them with a friendly face in their brushes with the law.
In 1970, Cyril attacked ex-con Keith Lucas with a lead pipe after Keith threatened Betty, and quit the police rather than face a disciplinary hearing. He then gained employment at a solicitors' office, where he remained until his death from a heart attack in 1974.
Biography[]
Cyril Turpin began serving with the police in 1945 after serving as a military policeman in the Second World War. He married Betty Preston several years later at St John's in the Wilderness on Clegg Street and they had a happy marriage. Cyril often informally called Betty "Lizzie".
In 1969, Betty and Cyril moved into Betty's sister Maggie Clegg's spare bedsit above the Corner Shop in Coronation Street. Betty had moved there so that she could be there to support Maggie when her son Gordon moved to London. The street residents enjoyed having a police officer living in their midst and often looked to him for legal advice, and in return Cyril exercised his hands-on approach to the law by giving neighbours a friendly warning before intervening when they were flouting the law. As the go-to man for many a crisis, Cyril soon got to know the locals and involved himself in community events, including a pub football match and the Rovers Christmas concert, in which he acted as Master of Ceremonies.
Cyril was fiercely protective of Betty. When Rovers landlady Annie Walker asked Cyril to persuade Betty to quit her barmaid job at the Rovers, Cyril advised Betty to stay put, as Annie's actions could be taken as pressuring a police officer. In 1970, ex-convict Keith Lucas, who had just completed a three-year jail sentence, threatened Betty while looking for Cyril, who he blamed for putting him away as Cyril was his arresting officer. When Cyril learned about this he set upon Lucas with a lead pipe, and had to be pulled off him by Len Fairclough. Cyril was appalled at his own behaviour and, after facing a disciplinary hearing, resigned from the police, having already entertained the notion earlier that year. He took a job in a solicitor's office, and he and Betty moved to 37 Hillside Crescent.
After the move, Cyril was not seen in Coronation Street often. He briefly considered buying into the Corner Shop in 1972 and tried to make Maggie feel guilty by pointing out how Betty had looked after her in the past. Alf Roberts fought Cyril on Maggie's behalf, convincing Cyril to back down.
In 1974, Cyril was intending to go to Len Fairclough and Rita Littlewood's engagement party in the Rovers but collapsed and died outside the house, after suffering a heart attack.
As of 1980, Cyril had a sister, Minnie, and a brother-in-law, Victor. The two had a daughter named Margaret, and lived on a modern housing estate.
Personality[]
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Background information[]
Before playing Cyril Turpin, William Moore had played Mr. Wigglesworth in Episode 548 (14th March 1966), a Police Constable in The Cup That Cheers, an episode of Pardon the Expression, and a landlord in Hail to Thee, Aunt Shelmadine, an episode of Turn out the Lights. Additionally, Moore's wife Mollie Sugden played the pub landlady Nellie Harvey, a friend and rival of Annie Walker, on the series from 1965 to 1976.
Cyril and Betty Turpin were first seen in June 1969. Cyril was seen regularly until mid-1970, and had a further two stints in 1972. When it became clear that Moore had no intentions of reprising the role, Cyril was killed off in February 1974.
In the episode following Cyril's death, Betty tells Alf Roberts and Maggie Clegg that it would be their Pearl Anniversary "next July", suggesting that they were married in July 1945. This was retconned by future storylines placing Betty's affair with soldier Ted Farrell and falling pregnant with Gordon in the late 1940s, prior to her marriage to Cyril.
First and last lines[]
"You'll be the licensee then, Mr Walker?" (First line)
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"Now, there's no need to fuss, Liz. In fact, that's why I'm telling you now. He's promised me he's going straight." (Final line, about Jacko Ford).
Appendices[]
List of addresses[]
| Address | Duration |
|---|---|
| Corner Shop bedsit | June 1969 to July 1970 |
| 37 Hillside Crescent | July 1970 to 20th February 1974 |
Employment history[]
| Role | Institution | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Military Police Officer | British Army | 1939 or early 1940s to 1945 |
| Policeman | Weatherfield Police | 1945 to 1st July 1970 |
| Clerk | Unknown Solicitors | 15th July 1970 to 1974 |