Jim Nelson was Ivy Tilsley's father. Jim and wife Alice were in attendance at grandson Brian Tilsley's wedding to Gail Potter at St. Boniface Catholic Church in November 1979 and the reception at the Rovers. Like the other men in Ivy's life, Jim seemed to suffer from her sharp tongue, with Ivy criticising him for his smoking outside the church. When Ivy and Alice walked off, Jim asked Bert Tilsley why he put up with Ivy. He later joked to Brian, just as he was about to get married, that the first fifty years were the worst, causing Ivy to tell him to shut up.
In 1989, Ivy told workmates Vera Duckworth and Josie Phillips that she had only ever seen her father smile once, when he won the pools - but the smile didn't last, as he had only won 4/- 11d.
Relaying details of her conversation with a Medium at Weatherfield Spiritualist Church in September 1990, Ivy told Bet Gilroy that both of her parents were deceased.