Maureen Elizabeth Webster (née Grimes, previously Naylor, Holdsworth and Elliott) was the four-times-married daughter of Maud Grimes and owner of the corner shop from 1994 to 1997.
Maureen was a divorcee caring for her disabled mother Maud when she gained employment at Bettabuy in 1993, completely unaware that the manager of the store was her old flame, Reg Holdsworth. The pair were able to rekindle their relationship and marry, despite Maud's continuing dislike of Reg going back to 1968. Reg bought the corner shop for them to run together, but after six months he returned to the supermarket scene and Maureen soldiered on with Maud's help.
The slow death of Maureen's second marriage began when Reg was promoted to Lowestoft in 1995. Away from Maureen, he reverted to his old ways and impregnated his mistress Yvonne Bannister. Maureen divorced him and kept the shop, calling "Maureen's Mini Market". In 1996, she fell for Bill Webster only to marry Fred Elliott on the rebound after she and Bill split up. Realising what a mistake she'd made, she ran off to Germany with Bill, marrying him there.
Maureen was last seen in Coronation Street when she made a surprise visit for Christmas, catching Bill out as he and Audrey Roberts carried out an affair. The pair were unable to work out their differences, and another divorce followed.
Biography[]
1945-1993: Reunited[]
In March 1993, Maureen Naylor was employed by Curly Watts at Bettabuy supermarket, unaware that her first love Reg Holdsworth was the store manager. The pair had been engaged to be married in 1968, but Maureen's mother Maud disapproved of the match and made it her business to ruin the relationship. Maureen went on to marry Frank Naylor but eventually divorced him after he treated her badly.
Delighted to be reunited, Maureen and Reg began courting, although Maureen's cautious behaviour led Reg to suspect she was seeing another man. Maureen eventually confessed that she was actually living with her mother and did not want her to frighten Reg away as she had done years before. Despite Maud's best efforts to sabotage their courtship with feigned illnesses and injuries, Reg and Maureen prepared to consummate their love in Reg's waterbed, only for Derek Wilton to drill through the ceiling below into the bed, flooding the flat and humiliating Maureen. The couple got engaged again, but Maureen called off the wedding when she caught Reg entertaining Debi Scott and accused him of being unfaithful - just as her mother had warned he would. Devastated, Maureen got drunk and spent the night with Curly but was reconciled with Reg when he explained that he had been trying to secure a cheap deal for the Corner Shop from Debi.
1994-1996: Marriage and divorce[]
Maureen and Reg finally married in January 1994 and began to run the corner shop together. Reg, however, soon tired of his small environment and went to work for Firman's Freezers, leaving Maureen to run the business with Maud. Maureen's world was rocked when, during a visit to France, Maud admitted that her daughter had been the result of an affair with an American soldier, Leonard Kennedy, and that Wilfred Grimes was not Maureen's real father.
The Holdsworths attempted to sell the shop unsuccessfully, and things got worse when Reg took a job in Lowestoft. Maureen became unhappy at having to drive long distances to see him only at weekends. In 1996, Maureen was left distraught when she discovered that Reg had impregnated his mistress in Lowestoft and agreed to divorce him. She threw herself into work at the shop and eventually embarked upon a romance with Bill Webster, of whom Maud wholeheartedly approved. Unfortunately, another drunken night of passion with Curly Watts left Bill unable to continue the relationship and Maureen was alone once again.
1997-2006: Third time lucky?[]
A while later, butcher Fred Elliott expressed an interest in Maureen and began to take her out. She enjoyed his company and being treated like a lady but turned down his proposal of marriage, reluctant to wed for a third time. Maud disliked Fred, thinking him too loud and overbearing, just as Reg had been. Maureen relented, however, and the couple married in September 1997. Less than a week into the union, Maureen realised that her mother had been right as she found Fred's constant attention and his plans for their future suffocating.
Desperately unhappy, she found sympathy in Bill, who was planning to emigrate to Germany. He invited her to start a new life with him, and - with Maud's blessing - she left Weatherfield without so much as a word to Fred.
2006 onwards: Heartbreak[]
While in Germany, Maureen divorced Fred and married Bill. The couple did not return to Coronation Street until Bill visited his family in 2006 and began an affair with Audrey Roberts. On Christmas Day, Maureen surprised him by turning up at No.8, where Audrey and the Websters had joined the Platts for Christmas dinner. Troublemaker David Platt revealed Bill and Audrey's affair and Maureen was heartbroken, changing her plans and returning to Germany immediately. Bill followed her to beg forgiveness but returned to Weatherfield a few weeks later, claiming the marriage was over.
Maureen now lives in Germany.
Personality[]
Relationships[]
Background information[]
Maureen was axed by new producer Brian Park in 1997 as part of a shake-up of the show. However, nine years later in December 2006, the character was brought back for two episodes by Steve Frost.
First and last lines[]
"Yes, that's right. But not round here, I was living in Preston at the time." (First line, in response to Curly Watts's observation that she had worked in a supermarket before)
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"I don't wanna hear it. I've changed my ticket, I'm going home. And you, you're welcome to him, love." (Final line, to Bill Webster and Audrey Roberts)
Appendices[]
List of addresses[]
Address | Duration |
---|---|
7 Nightingale Street | until 28th February 1994 |
12 Coronation Street | 28th February 1994 to 25th March 1994 |
7 Nightingale Street | 25th March 1994 to 22nd April 1996 |
12 Coronation Street | 22nd April 1996 to 15th May 1996 |
7 Nightingale Street | 15th May 1996 to 22nd September 1997 |
4 Coronation Street | 22nd September 1997 to 3rd October 1997 |
Germany | 3rd October 1997 onwards |