Weatherfield Gazette

The Weatherfield Gazette is the local newspaper for the Weatherfield area. For decades it has reported the births, deaths, marriages and criminal behaviour of many Coronation Street residents. Ken Barlow is perhaps the most notable contributor to the publication and for a brief period he also ran a rival newspaper, the Weatherfield Recorder, before he was forced to sell it to the Gazette itself after the latter started a free sheet in May 1989. Ken struggled on with the paper for another eight months but in the end there wasn't enough advertising revenue around to support two titles, especially when Deirdre Barlow demanded half the profits of the paper as part of a divorce settlement from Ken.

At some point, the paper launched its own internet edition which allows reader's comments underneath the on-line stories.

They are the official sponsors of Weatherfield County FC.

List of Gazette stories featuring Coronation Street residents

Note: reference to matters such as job adverts, etc are not included in the list below.

• Councillor Len Fairclough blocked the tender for a new fence by the side of Weatherfield Canal, almost causing the death of Paul Cheveski (November 1966)
• The paper prints a "truth game" for married couples to decide if they are compatible (Jack and Annie Walker try the game and fall out with each other as a result) (March 1967)
• A train plunges off the viaduct onto Coronation Street, killing Sonia Peters (May 1967)
• The paper offers £100 prize money in the council's "Best Kept Street" competition (June 1967)
• Former professional footballer David Barlow is to move to Australia (March 1968)
• Local resident Ken Barlow writes an article criticising the supposed errors in a new book on the First World War (April 1968)
• Emily Nugent advertises herself in the personal column as "Refined lady seeks stimulating opportunity. Anything considered." (June 1968)
• David and Darren Barlow's tragic death in a car crash in Australia (April 1970)
• Well-wishers have raised almost £300 for the Ogdens to pay for a trip to Australia to bring widow Irma Barlow home (April 1970)
• Lucille Hewitt has led a riotous protest against a new warehouse and Community Centre (March 1971)
• A wedding photograph is published with incorrect details of the bride and groom - the error is traced back to photographer's assistant Emily Bishop who transposed two sets of photographs (April 1971)
• A report on the Community Centre flower show is printed with cartoon caricatures of the judges (July 1971)
• The arrest of Edwin Ferguson for voyeurism (i.e. being a Peeping Tom) (August 1972)
• "Singer drops in Mayor's lap". Rita Littlewood gets into a fight on the opening night of The Capricorn club (December 1972)
• A possible miscarriage of justice following the arrest of Jacko Ford for burglary is investigated by Clive Shawcross (January 1973)
• "Nosy Neighbour Saves Pensioner" - Minnie Caldwell raises the alarm when Albert Tatlock is overcome by a gas leak March 1973
• The paper runs an anti-fireworks campaign. Councillor Fairclough is asked to be its spokesman (November 1973)
• Nellie Harvey plans to announce her divorce plans in the newspaper (January 1974)
• The paper refuses to print a story about an action group set up to oppose plans to redevelop the area (February 1974)
• The paper runs a "Find the Football" competition (September 1974)
• Bet Lynch wins a holiday for two in the Bahamas in the competition and is interviewed by the paper (October 1974)
• Police investigate as an unknown woman is found dead in 9 Coronation Street (January 1975)
• The Ogdens of 13 Coronation Street are refusing to pay their rate increases but are not supported by their fellow residents (August 1975)
• Hilda Ogden wins a trolley dash at a local delicatessen (March 1976)
• The Gatsby Club is raided by the police while hosting a stag night and Councillor Alf Roberts and lay preacher Ernest Bishop are among those arrested (April 1976)
• 34-year old Janet Barlow is found dead from suicide in the home of her former husband Ken Barlow (March 1977)

• The paper reports on a "Glamorous Granny" and "Beautiful Baby" contest run to mark the Silver Jubilee of The Queen and prints photographs of the finalists including Elsie Howard (May 1977)
• "French Frolics. Twin-town complains about visitors behaviour". Several Weatherfield women get drunk and disorderly while on a trade mission trip to Charleville in France while representing the borough (February 1980)
• Window cleaner Stan Ogden has been left £100 and a pot dog by Dora Entwistle, a grateful customer of his who has just passed away (March 1980)

• "Binmen black pub: Landlady insulted us claim": binmen are boycotting the Rovers Return Inn alleging that they have been insulted by landlady Annie Walker (November 1980)
• Councillor Alf Roberts who voted to ban an X-rated film from being shown in the borough has blond barmaid Bet Lynch living under his roof. (August 1982)
• Ken Barlow, leader of a protest movement against the opening of a disco in Rosamund Street, says local councillors are not in touch with residents' views (April 1983)
• Councillor Alf Roberts stopped the building of a new shopping plaza as a favour to friend Rita Fairclough over fears that she would be affected by the competition (July 1984)
• A second honeymoon competition has been won by Miss Mavis Riley whose own marriage didn't take place the year before when both she and the groom jilted each other (February 1985)
• The Norbury family are homeless after a fire which gutted their house (January 1987)
• Deirdre Barlow is standing against her old boss, Alf Roberts, in the forthcoming election (April 1987)
• Sacked Baldwin's Casuals workers have a sit-in on the site of the demolished factory where houses are now being built as a protest at their lack of redundancy pay. (October 1989)
• Alec and Bet Gilroy of the Rovers Return Inn have started a sit-in on their own premises to stop the pub being turned into an American-style bar by Newton & Ridley (June 1990)
• Deirdre Barlow, a candidate in the forthcoming election is profiled (April 1991)

• "Councillor's husband threatens opponent" Ken Barlow and Alf Roberts are photographed in an altercation in the Rovers Return over an election in which Mr Roberts and Mrs Barlow are opposing candidates. (May 1991)
• Traffic flows through Coronation Street have increased 500% since a new one-way system was introduced. (January 1993)
• Weatherfield resident Emily Bishop has won a victory against illegal clampers who have returned her £60 fine (it later transpired that the money was paid by her concerned lodger Percy Sugden to try and make her drop her complaint) (June 1993)
• "Angry OAPs Slam Shopkeeper Scrooge" Shop keeper Alf Roberts comes under fire from his customers for refusing to honour vouchers issued by his predecessor Brendan Scott (December 1993)
• Alf has assaulted a pensioner who is part of a group protesting over the withdrawn vouchers scandal (December 1993)
• Weatherfield Comprehensive is broken into and £3,000 worth of equipment stolen (February 1994)
• Twelve years of age is considered a good age for budgies (Percy Sugden disagrees, thinking his own bird is eighteen but Emily Bishop tells him he died six years before and she replaced him without telling him) (April 1994)
• Coronation Street resident Jack Duckworth - "The Birdman of Weatherfield" - has spent the night on the rooftops as a protest against his neighbour Curly Watts who has refused to allow him access to his loft observatory to retrieve one of his pigeons (May 1994)
• Weatherfield Councillor and former Mayor Alf Roberts has been awarded the OBE (June 1995)
• £7,000 is missing from the Mayor's charity fund. Alf Roberts is the chief suspect for the theft. (June 1995)
• Newton & Ridley are selling six of their pubs including the Rovers Return and the White Swan (October 1995)
• Spirited pensioner Phyllis Pearce beats off the flasher who has been terrorising the residents of Weatherfield, enabling him to be caught (November 1995)
• The Rovers Return Inn is reportedly being haunted by ex-patron Ivy Brennan (February 1996)
• Steve McDonald is sent to prison for two years and his ex-girlfriend Vicky Arden is given a twelve month suspended sentence for dealing in stolen goods and attempting to pervert the course of justice (May 1996)
• Three residents of Coronation Street are held hostage by an armed gunman (March 1997)
• "Millenium [sic] concert bowl gets go-ahead": The application to build an outdoor concert bowl on the Red Rec receives approval (January 1998)
• "Eco-Warriors Clash with Councillor Alf Roberts": Activists protesting against the plans for the concert bowl on the Red Rec occupy the garden of Councillor Alf Roberts (January 1998)
• The protesters against the Millennium concert bowl have now occupied trees about to be cut on the Red Rec site (January 1998)
• Rovers Return Inn landlord Alec Gilroy has been running a sleazy escort agency named Golden Years which is implicated in the recent death of Babs Fanshawe (March 1998)
• "Drink Driver Prangs P.C.": Les Battersby is banned from driving for eighteen months after hitting an unmarked police car and failing a breathalyser test (May 1998)
• "Council Candidate Lured Schoolgirl to Nights on Red Rec": Council election candidate Audrey Roberts accuses opposition candidate Geoffrey Nugent of sleeping with a teenage girl (June 1998)
• Coronation Street resident Desmond Barnes dies after being attacked in his own home (November 1998)
• Window cleaner Gary Mallett is hailed a hero after scaring off a burglar while on his rounds (June 1999)
• Brave barmaid Leanne Battersby single-handedly tackles raiders at the Rovers Return pub (January 2000)
• Weatherfield resident Ken Barlow asks readers for any information about the Cartwright murders that were infamous in Weatherfield over 100 years ago (March 2000)
• New columnist Ken Barlow in his Ken's Corner column slams "fat-cat" councillors for promoting themselves over the interests of their electors (July 2000)

• Ken Barlow writes of the contributions made to Weatherfield by former councillor Alf Roberts who died the previous year (July 2000)
• Local factory owner Mike Baldwin is running his business under sweat-shop conditions (August 2000)
• "Rugby star plays dirty in flats conversion deal": landlord Duggie Ferguson has been illegally evicting tenants from his properties (October 2000)
• "Supermarket Siege": Dean Sykes is shot dead by Police Sergeant Emma Taylor after a siege at Freshco supermarket. (October 2000)
• Landlord Duggie Ferguson says his employee Vinny Sorrell is to blame for the evictions which have taken place and he's since been fired (November 2000)
• "Local girl in sex attack!": Toyah Battersby is raped in the ginnel behind the Rovers (April 2001)
• Weatherfield Women in Cancer Scare: smear tests are having to be rerun after errors found with previous results (April 2001)

• "Ex bin man cleans up": council election candidate Curly Watts has cleared up leaflets littering the streets (May 2001)
• Curly Watts is profiled (May 2001)
• Teenagers, their computers and the dangers they face, by Ken Barlow (July 2001)
• Cafe owners Roy and Hayley Cropper on the run with abducted child (August 2001)
• Battling grannies overcome escaped convict (February 2002)
• "Have-a-go grannies attack reporter" (March 2002)
• Protests over council plans to close down creche (March 2002)
• Topless protest by local fashion designer Fiz Brown over non-payment for her designs (March 2002)
• Teenage mum Sarah Platt who needs creche for daughter Bethany tells her side of the story (March 2002)

• Gazette writer Hermione Fairfax is unfortunately ill and therefore the romance serial Slaves to their Passion has to be suspended (July 2002) ("Hermione" was also the author of the "Agony Aunt" advice column and two weeks later Ken Barlow would take over authorship of this section. "Ken's Corner" is dropped as a result)
• A "Layabout's Chair" has won first prize of £500 in a council-sponsored art exhibition, angering local residents at the waste of taxpayers' money (September 2003)
• Councillor Chris Melton has been accused of taking bribes (February 2003)
• The engagement is announced of Ashley Peacock and Claire Casey (June 2003) (This was a false announcement placed by Claire's jealous ex-boyfriend Gary Jenkinson)
• Local butcher's pie have given local residents upset tummies (November 2003)
• Newsagent Rita Sullivan is accused of assaulting local child Chesney Brown (February 2004)
• Ken Barlow reviews Nicole Farnsworth's dance school production of Grease (March 2004)
• Correction: the review of Grease in the previous night's edition mentioned pupil "Dozi Webster". The name should have read "Rozi Wobster". The paper is pleased to set the record straight (March 2004)
• The council are spending £45,000 on a fountain to be named after ex-Mayor Alf Roberts (June 2004)
• Weatherfield resident Emily Bishop is interviewed about her protest campaign against the Alf Roberts memorial fountain (July 2004)
• Despite protests from residents, the council intend to proceed with their plans for the memorial fountain (July 2004)
• McCarthy's, a restaurant that has just held its opening night, is reviewed (September 2004)
• The winner in the paper's "Glamorous Granny" competition is "41"-year old "landlady" Liz McDonald (September 2004)
• Knicker factory boss Danny Baldwin is left red-faced when his own face is plastered over an advertising cut-out of scantily clad girl he unveiled to promote his business (December 2004)
• "County kids take a dive": Football player Warren Baldwin and his girlfriend Candice Stowe collapsed on the floor drunk at the club's annual Christmas party. (December 2004)
• Hairdresser Candice Stowe is claiming she was fired from Audrey's hair salon on Coronation Street because she had ambitions to better herself: "Candice, girlfriend of County's golden boy Warren Baldwin, said 'All I want to do is tell people about the weather so they can decide what to wear.' Candice's boss, Audrey Roberts, 67, fired the crimper because of her ambitions." (April 2005)
• Candice Stowe is profiled in the paper (together with a scantily-clad picture of the wannabe celebrity) (April 2005)
• "Right Roy-al Ingenuity": Cafe owner Roy Cropper has the patent for a dynamo-type device that connects the door of his establishment and an automatic cutlery dispensing machine (July 2005)
• Local mother Sally Webster has complained about the head of Weatherfield High, Mr Lewis, and his refusal of a place at his school for her daughter but he has dismissed her as a "deluded snob" (September 2005)
• "Cockerel Runs Scared?" The Scarsdale Fox issues a challenge to his fiercest rival, Bernard the Weatherfield County cockerel. (September 2005)
• A chance to win a white wedding package in a special competition entitled "Surprise the Bride" (January 2006)
• Competition entrants Tyrone Dobbs and Maria Sutherland are interviewed (February 2006)
• "Dobbs Dumps Dream Girl!": Competition entrant Maria Sutherland has been dumped by her fiancé, Tyrone Dobbs (February 2006)
• "OAP killed in hit and run" (June 2006)
• "Killer Cabs": A damning article about Street Cars following the arrest of taxi driver Ronnie Clayton, involved in the hit-and-run (June 2006)
• Wilf Morton's entry appears in the obituary column (June 2007)
• "Can Anyone Help Us Identify This Woman": appeal for help for woman suspected of arson (June 2007)
• Valandro's restaurant has burnt down (April 2008)
• "My weeks of hell" Rosie Webster tells all about her kidnap ordeal at the hands of John Stape (January 2009)
• Customers at the Rovers Return Inn have raised £500 for Weatherfield General (June 2009)
• Local resident Ken Barlow leads the opposition to a bar being opened by his own son, Peter (December 2009)
• Betty Williams, aged 90 today, is Weatherfield's oldest barmaid (February 2010)
• Despite investigating the story of the innocence of Gail McIntyre, charged with murdering husband Joe, the paper is unable to print anything in order that they don't prejudice the trial (May 2010)
• The opening night of The Joinery is attended by columnist Trish Brooks-Benson (November 2010)
• John Stape, wanted in connection with the deaths of Colin Fishwick and Charlotte Hoyle, has evaded police after turning up at Weatherfield General (June 2011)
• The paper is running a "Search for a Star" competition (July 2011)
• Nick's Bistro is reviewed by the paper's restaurant critic (August 2011)
• "Kidnap made me feel sexy": Rosie Webster is interviewed about her kidnap ordeal at the hands of John Stape and reveals some of her intimate family secrets (November 2011)
• "Jail for Charity Scamming Duo" Two people, Rob and Janet White, who ran a scam with the Roof & Refuge soup kitchen have been jailed, even though the refuge helped Weatherfield residents such as Dennis Tanner who is profiled (November 2011)
• The paper runs adverts for a road safety campaign with pictures of a resident Rosie Webster in a fluorescent yellow tabard (January 2012)
• "Randy Road Safety Model" causes a near pile-up (in truth, Rosie Webster and Jason Grimshaw had a slight car accident (February 2012)
• Nick's Bistro receives its second review from the paper's restaurant critic (March 2012)
• An arrest has been made for the murder of Frank Foster (March 2012)
• Fracas at Nick's bistro as VIPs eat chilli laced with Tabasco sauce and a fight breaks out between the proprietor and his brother (May 2012)
• Resident Lewis Archer has gone missing in France (October 2012)
• "Landlady stripped of prestigious award": Stella Price, landlady of the Rovers Return, has been disqualified from winning the Lancashire Leisure magazine's "Pub of the Year" award after it was proven that her mother forged positive customer comment cards. (November 2012)
• Firefighter Paul Kershaw saves young boy from house inferno in Thornton Street (June 2013)
• Nick's Bistro raided for drugs by police as it runs a student's night (July 2013)
• "Fire Fighter in Brawl Shame": Fireman Paul Kershaw charged with a public order offence for fighting in the street with Lloyd Mullaney (August 2013)
• Grab-bag thief beaten off: resident Beth Tinker saves pensioner Maureen Rothwell's bingo winnings from a sneak thief (March 2014)
• Protest at closure of Weatherfield Community Library (August 2014)
• Neil Beckett ups his nonsense campaign against his wife Andrea and Lloyd Mullaney when he puts an announcement in the newspaper on his and Andrea's wedding anniversary (September 2014)

• "No room at the inn for gay vicar & boyfriend?": Billy Mayhew and Sean Tully asked to leave Peak District pub by homophobic landlord (May 2015)
• "Re-Installed Memorial": Norris Cole (falsely) hails himself as being instrumental in the replacement of Maddie Heath's memorial mural to garner more support when he puts himself forward to stand as a councillor in the upcoming Weatherfield by-election (March 2016)
• "Freshcos in local jobs boost": The residents are divided as the new superstore development threatens to jeopardise local businesses (April 2016)
• "From Zero to Hero": Hero resident Jenny Bradley after the unbelievable events that took place in Blackpool (May 2016)
• "Local woman murdered in the Street": Kylie Platt is fatally stabbed by Clayton Hibbs (July 2016)
• "No go bistro! Local eatery at centre of stabbing investigation": Chesney Brown is stabbed in Nick's Bistro by Robert Preston's "friend" Rich Collis (July 2017)
• "Two brothers assaulted on New Years Day": Mechanic Luke Britton fights with Dale and Justin Parker having been subjected to their racial abuse (January 2018)
• "Castle burns down": The 13th century Bridgehaven Castle where Steve McDonald and Tracy Barlow were due to remarry is gutted by fire, a few weeks prior to their wedding date (September 2018)
• "Known drug dealer found dead in canal": The body of paroled drug dealer Joey Buchanan is found in East Weatherfield Canal, prompting speculation that Ronan Truman killed him in the belief that Joey had supplied his son Cormac with drugs which caused a fatal overdose (October 2018)
• "Suspected loan shark arrested": Police have arrested loan shark Rick Neelan following a long-running investigation (June 2019)
• "Knocked up and locked up": A heavily-pregnant Gemma Winter becomes a social media sensation and also makes the newspaper's main page after becoming trapped in the entrance turnstile at the grounds of Weatherfield County FC (October 2019)
• "Brightwell Beatings": A couple are found unconscious in a squat on the Brightwell Estate. The news led Carla Connor to assume that Peter Barlow was responsible for beating up unscrupulous couple Jordan and Chelsey (June 2020)
• "Brave boy buys brother more time": Space-fan Sam Blakeman sells homemade rockets on a stall in Victoria Gardens, raising £207 towards Oliver Battersby's appeal (October 2020)
• "Police search in local woods": An official search of Beacon Woods gets underway complete with a cadaver dog, following an anonymous Crimestoppers tip-off from Sarah Barlow who gave information about a body being buried there. The news also piqued the interest of Bernie Winter who, at the suggestion of receiving a reward, went to the station to give a statement about the watch she'd found at the same location in the summer (December 2020)

List of newspaper contributors and staff

• John Meakin (1966 - 1970)
• Mr Foley (1967), editor
• Reporter (1970)
• Photographer (1971)
• Clive Shawcross (1973)
• Eddie Royle (1974 - 1976)
• Bill Mountford (1978)
• Les Carter (1980)
• Sandy Lester (1980)
• Tony Watkins (1980/2)
• Frank (1982)
• Sally Waterman (1985)
• Susie Croft (1987)
• Eric Harvey (1987)
• Photographer (1989)
• Ted Lucas, editor of the main paper (1990)
• Ken Barlow (1990)
• Jeff Richmond, editor of the free sheet (1990)
• Wendy Crozier (1990)
• Reporter (1990)
• Photographer (1990)
• Pete Waring (1991)
• Jeff Longton (1991)
• Rosie Nettles (1993)
• Nick Hinchcliffe (1993)
• Mark Travis (1993)
• Reporter (1994)
• Steve Hill (1995)
• Charlie Figgiss (1996)
• Reporter (1997)
• Harry Benson (1998 - 2001)
• Malcolm Bradford (1998)
• Richard Horner (1999)
• Reporter (2000)
• Jo Simpson (2001)
• Mick Crompton (2001)
• Ian Thompson (2001)
• Craig Rowe (2002)
• Sandy George, editor (2002)
• Hermione Fairfax, aka Doris Slack, romance serial writer (2002)
• Matt Broughall (2002)
• Nicola Stratton (2003)
• Phil Maguire (2004)
• Nigel (2006)
• Journalist (2006)
• Hannah Steele (2008)
• Alan (2009)
• Reporter (2009)
• Reporter (2010)
• Dan Lees (2010)
• Trish Brooks-Benson (2010)
• Greg, restaurant critic (2011 - 2012)
• Roger (2012)
• Will Reade (2013)
• Naila Badal (2013, 2015, 2017)
• Samira Choudrey (2014)
• Matthew (2016)
• Rachel (2017)
• Photographer (2017)
• Cindy Watson (2017)
• Daniel Osbourne (2017)
• Miriam Gaynor (2019)

Note: In July 1976 the paper refused to employ Ernest Bishop on its staff as he was not a member of the National Union of Journalists.

Gallery

See also

• Weatherfield Recorder
• Weatherfield Advertiser

Notes

• The newspaper did not make its first appearance in the programme but instead in the TV Times issue of 13th to 19th August 1966 (and the following week's issue) in a mock-up of a newspaper report on the council election storyline when Annie Walker and Len Fairclough were opposing candidates. The paper first appeared in the programme later in the year and TV Times trumpeted the fact they had an invented the title in their issue of 19th to 25th November.