Storylines
Fiz's first appearance came as a troubled sixteen year old fostered by Roy and Hayley Cropper. Fiz began dating Kirk Sutherland (Andrew Whyment), much to his sister Maria's annoyance. Fiz is reacquainted with her first boyfriend, John Stape (Graeme Hawley), who had started work at Weatherfield High School. Fiz leaves Kirk, declining his proposal of marriage and starts a full time relationship with John. Her mother, Cilla Brown (Wendi Peters), leaves the Street to live in Las Vegas, leaving Chesney with Kirk. When John begins an affair with student Rosie Webster (Helen Flanagan), Fiz thinks he is having an affair with Rosie's mother, Sally Webster (Sally Dynevor). However, the affair is revealed on Christmas Day 2007 when John inadvertently mixes up Fiz and Rosie's presents. When Fiz returns, she is shocked to learn what has happened but applies to be Chesney's guardian. Chesney and Schmeichel are allowed to return home after Fiz moves into No. 5. Initially, she clashes with Kirk's girlfriend, Julie Carp (Katy Cavanagh). While she is happy that Kirk has moved on, she is unhappy with Julie's attempts to be Chesney's carer, feeling that it is her job. After a few months, they become friends.
Fiz receives numerous unknown phone calls. She discovers that it is ex-boyfriend, John, seeking a reconciliation but she declines his requests. He takes a job with Street Cars in order to be close to her and buys Chesney a bike for his birthday. Fiz and John strike up a close friendship, and she soon agrees to give him another chance. However, Fiz ends things again after she finds out that he is planning to move them to his grandmother's house in the country. John continues to send Fiz cards and letters while he is on remand. John goes to court and Fiz attends. He sentenced to 2 years in prison. Soon after John's kidnapping of Rosie is revealed, Fiz gets bad news about Chesney. He and Kirk have gone to South Africa to see Cilla. Fiz's adventures are continued in Coronation Street: Out of Africa. Cilla tells Fiz that Chesney has been in an accident. When Fiz arrives, she was very upset at the sight of Chesney using a wheelchair. She is relieved, yet angry, when they tell her it is a scam to win a Sunshine Families competition with a £500,000 prize. Fiz later returns.
Fiz decides that she loves John and wants to marry him. She proposes to John by writing a message, so she is allowed inside the prison, after talking about him being on suicide watch. Fiz and John's meeting comes to an end and the prison officers have to physically pull John away. As he is dragged away, Fiz asks him if he will marry her or not and John instantly agrees. John sends Fiz his grandmother's engagement ring in the post, complete with a visiting order. She sees him and he places the engagement ring on her finger. Fiz and John marry on September 28, 2009. The wedding is held inside the prison chapel but Fiz can't go through with the ceremony. She breaks down in tears, revealing that every resident of Coronation Street is against them marrying and tells a stunned John that she can't marry him without Chesney’s support. John does his best to persuade Fiz to go ahead regardless but she won't, walking out and collapsing in tears outside the prison gates. Just as it seems Fiz’s big day is doomed, Chesney arrives with Roy and Hayley. He apologises to Fiz and he is there when Fiz and John marry in the prison chapel.
Fiz is shocked to hear of the letters that John has written to the Street residents, informing them that he will soon be released and asks for their backing to live there with Fiz. The street is split down the middle: for instance, the Croppers agree, but Eddie Windass (despite never having met John AND baked his and Fiz's wedding cake) is against it. When Sally learns of the letters, she is left fuming and angrily organises a protest meeting in the Rovers for that evening. At the meeting, Sally gives a speech against John, wanting residents to write back and refuse his request, which Dev Alahan completely backs. However, Roy fights John's corner, with Ken Barlow (William Roache) pointing out John is entitled to live wherever he wants and Graeme Proctor (Craig Gazey) outright supports him, to the disgust to Blanche Hunt (Maggie Jones). As Norris Cole expresses his neutralness, Fiz gives an impassionate speech about how John is sorry and wants to set things right, pointing out how Sally and Rosie have been compensated for John's actions. Fiz's speech is applauded by the majority of residents, much to the disgust of Sally and Dev. The residents all write back, with the overwhelming majority agreeing to let him return to Weatherfield. In mid-November, John is released.
Sally, furious that he has moved back to the street, paints the windows black that night. Fiz, furious, wants to phone the police - particularly after Sally admits what she has done in front of witnesses - but John refuses. He and Fiz spend the day scraping the paint off and accepts Graeme's help in repainting the upstairs of the house to match. Rosie doesn't seem to care that he is living across the street until, swindled out of her compensation by Luke Strong (Craig Kelly), tells John that she has decided to return to college and study to be a doctor. She asks him for £50,000 to fund this and is stunned when he refuses so she tries blackmailing him, claiming that he had grabbed her and locked her into Roy's Rolls, where he is now working. Sally and Kevin call the police and John is arrested but released pending further enquiries. That night in the pub, he challenges Rosie about her version of events and when unable to answer his questions, she reveals that she has lied. Furious, Kevin makes her apologise the next day and withdraw her statement to the police. Sally also apologises and asks them not to press charges. John agrees but Fiz is clearly annoyed. The Stapes and the Websters both agree to stay out of each others way.
John meets one of his ex-teacher colleagues, Colin Fishwick, in the café, who invites him and Fiz to his leaving party before he emigrates to Canada. While there, Colin makes it clear to John that he wants out of teaching. John thinks up a plan for him to start teaching again, by stealing Colin's identity as he has a clean CRB. Fiz is initially incredulous when John tells her about his plans but she then agrees to go along with his plan and both agree to keep the truth from Chesney. Fiz and John argue and Fiz later leaves for a holiday on her own. Fiz returns from her holiday and announces that she is 12 weeks pregnant with their first child. The couple make up and John promises to never lie to her again. Fiz goes into labour only six months in her pregnancy so is then sent to hospital and gives birth to a baby girl, whom she names Hope. Straight after her birth, Hope is then transferred straight into an incubator as she is three months premature. Due to her prematurity, her immune system is failing and is then diagnosed with an infection. Fiz is told that Hope will need a transfusion in order to fight the infection.
John has a breakdown following his involvement in three deaths, unknown to Fiz. Fiz is left alone at home with baby Hope who has now been allowed to leave the hospital. Joy Fishwick's solicitor tracks down "Colin" at Number 5. Fiz claims to be Mrs. Fishwick. The solicitor informs Fiz of Joy's death and that she handed her fortune to Colin. John returns home in March 2011 and things seem to look up, but John realises all the new things that Fiz has bought, which she explains was from money she received when the factory girls had a whip-round for her. In April 2011, John decides to stop taking his pills, despite Dr Carter's objection. Joy's solicitor turns up at Number 5, with Fiz having to pose as Mrs Fishwick again, Joy's house had been sold and the money was to be tranferred into Fiz's (i.e. Mrs Fishwicks) bank account. John is furious with Fiz for what she has done, thinking it was all over for him. John suffers another breakdown, locking himself in the bookies, after which he does a runner; Peter and Dr Carter suggest they call the police, but Fiz, knowing the potential imprisonment of both her and John decides to wait and see if he returns.
The Police arrive at Fiz's house to notify herself and Chesney that John had been caught on CCTV boarding a ferry at Holyhead. Eventually, Fiz confesses her part to the crime and so the Police arrest Fiz for the Murder of Colin Fishwick. At the Police station Fiz is interviewed for the Murder of Colin Fishwick. Fiz is taken into custody but is released and then attends Magistrates' Court. The incident was deemed too serious so was sent to Crown Court. Fiz is charged with 3 murders after her husband John fled the country to Ireland. Fiz has been remanded in custody and faces trial at Crown court. Fiz is denied bail and is sent straight to Prison to await trial.
Fiz struggles with life in prison, and struggles to cope without Hope with her. She is offered a place in the Mother and Baby unit, but refuses as she feels it is not a place to bring her baby up. She becomes even worse when she is forced to clean in the mother and baby unit, as seeing other mums with their babies upsets her and reminds her of her daughter. Fiz soon changes her mind and requests a place in the unit, but is forced to wait. Horrified when she finds her cellmate, Ginny, unconscious from a drug overdose, Fiz is shocked to discover that her friend Ruth had supplied the drugs. When Fiz plans to reveal Ruth's drug supply to the governor, but Ruth threatens to make her life a misery. Fiz eventually gets a place in the mother and baby unit, but is beaten up by Ruth and other girls when Ruth is removed from the unit for dealing drugs. Ruth and her friends continue to torment Fiz. After Ruth trashed her room, Fiz attacked her telling her to keep away from her and her baby.
Fiz's trial begins and she gives her evidence, before the jury leave to consider their verdicts. Fiz is found not guilty of the murders of Joy Fishwick and Charlotte Hoyle, but the jury find her guilty of Colin Fishwick's murder. Fiz later learns John has returned, but is in a critical condition in hospital. Fiz goes to the hospital and tells John she forgives him. John gives the police his statement and he then dies from his injuries.
Unfortunately, it was too late. Fiz was sentenced to life imprisonment, with a minimum term of 15 years. Fiz and Chesney were devastated. Fiz asked Chesney to organise John's funeral. He initially refuses, but after Katy convinces him, he agrees. Chesney later receives a phonecall from Fiz saying that she has been granted bail before her review.
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