Solo Careers
Most of the sisters have continued to work in show business, pursuing careers in acting, musical theatre, pantomime and touring. As an actress, Bernie had prominent TV roles in Brookside and The Bill, and has toured in several stage shows, including the adaptation of the movie Flashdance in 2008. Coleen has mostly worked as a television presenter, hosting This Morning briefly in 2001 and appearing regularly as a panellist on Loose Women since 2000.
Four of the sisters — Bernie, Denise, Linda, and Maureen — have played the role of Mrs Johnstone in the musical Blood Brothers. Both Maureen and Bernie have performed in productions of the comedy Mum's The Word, and they toured together in the show in 2008.
Linda performed in the role of Maggie May at Blackpool's Central Pier for 10 years, clocking up more than 1,000 performances and toured with Prisoner Cell Block H - The Musical. Denise released one solo single on Pye in 1979 and two on Mercury in 1982. She has frequently performed a Judy Garland tribute show. Anne stopped performing and took up an office job, but has since resumed her singing career. In 2012 she released her debut solo album "Just One Voice".
The Nolans reunited as a five-piece (Anne, Bernie, Coleen, Linda and Maureen) for one-off performanes of "I'm in the Mood for Dancing" first for BBC One's All Time Greatest Party Songs, hosted by Tess Daly, which aired on 17 December 2005 and again on 9 August 2007 on Loose Women, but dismissed any immediate prospect of a full-scale reunion, a stance Anne echoed in 2008.
The girls' father Tommy died of liver cancer in 1998. Anne was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2000, as was Linda in 2006. As part of her treatment, Linda had a breast removed. Bernie was diagnosed with breast cancer in April 2010.
The Nolans' mother Maureen Nolan died in Blackpool aged 81 on 30 December 2007 after suffering from Alzheimer's disease. Anne Nolan released her autobiography Anne's Song on 27 March 2008. In the book, co-written with Richard Barber, Anne said she had been repeatedly sexually abused by her father, from the age of 11 until she was 15 or 16. In April 2009, Coleen said that her father was violent to her, Anne and their mother.
Read more about this topic: The Nolans
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