List of Coronation Street Characters (1961) - Len Fairclough

Leonard Franklin "Len" Fairclough was played by Peter Adamson.

Len was from Liverpool, born on 5 November 1924. His parents were killed in the Blitz, after which Len joined the Merchant Navy. After de-mob, he came to Weatherfield, where he married Nellie and had a son Stanley (played by Peter Noone, later of the British pop group Herman's Hermits). The marriage was not a happy one and on 22 November 1963, Nellie told him she wanted a divorce. Nellie later died of cancer and Stanley never forgave his father for how he had treated her — they were never reconciled.

A builder by profession — he owned his own yard — he also spent many years as an Independent councillor for Weatherfield. Len's idea of a real woman was his next door neighbour, Elsie Tanner: attractive, sexy, with a ribald sense of humour. However she was more of a friend than a lover, and when Len suggested that their relationship should go to the next level, Elsie always refused, not wanting to spoil the special bond they had. When Elsie re-married, to a handsome G.I., Master Sergeant Steve Tanner, Len was consumed with jealousy, to such an extent that when Steve was found dead in suspicious circumstances, Len was accused of murdering him.

Len had reconciled himself to being on his own for the rest of his life — and then he met Rita Bates, who earned her living as a cabaret singer in the rather downmarket Gatsby Club. Although she claimed she was married to Harry Bates, they were in fact only a common-law couple; her name was actually Rita Littlewood. Rita had a lot in common with Elsie. She was feisty, independent and was never afraid to stand up to Len, and this was what he wanted in a woman. Elsie was initially very cool towards Rita, but they became firm friends later. After a rocky courtship, Len and Rita married and honeymooned in Tenerife, where Rita had a secured herself a singing job.

After a while, Rita started to feel frustrated by Len and his lack of motivation. Feeling he was taking her for granted, Rita left him, upon which Len went to pieces. Once she had agreed to return, the couple attempted to adopt a child, but were told they were too old. Instead, they fostered, first a boy called John, then, on a more long-term basis, Sharon Gaskell. Len was amused that she preferred woodwork to needlework and that she liked playing football — this caused an instant bond between them, much to Rita's delight. Sharon became the Faircloughs' surrogate daughter, and Len was proud of her. When he came home unexpectedly one night and found a boy in the house trying to entice Sharon upstairs, he threatened to hit him. Rita was angry, believing that Len had mishandled the situation, but he was able to say from the heart that he had only done it because he cared about Sharon. Eventually, Sharon moved away, after getting a job as a kennel maid in Sheffield. Life seemed to be going well for the Faircloughs; they had two businesses, Len's building Yard and The Kabin, a newsagents. However, an off-screen scandal involving the actor who played Len resulted in a decision by the producers to discontinue the character. For several months Len did not appear, his absence explained by a storyline that he was working long hours on a contract away from home.

Rita's world came crashing down when Len fell asleep at the wheel of his van and collided with a motorway bridge. He was killed instantly. Rita was devastated, but was comforted when Sharon came back from Sheffield to attend the funeral. Rita was later to discover, however, that Len had been having an affair with a woman in Ashton. As a result, her memories of Len remained bitter-sweet. When Rita subsequently began a relationship with Alan Bradley, Alan stole evidence of Len's identity and pretended to be him in order to obtain a loan to support his own business. It was Rita's discovery of the deception that caused her violent final break-up with Alan.