Former Coronation Street actress Tracy Shaw recently wowed fans of the soap after she showcased a glamorous transformation for a stage production of The Cat and The Canary.
Before the theatre, Tracy starred as hairdresser Maxine Peacock in the ITV soap from 1995-2003 and was married to the lovable Ashley, son of outspoken butcher Fred Elliot.
After seeing Tracy’s glamourous transformation nearly 20 years after she left the soap, many fans might be wondering what happened to the other members of the famous Coronation Street Peacock family.
Daily Star has taken a look at where some of the actors who played the Peacocks are now – from career u-turns to tragic deaths and emotional reunions.
Fred Elliot – John Savident
(Image: ITV)
John Savident is a Coronation Street legend, playing butcher Fred Elliot who was later revealed to be Ashley Peacock’s father.
After playing everyone’s favourite straight talking butcher for 11 years, John Savident announced that he was leaving the soap to spend more time with his family.
In real life, John is married to Rona Savident and the couple have two children together.
John’s character Fred Elliot was killed off a year after he announced that he was leaving the soap, with Fred dying from a heart attack while visiting neighbour Audrey.
(Image: Press Association)
Since then John has had roles in TV programmes including Above Suspicion and Hotel Babylon, and narrated a production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Manchester’s Bridgewater Hall.
He told the Manchester Evening News in 2012: “Now, in what I call the tea-time of my career, I’ve turned down quite a bit of work because I had a heart operation and a new hip. But working on this script for Shakespeare’s The Dream has been an absolute pleasure.”
It also appears that the actor has since retired from acting, with his last TV appearance credited as Rupert Popol in a 2012 episode of Holby City.
Ashley Peacock – Steven Arnold
(Image: Granada Television)
Steven Arnold rose to fame as butcher Ashley Peacock in Coronation Street, staying on the cobbles for 15 years between 1995-2010.
During his time on Coronation Street, he became a fan favourite, with viewers going through emotional moments with Ashley such as the death of first wife Maxine.
However, fans were also left devastated when Ashley died in the Coronation Street tram crash for the soap’s 50th anniversary.
(Image: What’s On)
Steven has since opened up about playing Ashley on ITV daytime talkshow Lorraine, saying that he still misses playing the character.
He said: “I do, he’ll always have a special place in my heart as I played him for such a long time.
“There’s elements that you miss but you can still put him in characters that you play here and there.”
Since leaving the soap, Steven has turned his attention to theatre, performing in a stage production of The Darling Buds of May and Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
He also showed off his impressive moves on the 2011 series of Dancing on Ice.
Fans were also delighted when he appeared on Loose Women and was reunited with Julia Haworth, who played second wife Claire Peacock.
The two stars got emotional talking about their final scenes together, with Julia saying: “Our final scene together… obviously the viewers had no idea what was to come but we did.
“But that scene was so hard to film, wasn’t it Stevie?”
Steve added: “It really was. We were basically saying goodbye to one another as we were doing it. That’s how it felt. I couldn’t have picked a better person to work with than Julia.”
Julia then emotionally replied: “Aw Stevie, I feel the same. You know that.”
Claire Peacock – Julia Haworth
(Image: ITV)
Julia Haworth starred as Ashley Peacock’s second wife Claire, who fell in love with the butcher after becoming a nanny for the family.
The star took a leave of absence from the show in 2008 to give birth to her first child with husband Jon Wormald, who she has been married to since 2006, but later returned to the soap.
Her and Jon have two children together.
Julia later left the soap in 2011, after on-screen husband Ashley was killed in a tram crash, but has not left our screens, appearing in TV programmes including Doctors, Call The Midwife and The Royals opposite Liz Hurley.
She also had a lead role in 2018’s The Bay as Becky Thrower.
(Image: Getty Images)
Although she still keeps a foot in the acting world, Julia has also turned her hand to teaching at Bolton College, making a career u-turn by studying for a teaching qualification.
She told This is Lancashire: “As an actor still working professionally within the entertainment industry, the knowledge and skills I am teaching to the Performing Arts students here at Bolton College are 100 per cent up to date, accurate and relevant.
“This is imperative in a rapidly changing industry and in helping the learners with their future employability.”
Maxine Peacock – Tracy Shaw
(Image: Granada Television)
Tracy Shaw arrived on Coronation Street in 1995 as hairdresser Maxine Peacock, who later married Ashley.
However, Ashley was heartbroken when Maxine was killed in 2003 by serial killer Richard Hillman.
Tracy took the decision to leave Coronation Street following the birth of her children with ex-husband Robert Ashworth, who she was married to from 2001-2004.
(Image: Press Association)
She told ITV daytime talkshow Loose Women: “It was a huge pressure just because of the viewing figures [of Coronation street].
“When I had Louie, I used to take him out for a walk with Angela [Griffin] with the pushchairs and it just didn’t feel right to have photographers take pictures of the boys and they haven’t got a choice in this.
“I took some time out just because it all got a little bit too much for me and I needed to respect that my kids were going to be brought up in the world I was living in and I felt really uncomfortable about that.”
Since leaving the cobbles, Tracy has continued to act in TV series such as Grease Monkeys, Doctors and Casualty.
Fans also took to social media recently to comment on the star’s glamorous transformation, which was worlds away from her Coronation Street character.
Tracy was dressed in a blue velvet fascinator and matching blue and purple dress, with bright red lipstick, for a performance of theatre production The Cat and The Canary, and shared the photo of her costume on Instagram.
In the post she said: “Three lateral tests a week for Covid we’ve been able to open many theatres, and hopefully entertained our audiences with an amazing cast!
“I feel very emotional to say goodbye today to a wonderful part…”
Beryl Peacock – Anny Tobin
Anny Tobin starred as Ashley Peacock’s adopted mother in Coronation Street, who was also his biological aunty and Fred Elliot’s sister.
The actress already had a long acting career dating back to the eighties, starring in theatre productions and TV series including Angels, Casualty, Grafters and The Bill.
She also had a rival soap role in Channel 4’s Brookside as Diane Ellison in 1989.
After leaving Coronation Street in 2006, she had multiple roles in BBC TV series Doctors and played an Old Lady in the comedy series Phoneshop.
Outside of acting, Anny was also married to husband Peter Harding.
However, the actress sadly died on July 10 2013 at her home in Wandsworth, London, aged 68.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
