Jack Duckworth
| Jack Duckworth | |||||||||||||
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| Coronation Street character | |||||||||||||
| Portrayed by | Bill Tarmey | ||||||||||||
| Duration | 1979, 1981–2010 | ||||||||||||
| First appearance | Episode 1947 28 November 1979 |
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| Last appearance | Episode 7464 8 November 2010 |
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| Introduced by | Bill Podmore (1979, 1981) | ||||||||||||
| Spin-off appearances |
Viva Las Vegas! (1997) | ||||||||||||
| Classification | Former; regular | ||||||||||||
| Profile | |||||||||||||
| Occupation | Retired | ||||||||||||
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| Father | Harry Duckworth |
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| Mother | Maggie Duckworth |
| Brothers | Clifford Duckworth |
| Wife | Vera Burton (1957–2008) |
| Sons | Terry Duckworth |
| Grandsons |
Paul Clayton Tommy Duckworth Brad Armstrong |
John Harold "Jack" Duckworth was a long-standing fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street, a long-running serial drama about working class life in the fictional town of Weatherfield. He was played by actor Bill Tarmey. The character debuted onscreen during the episode airing on 28 November 1979. Jack was introduced by executive producer Bill Podmore.
More than 20 years after first appearing, Tarmey eventually cut down filming due to problems with his health and often contemplated leaving the series. In April 2010, it was announced that Tarmey would leave the series later that year. His last appearance was broadcast on 8 November 2010, with ITV also airing a tribute documentary for him. Having been in the show for 31 years, he was one of the longest-serving characters.
Jack's storylines have focused on his long-standing marriage to his wife Vera which has been complex and at times been described as "rocky". Other storylines include coping with his wayward son Terry and his hobby for pigeon keeping. In his final storyline he was portrayed as having incurable non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Jack has been characterised through his "joyless and gloomy" life in which he has a string of dead end jobs and his wife's death, but continued to pass witty remarks on life. Television critics have described Jack as a loveable rogue type character and have favoured his relationship with Vera. His exit storyline was fairly documented in the media, receiving positive reactions and many state he is fondly remembered for his love of pigeons.
Whilst Jack is working a fairground ride, the waltzer, he meets Vera, and they soon begin a relationship. When Vera announces that she is pregnant with his baby, Jack agrees to marry her. Even after discovering this is a false alarm, Jack still takes her hand in marriage. During a trip to the United States, Jack confesses to being two years younger than Vera is aware, as he had lied at their wedding, making out that he was older than he really was in an attempt to impress a young Vera. Since they had not been legally married, they make their marriage official by tying the knot in the famous Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas. A pregnant Vera gives birth to a son, whom they named Terry (later to be played by Nigel Pivaro).
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Wikipedia