Shirley Armitage
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5 September 1983
12 April 1989
| Shirley Armitage | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coronation Street character | |||||||||||||||
| Portrayed by | Lisa Lewis | ||||||||||||||
| Duration | 1983–1989 | ||||||||||||||
| First appearance | Episode 2340 5 September 1983 | ||||||||||||||
| Last appearance | Episode 2926 12 April 1989 | ||||||||||||||
| Introduced by | Bill Podmore | ||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
Shirley Armitage is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street. Played by Lisa Lewis, the character appeared for a period of five years between 1983 and 1989. Shirley became the programme's first regular black character. Shirley Armitage was a machinist at Baldwin's Casuals. From 1988 to 1989, she lived with Curly Watts (Kevin Kennedy) in the shop flat but left the area when they split up. The character was met with a mixed reception from viewers due to her mixed-race relationship with Curly.
Shirley was Coronation Street's first regular black character; a black family would not be introduced on the soap until 2019, with the arrival of the Bailey family.[1][2] After 18 months in the role, Lewis expressed her displeasure at the way she was used, explaining "They seem to just bring me in whenever they want me to say a few lines, or be seen in the factory. Let's face it, I am the token black character."[3] Three years later, Lewis said she was proud to be on the show, as it had helped her have both a family and a job as an actress.[4] Lewis also said that "[Shirley's] such a nice, versatile character" and was not afraid of being typecast due to this. She also understood that Shirley was "unlikely to develop into a bigger part".[5]
In March 1988, Ken Irwin of the Daily Mirror reported that a new romance would be developed between Shirley and Curly Watts (Kevin Kennedy) after they begin sharing a flat.[6] Both Lewis and Kennedy expected some criticism of the relationship, but Irwin stated that scriptwriters were "quite determined" to build up the romance.[6] The storyline begins with Shirley and Curly competing for the flat above the corner shop, before "they compromise and shock a few people" by agreeing to share it.[6] Their friendship then develops into "a torrid affair".[6] The couple's relationship is gossiped about in the local pub, as the regulars note that Curly "has never been a ladies' man", while he admits that the romance is his first.[4] Lewis was "delighted" at the way the writers had developed the romance between the couple and revealed that she and Kennedy had received letters congratulating them on it.[4] She also enjoyed working with Kennedy on the storyline, as they had always been friends.[4] John Millar of the Daily Record believed that the relationship could establish Lewis as one of the serial's "new breed of soap stars", following years on the fringes as a factory girl.[4] With the introduction of the show's new "brat pack", featuring young actors, Shirley also becomes more involved in storylines.[4]
A scene in which Shirley wears a negligee and seduces Curly was branded "tender and comic" by Neil Clements of the Daily Express, but Lewis did not want to read her fan mail after it aired.[7] Lewis told Clements: "She is black and he is white and I knew that certain people would never see them as two people who loved each other – they would only see it as black and white in bed."[7] Lewis's co-star Bill Tarmey, who played Jack Duckworth, volunteered to read the letters, something he had previously done when she became upset by other fan mail, but to Lewis's surprise the letters "turned out to be lovely."[7] Lewis recalled that it was hard for her to keep a straight face as they filmed the bedroom scene, as she was wearing the negligee and Kennedy was in pyjamas buttoned up to the collar. She said it was funny, but it went "beautifully well" as they managed to get some tenderness into it, which she hoped would make viewers feel for both characters.[7] Lewis also told Clements that the issues raised by Curly and Shirley's relationship were not just invented by scriptwriters. She would often speak up if she thought a scene or plot was "going the wrong way".[7] She used the example of Curly's parents ignoring her character where she stepped in and explained what she would have done in a similar situation.[7]
