Christine Appleby

Christine Appleby
Coronation Street character
Portrayed by	Christine Hargreaves
Duration	1960–1963
First appearance	Episode 2 14 December 1960
Last appearance	Episode 267 3 July 1963
Classification	Former; regular
Created by	Tony Warren
Introduced by	Stuart Latham (1960) H.V. Kershaw (1962)
Book appearances	Coronation Street: The Complete Saga
In-universe information Occupation Machinist Father George Hardman Mother May Hardman Husband Colin Appleby (1962) Grandfathers Frank Mason Uncles Edwin Mason Aunts Netta Mason Madge Mason Ada First cousins Reggie Mason Joan

Christine Appleby (formerly Hardman) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street. She was portrayed by Christine Hargreaves between 1960 and 1963.

Casting

Christine Hargreaves, a 21-year-old Salford-born actress, was one of the first actors to read for Tony Warren's new script 'Florizel Street' (later renamed to Coronation Street). Hargreaves played the character in the dry runs, before the show was even commissioned for broadcast, alongside Pat Phoenix (Elsie Tanner) and Doris Speed (Annie Walker), among others.

Storylines

Backstory

Christine Hardman was born at No. 13 Coronation Street, Weatherfield in 1939. The Hardman family had lived at No. 13 since 1927. Christine attended Bessie Street School, where she was close friends with Ken Barlow (William Roache). Her father, George Hardman, was a bank clerk, but, by 1953, he had saved up enough money to buy a grocery shop and a detached house in Oakhill. In 1955, her father died from a heart attack, and Christine and her mother May (Joan Heath) had to sell the house and grocery shop, and move back to their former home on Coronation Street. Christine coped with the move better than her mother, who was too ashamed to face the neighbours. She spent the next few years looking after her mother, who constantly dwelled on the past and eventually suffered a breakdown.

On-screen

In 1960, Christine got a job as a machinist at Elliston's Raincoat Factory. The gossip on the street and her mothers declining health weighed heavily on her mind. May died from a brain tumour at the end of 1960. Her mothers death was a shock for Christine, who now had to manage the house and money on her own. The neighbours—especially Esther Hayes (Daphne Oxenford)—helped her. One of these neighbours was the plumber Joe Makinson (Brian Rawlinson), who did her plumbing for free. Joe also asked her out on a date. Christine, worried that he might be taking advantage of her, agreed to go, and a relationship soon developed. Joe proposed after a short time, however, she dumped him as she did not think that they were compatible.

In 1961, Christine unexpectedly bumped into Ken at Weatherfield train station. He intended to move to London to get away from the expectations of his family in the wake of the death of his first wife, Ida Barlow (Noel Dyson). She convinced him to stay.

Despite taking control of her life and coping with everything, Christine was unhappy. She disliked the repetitive and dull work at Elliston's, and, in 1962, began wondering how people could find happiness living on Coronation Street. That June, she climbed onto the roof of the factory, intending to jump off, but, she was talked down by Ken, who reminded her how she had stopped him from making a big mistake. He, too, had sometimes wanted better things from life, but, told Christine that she should not give up. After the rooftop incident, she quit her job at the factory and tried to live life differently. An old flame of hers, Colin Appleby (Lawrence James), had read about her recent event in the newspaper, and met up with her. She seized the opportunity and decided to move out of Weatherfield once the relationship had started to get serious. The couple settled in Leeds and eloped two weeks later, however, Colin was killed in a car crash that October. Christine returned to Coronation Street and took a job at Miami Modes with Elsie Tanner (Pat Phoenix) and Dot Greenhalgh (Joan Francis).

In 1963, Christine shocked residents when she went out with Ken's father, Frank Barlow (Frank Pemberton), because Frank was twice her age and she had previously been interested in Ken. Frank was enthusiastic about their relationship, and she went along with it, but, was still confused about what she wanted now that Colin was dead. Frank was always one step ahead, already thinking about marriage, which almost alienated him from his son. The news sent neighbourhood gossip into overdrive, and Elsie decided to spread the news that Christine had another boyfriend so that she and Frank would have peace. Frank popped the question, but she did not answer him right away. Before she decided, she met up with Joe Makinson again and could not decide whom to choose. She was going to reject Joe, but, he dumped her first, leading her to accept Frank's proposal. The gossip became so intense that Christine wrote a letter to the landlord of No. 11 Coronation Street, where she was living with Elsie, informing him that she was living there illegally. This resulted in her having to move out. She soon realised that she did not love Frank and only saw him as a possible means to leave the street for good. She decided to be honest with him and called off their engagement.

In June 1963, Christine was promoted at Miami Modes. She clashed with Elsie and Dot, who did not like the way she used her newfound authority. She was transferred, and after briefly sharing a flat with her old friend, Esther Hayes, she left Weatherfield for good in July 1963.

Off-screen

Christine sent a telegram to congratulate Elsie and Steve Tanner (Paul Maxwell) on their wedding day in 1967.

When Esther returned for the funeral of Valerie Barlow (Anne Reid) in 1971, she revealed that Christine was living in Southampton.

In 1973, Lucille Hewitt (Jennifer Moss) mentioned that Christine had since remarried and had children.