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No7 closeup

Front door of No.7 in 2013

7 Coronation Street is the middle house in Coronation Street and is located between No.5 and No.9.

No.7 is unique in the street as the original Edwardian house collapsed in 1965. Mr Wormold, the property's owner, was faced with a hefty repair bill when a faulty beam caused the front wall to give way. Rather than rebuild it, he had the remainder bricked up. It wasn't until Len Fairclough purchased the property in 1981 that the house was restored and made habitable.

The current owner is Dev Alahan, proprieter of the Coronation Street Corner Shop and Prima Doner in Victoria Street. Dev bought the house in 2010 off Maria Connor after reconciling with his ex-wife Sunita. Remaining in residence after Sunita's death in the Rovers fire of 2013, Dev has raised their twin children Aadi and Asha in adulthood there.

Previous residents include Len and Rita Fairclough, Jenny and Alan Bradley, Angie Freeman, Curly and Raquel Watts, Samantha Failsworth, Emma Watts, Danny, Frankie, Jamie and Warren Baldwin, and Liam and Maria Connor. The old No.7 was the home of Harry, Concepta and Lucille Hewitt but was uninhabited at the time of its collapse.

History[]

Construction[]

2014 set Coro 7

House exterior in 2019

7 Coronation Street was built along with the other houses in the row, including the Corner Shop and the Rovers Return, between 1900 and 1902. When built, all houses had the same layout (although adjacent houses were mirror images of each other): a front parlour, a separate hallway and staircase, a kitchen and scullery on the ground floor, three bedrooms upstairs, and an outside toilet and coal hole in the back yard.

The house was completed on 9th August 1902 and the first family to move in was the Popplewells.

Alterations: The original house[]

After the Popplewells came the Hewitts, who inhabited No.7 until 1964. Thomas and Mary Hewitt lost their jobs at Hardcastle's Mill when it closed in 1931 and after six months on the dole, Thomas sold all of their possessions except for their beds and a table in order to apply for assistance under the Means Test.

When Concepta Riley married Harry Hewitt and moved into No.7, she insisted on changes, as the decor and furniture had remained the same since before Harry's first wife passed away. Harry gave in and purchased a new suite for the front bedroom and decorated the house in preparation for the birth of their son Christopher in 1962.

Collapse and rebuilding[]

No7 collapsed

1965: A faulty beam causes No.7 to collapse

In 1965, the neighbours heard a crash coming from No.7 and rushed out of their homes to investigate. By this time, the house had been empty for a year and had been ignored by the landlord, Mr Wormold. As a result, a faulty beam over the bay window had gone unchecked, and a slight weakness in the foundation caused the house to move a fraction. When the neighbours arrived at the scene, they discovered that the front wall of the house had collapsed, covering the front room and hallway with bricks and dust. The house was checked over by a Surveyor, who recommended that Wormold have the house shored up to support the roof and floors, preventing further movement, and allayed the neighbours' fears that the rest of the row was at risk from collapse. Wormold hired Len Fairclough and Jerry Booth to do the job right away, but he rejected their quote of nearly £300 for a new wall, window frames and a concrete foundation, and decided to cut his losses and have the entire front section of the house demolished instead. Len and Jerry carried out the work and within weeks, all that remained of the front section of No.7 was a plastered brick wall.

Len kept a vested interest in No.7. In 1967 he used his council connections to have a bench put in the space. Fourteen years later, Len bought the land and set about re-building the house. The new house was mostly the same as the old house in its basic layout, retaining the front/back downstairs rooms and bedrooms, with French doors separating the two downstairs rooms, but had modern amenities including central heating. In May 1982, it was checked over by Building Inspector Frank Hurst, who passed the house except for the joists and cavities, which Len was made to replace. With Sharon Gaskell's help, he completed the new No.7 a month later. Len was so taken with the house that he was easily persuaded by Rita that they shouldn't sell it, as initially planned, but that they should live there themselves.

Alterations: The rebuilt house[]

Episode4745a

2000: Curly and Raquel in the observatory

Ten years later, Curly Watts bought No.7. Curly was interested in astronomy and had owned a telescope. With his own house, Curly could indulge himself and paid Neil Mitchell to carry out a loft conversion, turning the attic into an observatory. A skylight was fitted into the roof, the window was made able to open, and Curly bought a new telescope for the new room. His project disappointed his fiancée, Kimberley Taylor, who had assumed that he was installing a third bedroom. Kimberley thought the telescope a waste of money and dumped Curly for not putting their wedding plans first.

Curly also put in new windows, and decorated the back room in 1994 with Raquel Wolstenhulme's help.

Though renting No.7 from Blanche Hunt, Danny and Frankie Baldwin and family made a significant change to the downstairs rooms. The French doors were removed, the space in the old front room was turned into a dining room, and both rooms were re-decorated.

The above changes were not mentioned within the narrative of the programme.

Further decorations to the downstairs rooms were carried out in 2008 and 2010.

List of owners and residents[]

Owners[]

Episode 2210

1982: Len Fairclough puts the finishing touches on the rebuilt No.7

  • 1981-1983 - Len Fairclough
    Len bought the land in 1981 and built a new house in the space, planning to sell both it and No.9 and use the money for a deposit on a house in the country, but Rita made him see that the house was his labour of love and nobody would appreciate it as much as them.
  • 1983-1992 - Rita Fairclough
    Rita inherited the house after Len's death, but Len's name remained on the deeds. This enabled Alan Bradley, posing as Len in 1988, to remortgage the house with Castlewell Building Society, without Rita's knowledge.
  • 1992-2003 - Curly Watts
    Curly had been a tenant at No.7 along with Angie Freeman. Rita - now living at Flat 10a above The Kabin - decided to sell up and retire to Florida with Ted Sullivan and offered Curly first refusal. Ultimately, Rita and Ted stayed in Weatherfield but she went ahead with the deal anyway, and sold No.7 to Curly for £28,000.
  • 2003-2005 - Blanche Hunt
    Blanche Hunt, of No.1, bought No.7 as a home for her pregnant granddaughter Tracy Barlow and her daughter on condition that Tracy did not have a termination, but Tracy left Weatherfield to visit stepbrother Peter Barlow in Portsmouth. In 2005, Blanche sold the house to pay for a hip operation in Poland as the NHS waiting list was too long.
  • 2005-2007 - Beaumont Estates
    Steve McDonald recommended this buyer to Blanche when she sought a quick sale. After two years, they put the house on the market and sold to Liam Connor.
  • 2007-2008 - Liam Connor
    Liam owned No.7 until his death in a hit-and-run. The house then passed to his wife, Maria.
  • 2008-2010 - Maria Connor
    Maria sold up in 2010 and moved into the salon flat.
  • 2010 to present - Dev Alahan
    Dev was persuaded to buy No.7 by Sunita after their reconciliation, as she preferred to live in Coronation Street rather than their house in the suburbs.

Residents[]

  • 1902-1904 - Ernest Popplewell
    Father of Harry. Ernest lived with the Popplewells until 1904, when he died of a heart attack during a game of dominoes in the Rovers.
  • 1902-1918 - Harry Popplewell
    Warehouse storeman, husband of Clara and father to Emily and Herbert. Harry lied about his age to enlist during the First World War but drowned after falling overboard while crossing the channel on his way home.
  • 1902-1918 - Clara Popplewell
    Wife of Harry. Clara was a spinner at Hardcastle's Mill. After Harry's death, she left No.7 to live with her parents at Back Marriot Street.
  • 1902-1915 - Emily Popplewell
    Daughter of Harry and Clara. Emily trained as a nurse and helped the war effort by serving in a field hospital. There, she married and moved to a village near the Italian border.
  • 1902-1918 - Herbert Popplewell
    Son of Harry and Clara. Herbert was the only member of the family to return home from the war but was rendered deaf from the gunfire blasts. He left No.7 with his mother in 1918.
  • 1919-1947 - Thomas Hewitt
    Formerly of 3 Coronation Street, Thomas moved into No.7 shortly after marrying Mary Makepiece. They had three children together. During the Depression, Thomas lost his job at Hardcastle's Mill and was sent to Strangeways for five months for stealing coats from Elliston's Raincoat Factory. In 1947, he died from a heart attack.
  • 1919-1936 - Mary Hewitt
    Wife of Thomas. Mary grew up at 11 Coronation Street. She lost her job at Elliston's factory when Thomas was caught stealing raincoats, and became resentful. In 1936, she had a psychotic episode in which she attacked her son Harry with a carving knife when he returned home drunk late one night. Mary was committed to a mental hospital, where she died not long afterwards.
  • 1920-1940, 1961 - Alice Hewitt
    Daughter of Thomas and Mary. In 1939, her wedding to Sam Burgess was interrupted by Neville Chamberlain's declaration of war against Germany. Sam signed up immediately and was killed at Dunkirk in 1940. Alice then left Weatherfield and moved to Stockport. Twenty-one years later, after finishing her duties as housekeeper for former employer, John Howarth, Alice returned to No.7 to help her brother Harry with his daughter Lucille, but she quickly moved on as she and Lucille didn't get along.
Harryhewitt main

Harry Hewitt lived at No.7 for 43 years, longer than any other person

  • 1921-1964 - Harry Hewitt
    Eldest son of Thomas and Mary. Harry worked as a clippie on the buses and in 1960 he was promoted to inspector. In 1959, his wife Lizzie was hit by a bus and killed. Harry - who spent most evening propping up the Rovers bar - felt that their daughter Lucille would be better placed in an orphanage until he found another mother for her, which he did in 1961 when he married barmaid Concepta Riley. Three years later, Harry arranged to take over Sean Riley's garage and the Hewitts, sans Lucille who moved in with Jack and Annie Walker at the Rovers, moved to Ireland.
  • 1922-1923 - Frances Hewitt
    Youngest son of Thomas and Mary. Frances died from scarlet fever in 1923.
  • 1948-1959 - Lizzie Hewitt
    Wife of Harry and mother of Lucille. A former clippie on the buses, Lizzie married Harry in 1948 and worked as a barmaid at the Rovers part-time after Lucille was born. She was killed in 1959 when a bus skidded into her.
  • 1949-1964 - Lucille Hewitt
    Daughter of Harry and Lizzie. In 1964, Lucille chose to remain in Weatherfield and finish her schooling instead of going with Harry, Concepta and her half-brother Christopher to Ireland. Jack and Annie Walker agreed to let her live with them.
  • 1961-1964 - Concepta Hewitt
    Harry's second wife. Concepta was a barmaid at the Rovers but she gave up work to look after Lucille when she married Harry in 1961. Concepta, Harry and their son Christopher moved to Ireland in 1964.
  • 1962-1964 - Christopher Hewitt
    Son of Harry and Concepta.
  • 1982-1983 - Len Fairclough
    Seventeen years after the house collapsed, Len rebuilt it and moved in from next door. Len died the following year when he fell asleep at the wheel of his car while driving on the motorway. He was returning from seeing his mistress, Marjorie Proctor.
  • 1982-1990 - Rita Fairclough
    Wife of Len. Rita continued at No.7 until she bought the new Coronation Street shop unit and transferred The Kabin there from its premises in Rosamund Street, and moved into the flat above.
  • 1982-1983, 1983-1984 - Sharon Gaskell
    Rita and Len's foster daughter. Sharon arrived with the Faircloughs and left when she got a job as a kennel maid in Sheffield. She also stayed at No.7 to support Rita after Len's death.
Alanbradley deeds

1989: Rita discovers the truth about Alan Bradley

  • 1986, 1986-1989, 1990-1991 - Jenny Bradley
    Rita's foster daughter and daughter of Alan Bradley. Jenny moved in permanently when Alan took a three-month job in Dubai. She briefly moved out after falling out with Rita over Alan in 1989, but they made up and she returned after a few months. Jenny left for the last time in 1991, to live with married dentist Robert Weston.
  • 1987-1988, 1988-1989 - Alan Bradley
    Rita's partner and Jenny's father. Alan moved out when Rita found out about his affair with Carole Burns but he returned with his tail between his legs when he realised it made greater financial sense to remain with Rita. To support his burglar alarm business, Weatherfield Security Systems, Alan remortaged No.7, telling the building society he was Len Fairclough. When Rita discovered what he'd done, she put the police onto him and he was charged with fraud.
  • 1990 - Flick Khan
    Jenny's friend from college. Flick stayed in France when she went there on holiday.
  • 1990 - Joanne Khan
    Flick's sister. Joanne's stay was supposed to be temporary but she fell for Steve McDonald and decided to stay longer. They ran off to the Lake District so they could stay together but they fell out and Joanne made her own way home. She then returned to her parents.
AngieFreeman1993

Angie Freeman lodged at No.7 with Jenny Bradley and Curly Watts

  • 1990-1993, 1997-1998 - Angie Freeman
    Fabric and textiles design student at Jenny's college. Angie remained at No.7 after Jenny left and lodged with Curly Watts when he bought the house. She left when he fell for her, as she didn't see him as a potential romantic partner. She lodged with Curly again from 1997 to 1998 when she swapped lodgings with Samantha Failsworth.
  • 1991-1996, 1997-2003 - Curly Watts
    Curly moved out of his lodgings at No.9 when Vera gave his room to Joss Shackleton. After a year, he bought No.7 from Rita. In 1996, Curly decided to leave Weatherfield and let the house to Samantha Failsworth, but at the last minute he changed his mind. After a few weeks, he got Samantha to agree to share the house with him but he was relegated to the back bedroom. He sold up and left for good in 2003.
  • 1992, 1995-1996 - Raquel Wolstenhulme
    An old girlfriend of Curly's. Raquel stayed at No.7 for a few days when there was a spider on the loose at the Rovers. In 1995, she married Curly and moved in permanently, but left after less than a year when she took a modelling job in Malaysia.
  • 1993-1994 - Andy McDonald
    Moved in after splitting up with Amy Nelson. He returned to University the following year.
  • 1994 - Steve McDonald
    Brother of Andy. Andy put him up on the sofa when he fell out with Jim but he soon took Des Barnes's spare room at No.6.
  • 1995 - Percy Sugden
    Emily Bishop's lodger lived at No.7 while Emily had his room redecorated at No.3.
  • 1996-1997, 1998 - Samantha Failsworth
    A barmaid at the Rovers, to whom Curly let the house when he decided to leave Weatherfield and go travelling in 1996. He had a last-minute change of heart but Sam refused to let him move back in under the conditions of her rental agreement. She eventually gave him when he offered to cut her rent, but she insisted on keeping the front bedroom and having a lock on her door. She left to live with Des at No.6. After splitting from Des, she moved back in until she left the street.
Episode 4573

1999: Jackie Dobbs pours a bucket of water over Curly when he tries to reclaim his house

Frankiebaldwin

Frankie Baldwin stayed on at No.7 after throwing Danny out for his affair with Leanne Battersby

  • 2004-2006 - Frankie Baldwin
    Wife of Danny. Frankie planned to move to Spain with Jamie in 2006 but at the last minute she changed her mind and went to stay with a friend in Essex instead.
  • 2004-2007 - Jamie Baldwin
    Son of Danny and Carol Baldwin, and stepson of Frankie. In 2006, Jamie began a relationship with Frankie and remained at No.7 after it broke down, staying on as Liam Connor's lodger. In 2007, he moved into No.12 with Violet Wilson.
  • 2004-2005 - Warren Baldwin
    Son of Danny and Frankie. In 2005, he left Weatherfield to play for a Spanish football team.
  • 2006 - Nathan Cooper
    Frankie's boyfriend, who moved in at Frankie's invitation when she sought to spite Danny. After a few weeks, Frankie realised she wasn't being fair to Nathan and broke up with him.
  • 2007-2008 - Liam Connor
    The new Underworld factory boss, who arrived in Coronation Street in 2006. Liam lived there until his death in a hit-and-run orchestrated by Tony Gordon in 2008.
  • 2007-2009 - Maria Sutherland
    Liam's girlfriend and later wife. Maria moved in when the couple got engaged. Maria left the street to stay with Liam's parents in Ireland after discovering that Tony Gordon had arranged Liam's death.
  • 2008, 2009 - Ryan Connor
    Liam's nephew, and son of Michelle Connor. Ryan stayed at No.7 while Michelle got closer to Alex Neeson, when she discovered that the babies had been accidentally swapped at birth and Alex was her birth son. He also lived there for five months in 2009 when Maria offered him and Michelle lodgings after Michelle's split from Steve McDonald.
  • 2009 - Michelle Connor
    Sister of Liam. Maria offered Michelle and Ryan lodgings after Michelle's split from Steve McDonald. In June, Michelle and Ryan moved into 18a Victoria Street.
  • 2009 - Liam Connor
    Son of Maria and Liam, born in 2009 after Liam's death. Maria took baby Liam to Ireland with her when she moved out.
No7 tony maria

2009: Tony Gordon gets close to Maria Connor, widow of his murder victim Liam

  • 2009 - Tony Gordon
    Husband of Carla Connor. Tony hired Jimmy Dockerson to kill Liam after discovering that Liam and Carla were having an affair. Tony felt sorry for Maria, as Liam's widow, and grew closer to her, which eventually blossomed into a romantic relationship and Tony playing a parental role to her son. After three months, Tony turned himself into the police and confessed to his role in Liam's murder.
  • 2009-2010 - Kirk Sutherland
    Maria's brother. Kirk lived alone at No.7 while Maria was in Ireland. He left when she sold the house to Dev Alahan.
No7 2012

No.7 in 2012. Dev Alahan, rear left, is the current owner

  • 2010-2012, 2013 to present  - Dev Alahan
    Owner of the Corner Shop. Dev was reluctant to buy No.7, deeming it a poky terrace, but agreed as he had just recently reconciled with ex-wife Sunita and respected her desire to live closer to her friends. In 2012, Dev found out that Sunita had been having an affair with Karl Munro and moved into the shop flat to give her time to come to her senses, moving back into the house in March 2013.
  • 2010-2012, 2012-2013 - Sunita Alahan
    Ex-wife of Dev. In 2012, Sunita left Dev and stayed at the Rovers, telling Dev that her needs were always a low priority to him. She returned shortly thereafter, but they separated again when Dev found out about her affair with Karl Munro, which had been going on since before she'd left him. She died in 2013 when Karl removed her breathing tubes in hospital after she was injured in the Rovers fire.
  • 2010-2022, 2022-2023, 2024 to present - Aadi Alahan
    Son of Dev and Sunita and twin brother of Asha. In 2022, he moved into 5 Victoria Court with his girlfriend Kelly Neelan when Dev refused to give his blessing to the relationship. He returned to No.7 when Kelly left him.
  • 2010-2021, 2021 to present - Asha Alahan
    Daughter of Dev and Sunita and twin sister of Aadi. She moved out in 2021 to live with her boyfriend Corey Brent, but left him when he was involved in beating Seb Franklin to death.
  • 2012-2013  - Karl Munro
    Sunita's lover. Karl moved in when Stella Price threw him out of the Rovers.
  • 2015 - Julie Carp
    Julie moved in to help look after the twins when Dev went working in Mumbai for several months doing charity work. She moved out when he returned, in love with fellow charity worker Talisa Grady.
  • 2015-2019 - Mary Taylor
    After losing her motorhome which was taken away by the council, Mary moved in with Dev and the twins, looking after the children as their nanny. She was asked to leave in 2019 so that the now-teenaged twins could have their own bedrooms.
  • 2016-2017 - Erica Holroyd
    Former partner of Dev. He persuaded her to move out of the corner shop flat and into the family home in November.
  • 2017-2018 - Gina Seddon
    Girlfriend of Dev. She moved in after money troubles and left when Dev finished with her, worried that her wild ways would embarrass him.
  • 2021 - Kelly Neelan
    Aadi convinced his dad to let her stay with them as she had nowhere else to live, but Dev threw her out after a few weeks when he found out she'd been taking drugs.
  • 2022 - Bernie Winter
    moved in at Dev's invitation after her daughter Gemma suspected her of robbing jewellers Soutar & Co but stayed only a few weeks before moving back to No.5.
  • 2023-2024 - Nina Lucas
    Partner of Asha. She moved in after giving up her room at 16a Victoria Street to accommodate Evelyn Plummer.

Background information[]

No7 less

The terrace without No.7 during the 1970s

See also[]

External links[]

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