Actress. From her long career, Maggie Jones will be remembered as the sharpe-tongued, often unpleasant, but usually hilarious Blanche Hunt of the long-running British television series “Coronation Street”. Raised in Yorkshire, Miss Jones was drawn to the theatre from an early age; after study at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, she was to refine her craft with various local and regional companies. Gradually working her way up, she appeared in West End productions of “The Woman” and “Pride and Prejudice”. Her small screen debut came in 1961, ironically, with a “Coronation Street” cameo as a policewoman. Thru the 1960s, she became a regular on English television with appearances as Smither on “The Forsyte Saga” and Polly Barraclough in “Sam”. (She had one additional small role, a shoplifter, on “Coronation Street”). After parts in a number of other series, audiences met her as Blanche in 1974 when she took over on short notice following the suicide of another actress; she remained in the cast until 1976, then made occasional reappearances over the years, while performing in such series as “The Barchester Chronicles”, “Goodnight Sweetheart”, “Dalziel and Pascoe”, and “Peak Practice”. Miss Jones returned to “Coronation Street” in 1996, then once again in 1999; she remained in the cast until illness forced her retirement in October, 2009. She won British Inside Soap Awards for best comedic performances in 2005 and 2008. Maggie Jones sometimes gave the impression that she did not especially like her character, or find her funny; nevertheless, of Blanche she said: “Everyone knows someone like Blanche-or if they don’t, they wish they did. We’d all like to be as outspoken as her and have the nerve to say the things she does”. (bio by: Bob Hufford)