Caroline Aherne

Caroline Aherne

Born in London and raised in Wythenshawe, Manchester, Caroline Aherne started out on the comedy circuit in the mid-Nineties with characters such as country singer Mitzi Goldberg and nun Sister Mary Immaculate.

She also made regular appearances on Manchester radio stations, including KFM, where she met her Royle Family co-creator Craig Cash; and Piccadilly Radio, where she developed the character of pensioner Mrs Merton for Frank Sidebottom’s show.

She made brief appearances in The Smell of Reeves and Mortimer and appeared in and wrote for The Fast Show in the mid-Nineties, before Mrs Merton was given her own mock talk show, where she had famous exchanges with Debbie McGee and Bernard Manning among others. The character was also given a short-lived spin-off sitcom Mrs Merton and Malcolm, about her home life with her over-protected son, played by co-writer Craig Cash.

With Cash she also created The Royle Family, in which she also played Denise Royle in all three series as well as six one-offs. Aherne also directed later episodes.

In 2002, she moved to Australia and wrote the series Dossa and Joe, about a working-class Australian family, but it failed to find an audience.

In 2009, she co-wrote the ITV1 comedy-drama The Fattest Man in Britain with Jeff Pope – and in 2011 they reunited to write the four-part ITV series The Security Men.

Aherne was married to Peter Hook of New Order until 1997. During their marriage, he led the house band – Hooky & the Boys – on The Mrs Merton Show

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MP throws his weight behind Caroline Aherne statue plan

'It would be great to have a local acknowledgement of all she achieved'

Wythenshawe’s MP has backed plans to erect a statue to Caroline Aherne in the town she grew up.

Comedian Lucy Beaumont this week floated the idea of erecting a memorial to the Royle Family and Mrs Merton star in the Manchester district where she lived from the age of two.

Now the suburb’s Labour MP Mike Kane – who was born and raised in the area – has thrown his weight behind the plan.

He told Chortle: ‘I knew Caroline growing up in Wythenshawe and was very proud of all that she achieved. It would be great to have a local acknowledgement of all she achieved and her connection to Wythenshawe.’

Mike Kane
Richard Townshend/CC-by-SA-3.0

Kane, above,  joined the Commons in 201, having previously served on Manchester City Council, and is a junior transport Minister.

Last Sunday, Beaumont posed on social media that  ‘it upsets me massively that no-one has [put up a statue] yet so I thought maybe I should.’

She accepted it would be a ‘long process’ – starting wit getting council permission and commissioning an artist to come up with a mock-up design – but vowed to put some of her own money into the project.

A fundraising gig may also be scheduled next year.

Aherne started her career as a stand-up on the Manchester circuit in the 1980s and early 1990s before finding fame as Mrs Merton. She died of cancer at her home in Timperley, about four miles from Wythenshawe, on July 2. 2016, at the age of 52.

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Published: 22 Nov 2024

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Lucy Ansbro
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