Norman Arthur "Curly" Watts is a

fictional character In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, play, radio or television series, music, film, or video game). The character may be entirely fictional or based on a real-life person, ...

from the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

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soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' is an English soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in Weatherfield, a fictional town based on inner-city Salford. Origi ...

'', from 1983 to 2003, and in a few spin-off DVDs in 2010. He was portrayed throughout by Kevin Kennedy. Most of Curly's storylines dealt with his repeated failure to form a successful romantic relationship. His nickname resulted from him having straight, lank hair and getting into rows over money, mainly in 1996. His hobby was

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and he installed a telescope in the loft of his house.

Storylines

The character was originally a paperboy for

Rita Fairclough Rita Tanner (also Littlewood, Bates, Fairclough and Sullivan) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street''. Portrayed by veteran actress Barbara Knox, the character first appeared onscreen as "Rita Littlewood" ...

(

Barbara Knox Barbara Knox, MBE (''née'' Brothwood, formerly Mullaney; born 30 September 1933) is an English actress, best known for her long-running portrayal of Rita Tanner in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street''. She first appeared as Rita Littlewoo ...

), before working as a binman with Chalky Whiteley ( Teddy Turner) and

Eddie Yeats Edward Jeremy Timothy "Eddie" Yeats is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', played by Geoffrey Hughes. He made his first screen appearance on 23 December 1974 and remained a regular until 1983, when Hughe ...

( Geoffrey Hughes), whilst lodging with

Jack Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name, ...

( William Tarmey) and

Vera Duckworth Vera Duckworth (also Burton) is a Character (arts), fictional character from the Television in the United Kingdom, British ITV (TV network), ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', portrayed by Liz Dawn. Vera is known for her long-standing marriage ...

(

Elizabeth Dawn Sylvia Ann Ibbetson (''née'' Butterfield; 8 November 1939 – 25 September 2017), known professionally as Elizabeth Dawn or Liz Dawn, was an English actress, best known for her role as Vera Duckworth in the long-running British soap opera ''C ...

), and later

Emily Bishop Emily Bishop (also Nugent and Swain; originally credited as Miss Nugent) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street''. Portrayed by Eileen Derbyshire, the character is the longest-standing female character in t ...

(

Eileen Derbyshire Eileen Derbyshire, MBE (born 6 October 1931) is an English retired actress, best known for her role as Emily Bishop in the long-running ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street''. She played the character for 55 years from January 1961 to January 2016 ...

). He later worked for Mike Baldwin ( Johnny Briggs) alongside his best friend

Terry Duckworth Terry Duckworth is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'', played by Nigel Pivaro. He was introduced as the son of popular characters Jack and Vera Duckworth, making his on-screen debut on 1 August 1983. Te ...

(

Nigel Pivaro Nigel Pivaro (born 11 December 1959) is an English actor and journalist. He is best known for playing Terry Duckworth, the son of Jack and Vera Duckworth in ''Coronation Street''. Career Pivaro was born in Manchester, England to an Italian ...

). Curly's first serious romance was with

Shirley Armitage 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 six years between 1983 and 1989. Shirley became the programme's first regular black c ...

(Lisa Lewis), a black sewing-machinist from Baldwin's factory. Opposition from his old-fashioned parents Arthur (

Kenneth Waller Kenneth Waller (5 November 1927 – 28 January 2000) was an English actor. He was known for portraying Grandad in '' Bread'' and Old Mr. Grace in ''Are You Being Served?'' Early life Kenneth Waller was born in Lowerhouses Huddersfield, York ...

) and Eunice (Angela Rooks) led to tension between the couple, and Shirley left when Curly threw out the guests at his surprise party so he could revise for upcoming

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exams in

Business Studies Business studies, often simply called business, is a field of study that deals with the principles of business, management, and economics. It combines elements of accountancy, finance, marketing, organizational studies, human resource management, a ...

. Having obtained his HND, Curly became an assistant manager at Bettabuy supermarket, where he became a protégé of manager

Reg Holdsworth The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'' in 1989, by order of first appearance. Alison Oakley Alison Oakley, played by Helen Swift in 1989 and Shelley Willetts in 1998 is a woman ...

(

Ken Morley Kenneth Morley (born 17 January 1943) is an English actor and comedian best known for playing the role of Reg Holdsworth in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' from 1989 to 1995 and General Leopold von Flockenstuffen in the BBC sitcom Al ...

). Whilst working there, he had a relationship with employee Kimberley Taylor (

Suzanne Hall Suzanne Hall (born 1972), is an Australian born British actress. Before attending her first secondary school, Worden Sports College in Leyland, she went to Hayward School in Bolton and, at that time lived in Great Lever, but now lives in Smit ...

). Once again, opposition – this time from both sets of parents – caused problems. Despite other brief flings with girls such as

Anne Malone The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' in 1995, by order of first appearance. Daniel Osbourne Daniel Osbourne is the son of Ken Barlow (William Roache) and Denise Osbourne (Denis ...

(Eve Steele),

Angie Freeman The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'' in 1990, by order of first appearance. Vicky McDonald Vicky Arden (also McDonald) was played by Helen Warburton in 1990 and Chloe Newsome ...

(

Deborah McAndrew Deborah McAndrew (born 1967) is a British playwright and actor, known for playing Angie Freeman in ''Coronation Street'' in the 1990s. She is also co-founder and Creative Director of the Stoke-on-Trent-based Claybody Theatre Company, and a visiti ...

), a much older woman in Reg's future wife

Maureen Holdsworth The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' in 1993, by order of first appearance. Maureen Holdsworth Maureen Webster (also Grimes, Naylor, Holdsworth and Elliott) was played by Sher ...

(

Sherrie Hewson Sherrie Lynn Hutchinson (born 17 September 1950) is an English actress, television personality and novelist. She is known for her roles as Maureen Holdsworth in ''Coronation Street'' (1993–1997, 2006), Virginia Raven in ''Crossroads'' (2001– ...

) – who tried to get him sacked when he rejected her advances – and a much younger woman in

Maxine Peacock The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' in 1995, by order of first appearance. Daniel Osbourne Daniel Osbourne is the son of Ken Barlow (William Roache) and Denise Osbourne (Denis ...

(

Tracy Shaw Tracy Shaw (born 27 July 1973) is a British actress and singer. Early life Shaw was born into the hotel and pub trade, at the time when her parents ran the Talbot Hotel in Belper, Derbyshire. She attended Saint Ralph Sherwin Comprehensive Schoo ...

). Curly seemed doomed never to find domestic happiness. After a prolonged on-off relationship, Curly married

Raquel Wolstenhulme Raquel Watts (also Wolstenhulme) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', played by Sarah Lancashire from 23 January 1991 until 15 November 1996. Lancashire returned on 2 January 2000 for one episode. Sto ...

(

Sarah Lancashire Sarah-Jane Abigail Lancashire (born 10 October 1964) is an English actress from Oldham, England. She graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 1986 and began her career in local theatre, whilst teaching drama classes at the Sal ...

), who left him less than a year later to work as a beautician in

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, and later moved to France with their daughter, Alice Diana. Curly did not know about the child until Raquel turned up unexpectedly on New Year's Eve 1999 to ask for a divorce. This episode was the first

two-hander A two-hander is a term for a play, film, or television programme with only two main characters. The two characters in question often display differences in social standing or experiences, differences that are explored and possibly overcome as ...

in the soap's history. Curly met his second ex-wife, policewoman Emma Taylor (

Angela Lonsdale Angela Lonsdale ( Smith; 13 October 1967) is an English actress. Biography Born to a policeman father, Lonsdale trained at Brewery Youth Theatre at the Brewery Arts Centre, Kendal. She took part in a large number of amateur productions, includ ...

), when she came to investigate a series of crimes in the area in which Curly was innocently implicated. The couple married and had a son who was born on

Boxing Day Boxing Day is a holiday celebrated after Christmas Day, occurring on the second day of Christmastide (26 December). Though it originated as a holiday to give gifts to the poor, today Boxing Day is primarily known as a shopping holiday. It ...

2001. As

Norris Cole Norris Gene Cole II (born October 13, 1988) is an American professional basketball player for Grand Rapids Gold of the NBA G League. A 6' 2" point guard, he is a two-time NBA champion, winning back-to-back titles in 2012 and 2013 with the Miami ...

(

Malcolm Hebden Malcolm Hebden (born 21 December 1939) is an English former actor. He is known for portraying the role of Norris Cole in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' on and off between 1994 and 2020. Aged 81, he announced his retirement from actin ...

) had helped deliver the child, they decided to name him Ben, as it was Norris's middle name. Later, Emma committed perjury in order to protect a colleague, causing friction between herself and the ultra-honest Curly. The couple left the Street during 2003 to start a new life near

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

, in the small town of

Ryton Ryton may refer to: Places in England * Ryton, Gloucestershire, a location *Ryton, North Yorkshire *Ryton, Shropshire *Ryton, Tyne and Wear *Ryton, Warwickshire (in Bulkington) *Ryton-on-Dunsmore, Warwickshire *Great Ryton, Shropshire People ...

. When the character made a comeback for the 2010 spin-off DVD movie Coronation Street – A Knight's Tale, Curly revealed that his marriage to Emma had ended since their departure from Weatherfield. Since his departure, Kevin Kennedy has expressed interest in reprising his role as Curly. However, ITV has announced that there are no plans for Curly to return.

Other appearances

Kevin Kennedy appeared in character as Curly on ''University Challenge Challenges Coronation Street'', a special edition of ''

University Challenge ''University Challenge'' is a British television quiz programme which first aired in 1962. ''University Challenge'' aired for 913 episodes on ITV from 21 September 1962 to 31 December 1987, presented by quizmaster Bamber Gascoigne. The BBC ...

'' produced for the 1997

Comic Relief Comic relief is the inclusion of a humorous character, scene, or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious work, often to relieve tension. Definition Comic relief usually means a releasing of emotional or other tension resulting from a comic episo ...

telethon.

Reception

A writer from ''TV Guide'' was not impressed with the character and wanted him to leave the show. Profiling the character during Christmas 1990, they stated "now what would Curly Watts really like for Christmas? You might have some ideas of your own - a new haircut perhaps? - a one way ticket to Timbuktu?"

References

External links

Corrie.net profileArticle on Curly leaving Coronation Street
{{DEFAULTSORT:Watts, Curly Coronation Street characters Fictional managers Fictional bartenders Male characters in television Television characters introduced in 1983