Malcolm Hebden (born 21 December 1939) is an English former actor. He is known for portraying the role of

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 ...

in the ITV

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'' on and off between 1994 and 2020. Aged 81, he announced his retirement from acting due to ill health.

Early life

Hebden was born on 21 December 1939 in Chester before his family moved to

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, Lancashire, Preston, at the confluence of the River C ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancash ...

, three weeks later.''I see Pendle and I'm home''
,

Lancashire Evening Telegraph The ''Lancashire Telegraph'', formerly the ''Lancashire Evening Telegraph'', is a local tabloid newspaper distributed in East Lancashire, England. It is edited by Karl Holbrook. There are around twenty towns in the area, including Blackburn, B ...

, 4 March 1998 He was educated at West Gate High School and began his career as a window dresser in

. He found school difficult due to "severe dyslexia". He was involved in

amateur dramatics An amateur () is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, self-taught, user-generated, DIY, and hobbyist. History Hist ...

groups, one of which included Richard Moore, called The Highcliffe Players. When aged 28, he attended the Rose Bruford Drama School in London before beginning a career in theatre.

Career

Hebden first appeared in '' Coronation Street'' from 1974 to 1975, as Mavis Riley's (

Thelma Barlow Thelma Barlow (''née'' Pigott; born 19 June 1929) is an English television actress and writer, known for her roles as Mavis Wilton in the long-running ITV soap opera '' Coronation Street'' and as Dolly Bellfield in the BBC One sitcom '' di ...

) Spanish boyfriend Carlos. He first appeared as

in 1994; he left in 1997, before returning to the role in December 1999. He also appeared in the first episode of the first series of '' Heartbeat''. And also the sixteenth episode of the ninth series. In 1999, Hebden made a brief, but energetic appearance as a pharmacist in the television film '' Lost for Words'', alongside

Pete Postlethwaite Peter William Postlethwaite, (7 February 1946 – 2 January 2011) was an English character actor. After minor television appearances, including in '' The Professionals'', his first major success arose through the British autobiographical fil ...

Anne Reid Anne Reid, MBE (born 28 May 1935) is a British stage, film and television actress, known for her roles as Valerie Barlow in the soap opera '' Coronation Street'' (1961–1971); Jean in the sitcom '' dinnerladies'' (1998–2000); and her role ...

and

Thora Hird Dame Thora Hird (28 May 1911 – 15 March 2003) was an English actress and comedian, presenter and writer. In a career spanning over 70 years, she appeared in more than 100 film and television roles, becoming a household name and a Briti ...

. Along with his on-screen business partner

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 Littlewo ...

(

Rita Sullivan 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 Littlewo ...

), Hebden won the Best Onscreen Partnership award at the

British Soap Awards The British Soap Awards (BSAs) are an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom which honours the best moments in British soap operas. The ceremony is televised on ITV and has been presented by Phillip Schofield since 2006. The trophies gi ...

in May 2006. Additionally, he won the Funniest Character award for two consecutive years at the 2001 and 2002 ''Inside Soap'' Awards. He also made an appearance in ''

Last of the Summer Wine ''Last of the Summer Wine'' is a British sitcom created and written by Roy Clarke and originally broadcast by the BBC from 1973 to 2010. It premiered as an episode of '' Comedy Playhouse'' on 4 January 1973, and the first series of episodes f ...

''. Hebden had a near-fatal heart attack in December 2017, and was absent from ''Coronation Street'' from December 2017 to April 2019. However, in March 2019, it was announced that Hebden would return briefly in May 2019. He made his final appearance in June 2020. In January 2021, he announced his retirement from acting, at the age of 81.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hebden, Malcolm 1939 births Living people Actors with disabilities People with dyslexia Alumni of Rose Bruford College English male soap opera actors English male stage actors Male actors from Lancashire People from Burnley People from Chester 20th-century English male actors 21st-century English male actors