SAD NEWS: Coronation Street legend d!ed alone and penniless after harrowing allegation
He was a Coronation Street legend who spent more than two decades on the cobbles but when he passed away, he died penniless and on benefits.
Peter Adamson joined the cast of the ITV soap back in 1961, playing Len Fairclough, husband of Nellie although his much put upon wife never actually appeared on screen.
His most famous relationship was with Corrie icon, Elsie Tanner, who spent years in a ‘will they, won’t they’ friendship – although writers never allowed them to become a couple.
Starring in a huge 1,730 episodes of Coronation Street between 1961 and 1983, for many years Peter was one of the key male characters in the soap, but by the 1980s his personal life had begun to bleed into his work and his time as one of the most recognisable faces on television came to an end.
But his problems began much earlier. Adamson spent two months off screen right back in 1969, suspended without pay so he could tackle his alcoholism. The difficult decision to suspend the actor reportedly came when he was so drunk on set for the recording of a scene the close-ups had to be re-recorded and then edited into the footage already shot.
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He was on Coronation Street for two decades(Image: Granada Television)
Tragically, Adamson’s drinking had long been known to be a problem on the set but he had always managed to perform.
At the time Corrie producing legend Harry Kershaw said: “Peter Adamson’s drunkenness hung around like an albatross around the programme’s neck and my responsibilities as producer were beginning to weigh very heavily indeed … At each story conference during this period we would include the character in our projected plots, hoping that Peter Adamson’s problem would miraculously disappear. This was wishful thinking at its most stupid and it rapidly became evident as matters grew worse that drastic action needed to be taken.”
However, it seems to time away from the limelight was successful and Adamson returned, having tackled his alcohol addiction.
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Peter was on Corrie for two decades(Image: Mirrorpix)
But after more than two decades on Coronation Street a series of catastrophic decisions and events ended the actor’s career on screen for good.
In February 1983, Adamson sold behind-the-scenes stories about his co-stars to The Sun, even calling some of his fellow actors “amateurs”. He claimed Anne Kirkbride, who played Deidre Barlow “spent too much time propping up the bar”. He also claimed to have a frosty relationship with Barbara Knox, who played his love interest Rita.
Producer Bill Podmore gave Adamson a warning and he was told he would be dismissed for breach of contract if anything like it ever happened again. He was also suspended from Corrie for six weeks in April 1983.
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His character, Len, married Rita, played by Barbara Knox(Image: Granada Television)
His career screeched to a halt when he was accused of indecent assault against two eight-year-old girls at Haslingden Baths, where he worked as a swimming instructor. He was acquitted of the charges at Burnley Crown Court but his reputation never recovered.
In a later interview, Adamson was allegedly persuaded to change his story and it is claimed he said: “I am totally guilty of everything the police said… But what I hope you will print – there was no sexual intent.”
After being paid £110,000 for the interview, Adamson was re-interviewed by Lincolnshire Police but he denied the confession and the reporter had “mislaid” the interview rapes so officers took no further action. However, Adamson was immediately sacked by ITV bosses and written out of Coronation Street.
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Rita Littlewood (Barbara Knox) marries Len Fairclough (Peter Adamson)(Image: Granada TV)
Adamson’s departure came has his character, Len, finally found love with Rita, played by Barbara Knox. Seven months after his final episode in 1983, the actor was killed off in a motorway car crash while on his way home from visiting his mistress.
After being paid £10,000 a year for his starring role in Corrie, which would be the equivalent to around £200,000 a year today, Adamson left the UK and moved to Canada in a bid to start a new life.
However, he soon returned to the UK was declared bankrupt in 1991. With no income and unable to find work, Adamson moved into a rented flat in Bury and had to rely on benefits to survive.
He did manage to find some acting jobs in his later years, including appearing in some radio dramas and Dial M for Murder in the West End. But by the time he passed away in 2002, Adamson had become a virtual recluse and died with nothing. He left behind two sons.
