Roy admired his wife's courage but advised her to change her mind as Wayne would understand them not visiting him under the circumstances. Hayley is inspired by Jane's strength and confidence, despite dying from pancreatic cancer, but Roy tells Hayley that he found her highly inappropriate and inconsiderate. Hayley gets a message from Christian, wanting to meet in a caf in Bury. (Sunday Mirror, 8th March 1998) "The point about transsexuals is that they want to blend in. Mary realised she wasn't wanted when she didn't receive an invite to the wedding, and in revenge she disconnected the rear carriage, stranding the bridal party. With Alma as Matron of Honour, Martin Platt as Best Man, and her Great Uncle Bert as Father of the Bride, Hayley and Roy were married on 23rd April 1999. In 1999, Alma was Matron of Honour at their wedding. Calling out, Anna and Carla go to the bedroom and, to their shock, find a deceased Hayley on the bed, with Roy's arm around her. Hayley secretly does not like the new wallpaper but keeps quiet so she does not upset Roy. After the funeral, Roy tells Hayley that he thinks he can accept her suicide plot. As a wedding present to Roy, Hayley officially changed her name by deed poll to Hayley Anne Cropper. Hayley was so glad to have a friend that she started following Alma around and bought her an expensive sweater. And I said, 'Brilliant! Deciding not to return to the factory, Hayley continued with her volunteer work and helping Roy at the cafe. Fiz tried her usual tricks to skive off school, only to be caught in the Corner Shop by Hayley when she was supposed to be ill. After setting the cooker on fire, Fiz was berated by Roy and retaliated by reporting him for hitting her. This prevents Roy and Hayley fostering, or working with, any more young people. Faithful, loyal and kind, Hayley didn't mind putting herself out to help others in a jam. Most criticism came from the LGBT community, who slated the portrayal of Hayley as cliched and ill-informed. Looking for somewhere permanent to live, Hayley was delighted when Roy asked her to move in with him, dutifully offering to sleep on the sofa until they were married. Although the factory staff and Street residents initially taunt her, she eventually gets her job back and most Street residents gradually accept her. When she saw Anna wash a glass from the bedroom, Carla realised that Hayley had taken her own life before the cancer reached its final stage, but she respected Hayley's choice not to share her plans with her and didn't pursue the matter further. Darren Miller With Alex threatening to call the police, the Croppers stole Martin's car and, taking with Wayne with them, sought refuge with Hayley's old friend Ruth Audsley in Warwickshire. The Croppers' charity work included organising a Christmas lunch for the homeless at the cafe. In her later years, Hayley formed an unlikely, yet notably close, friendship with Carla Connor (Alison King) and although it was obvious the pair were from completely different walks of life, they came to respect and care for each other. In June 2011, Roy's mother Sylvia Goodwin (Stephanie Cole) who moved in with the Croppers' earlier in the year is suspicious when, after expressing a longing for grandchildren, she finds out Hayley cannot have children. However, before they could do so, Ruth shopped them and they were taken into police custody, and Wayne was returned to his parents. In 2007, Hayley discovered that she had a son, Christian Gatley, fathered before her sex change, and admitted to Roy that she'd lied about being a virgin when they met. Enjoying making a difference to people's lives, Hayley decided to do voluntary work at the church, although restrictions were placed on her due to her being a transsexual and she was only allowed to work with ex-offenders. But doing the play at the Royal Exchange last year made me realise that there's life in the old dog yet. Just before she left, Hayley got into an argument with Tracy Barlow, standing her ground when Tracy made fun of her sexuality, although it revealed an insecurity in her that Roy didn't find her physically attractive. Taking his duties very seriously, Roy upset Hayley by repeatedly critiquing her technique, resulting in her sticking a plaster over his mouth. Sylvia was initially appalled but Roy rose to the occasion and made her feel ashamed for her gut reaction. Hayley was very non-confrontational, at least when dealing with bigots such as Les Battersby. As the day arrived, the wedding party was just about to arrive when the press turned up at the church. Realising that Hayley had no other friends, Alma searched for a way to free herself of her without hurting her feelings, succeeding when Hayley was introduced to Roy Cropper at dinner at Alma and Mike's flat. Worried about staff morale should the girls find out, Mike sacked Hayley, but without knowing the reason behind it, the girls demanded her reinstatement and threatened to strike. Hayley and Becky did have the occasional cross word. Hayley Cropper is a fictional transsexual woman, introduced to the long-running soap Coronation Street in early 1998. The unlucky-in-love shop assistant, played by Cheryl Fergison, plucks up the courage to tell the mystery man hes become a father just hours after giving birth. In April, Hayley received her father's inheritance and went to Amsterdam for her final operation. When Hayley Cropper swallows poison on Coronation Street on Monday night, taking her own life to escape inoperable pancreatic cancer, with her beloved husband, Roy, in pieces at her bedside, it will be the end of a character who, thanks to Hesmondhalgh's performance, has captivated and challenged British TV viewers for Hayley had respect for her father but he didn't understand her problems. Roy gets suspicious when Tracy goes on holiday for 3 weeks and realizing how easy it would be for Tracy to disappear with the cash and the baby, Roy insists she marry him (giving him parental responsibility of the baby) or the deal is off. However, she did not want to sleep apart from Roy anyway, and as she moved into Roy's flat, they cemented their relationship, although Hayley lied to Roy by telling him that, like him, she was a virgin. In 2012, she took three months off to appear in Black Roses: The Killing Of Sophie Lancaster at the Royal Exchange Theatre. Hesmondhalgh won both of these awards. Roy regretted his harshness with Hayley and asked her to be his friend again, which she gratefully accepted, but despite liking her as a person, her sex change still made him uncomfortable and their relationship stalled. Angela claimed to be doing it so that the police would take the threat from the Morgan brothers - the cause of their relocation to Weatherfield seriously. Roy then assures Hayley that he is not angry, and she confides in Carla before going to the hospital, preparing for her operation. The characters were first friends and they started a relationship, until Hayley revealed her past history. Chesney thought the Croppers would be a soft touch and laid it on with stories about how neglected he was at home. On their return, Hayley found out that Jane had been taken to a hospice for round-the-clock care. The character first appeared in the episode first broadcast on 26 January 1998. In May 2013, Sylvia's friend Dorothy passed on a letter for Roy, from his estranged father, St. John Cropper, asking him to get in touch. Her skill on the sewing machine made her the go-to person when a dress needed making or mending for a wedding or christening, with Hayley going as far as to mend Claire Casey's wedding dress late at night on Christmas Eve. Hayley continued to work throughout, insisting on giving herself a sense of normality and asking Roy not to mention the word cancer in her presence. Roy breaks the news to Anna, Fiz, Tyrone, Peter, Carla, Rita Tanner (Barbara Knox) and Dennis Tanner (Philip Lowrie). The dress is a success and Roy and Hayley attend Carla and Peter's wedding. The letters, authored by Hayley's old friend Cath, revealed to "Harold" the existence of his son. [12] The appearance of a transgender woman in a mainstream soap opera attracted initial opposition from some members of the public, as expressed in calls to the Granada duty office, and letters written to magazines and newspapers. Roy and Hayley see an opportunity to raise a child and pay Tracy 25,000. Hayley Anne Cropper (ne Patterson) was the late wife of Roy Cropper. Hayley has a nightmare about being "Harold" again, making her regret the way things ended with her son, Christian. To her surprise, Christian returned and introduced Hayley to Sam and Maisie, at the same time asking her for 5,000 to clear his debts. During Ben's adolescence and childhood, he was. After Maria Connor (Samia Ghadie) accidentally interrupts and raises the alarm, Roy rushes to Underworld but can not help her, while Carla pleads with Tony to let Hayley go Tony eventually relents and throws Hayley out. Hayley realises that she has to tell Roy so goes home and tells Roy and Sylvia. Hayley and Roy return a couple of weeks later and learn that Sylvia has gone to live with her sister, Roy's aunt Jean. She trained as an actress in London before returning to Manchester. Before auditioning, the actress was given sketchy details about the character, with one glaring omission: All I knew at first was there's a part going in Coronation Street, she's called Hayley, she's going to work in the factory and she's fun. Once she had her final operation in Amsterdam, Hayley wanted nothing more than to be one of the girls, but when faced with prejudice it was not anger but disappointment Hayley felt, the abuse serving as a reminder that she would never be able to lead a normal life. Traumatised by the incident, Roy's sleepwalking episodes intensified, and on one occasion the cafe smoke alarm went off when Roy cooked in his sleep. Mary Taylor (Patti Clare) intervenes in the wedding preparations and, after weeks of muscling in, Hayley and Roy tell her they do not want her to be a part of the wedding, despite Hayley wearing her vintage wedding dress. A year later, they let homeless Craig Harris move into the flat after finding him living in squalor in the empty bakery next door. Their relationship was tested by various storylines including Tracy Barlow's (Kate Ford) deceit, Hayley's secret son and Hayley's absence from the street. You need a couple of people who just love each other and stay together through thick and thin.". Once there, Hayley sees Carla bound and gagged but Robbie pulls out a gun on her before she can escape, and ties her to a chair too. Much of the drama in Hayley's final months concerned Roy's refusal to accept her plans. Hayley felt the strain of everyone watching her and contemplated leaving Weatherfield, but Roy pleaded with her to stay and together they braved the Rovers. All the pain they had gone through was forgotten as Hayley and Roy began a new life with their daughter, whom they named Patience Cropper. While Hayley is recovering, Roy accidentally tells Anna about her suicide wish. In June 2010, Tony escaped from prison and took Carla and Hayley hostage at the factory, intending to kill Hayley along with Carla so that Roy would feel the same loss he felt when Maria Connor turned her back on him. The following day, Christian visits again and is stunned when Christian says she can see the children. Fiz Brown was the second of the Croppers' foster children in 2001. When catching up with Tilly, another volunteer, she learns Olaf is not the man she thought he was and decides to stay with Roy. When Julie announced she was leaving Coronation Street in 2013,. There is no answer, so Anna eventually unlocks the door with her spare key and they enter the flat together. was hayley cropper a man in real life. With Carla's support, Hayley told Roy and Sylvia about the cancer. Hayley's manner of dress was indicative of a woman older than her years. In July 2003, Hayley went to visit her ill Aunty Monica. Hayley Patterson was a shy shop supervisor at Firman's Freezers. Later, Hayley breaks down at work and Carla comforts her. Roy initially rejected her, but missed their friendship and three months later, followed her to Amsterdam where she was living on a houseboat, recuperating from her surgery. In 2012, he failed to take an interest in Hayley's ballroom dancing due to being caught up in his chess games with Mary Taylor. Then Judi Hayfield, the casting director, said to me: 'I don't know how to begin to tell you what this part is or how you'll feel about it, but she's a transsexual and at the moment she's still in a male body. In 2004, Roy bought Hayley an old globe and suggested they travel the world, starting with Kent, although they were tired out by one day's travelling and sold their camper van to Harry Flagg. Alma took the news better, and urged Roy to make amends. Well, I was gobsmacked, of course, but I thought it was a fantastic idea. Hayley and Roy enjoy their last Christmas together. After explaining the situation fully to the police, the Croppers were granted bail on the condition that they didn't have any contact with Wayne. On her last day, Hayley prepared a lethal cocktail, instructing Roy not to touch it, and ironed Roy's best shirt for the funeral. A minority of people expressed their concern at having such "bizarreness" brought into their homes on a prime-time show. It was an emotional time for an emotionally vulnerable woman, which was reflected in her somewhat needy and naive manner in her interactions with her co-workers such as Alma Baldwin. In May 2010, Roy suggested to Hayley that they have a civil partnership, to improve their pension benefits. Hayley knew that her past would always be a part of her; immediately on her arrival in the UK, she was stopped by Immigration as she still held a man's passport. Hayley insisted that he get a full health check, offering to go through one herself to encourage him. Hayley and Roy were also interested in seeing the world. Prepared to drink the cocktail, Hayley is interrupted by Tyrone who is looking for Ruby's toy. When she met Roy in 1998, a kinship was developed as they were both lonely, introspective people. Community content is available under. Christian Gatley was the son of transsexual Hayley Cropper and first seen in September 2007 when a Private Investigator found Christian for Hayley, giving her all the information needed about her son, she was also shown a photograph of Christian outside Sound Garden, the record shop where he worked. With nobody else in the mood for talking, Roy bored the rest of the table with his dry stories, but he had a captive audience in Hayley, and took her out for a drink afterwards. Unable to return to Firman's Freezers, Hayley got a job at Underworld knicker factory when Roy won a bet with Mike Baldwin that Hayley could out-machine any of his girls. As well as being nominated for the "Best Actress" award, Hesmondhalgh's final appearance, entitled "Hayley's Death", was nominated for the "Best Single Episode" award, as well. [13] Wallace is now an actress in her own right, and appears as the character Sally St. Claire in the Channel 4 soap opera, Hollyoaks. 50 Years of Coronation Street: The (very) Unofficial Story. Who was the father of Heather Trotts baby? Hayley Patterson was a shy shop supervisor at Firman's Freezers. Her return to the fray ended on a sour note as she was disqualified due to her being registered as Harold and therefore not allowed to compete in the all-woman team. (First line, to Curly Watts). Strange happenings begin occurring in the caf and Roy thinks Beth Tinker (Lisa George) and her family are responsible. The Croppers were relieved when they were informed that Fiz had done similarly before, and there would be no action taken. Though she asked only for his friendship, Roy took the news badly and asked her to leave him alone. Angela Harris was one of Hayley's colleagues from the factory. His relationship with Hayley started out platonically, meeting for the first time over dinner at Alma's flat. In most aspects of their lives, they were a team, for example in their volunteer work and becoming first aiders. After the "wedding" was screened, the Labour Government announced that a Parliamentary Working Group was being created to assess how the UK could grant trans people the legal rights for which they had fought for decades. At that point, they could not legally marry as under UK law Hayley would be recognised as a man. Interrupting Angela typing the words you're next on the factory computer, Hayley was asked by Angela to go to Sheffield and post a letter containing the threat. Becky had fled the area earlier that year, after framing Kelly Crabtree for robbing her friends at the factory. Unbeknown to Hayley, Roy was planning to propose to her at the upcoming 70s Valentine's dance, but when Roy caught Hayley spying on him even after he'd explained why he was seeing Beryl, he felt betrayed by her lack of trust, causing a brief rift between them. A police search for the couple ensued, with the papers reporting them as kidnappers and painting Alex as a concerned stepfather. Carla gives Hayley have the time off and Mary lends them her motor home. During his time on. Carla is determined to visit Hayley and she is glad that Carla came. Alma Baldwin was Hayley's first close friend following her sex change. Devastated but philosophical, Hayley begins to make a bucket list of everything that she wants to do before she dies, one of which is teaching Roy how to drive. They went on to possibly save their group mates' lives by evacuating the first aid tent when a rocket landed on it and started a fire at the local firework display. After the baby is born, Tracy admits to Peter that Steve McDonald (Simon Gregson) is the father (they had a one-night stand shortly before she spent the night with Roy). Les was so upset that he attempted suicide, and while driving him to hospital Dennis was killed in a car crash, devastating Janice. Occasionally, Hayley experimented with a more youthful, feminine look, before deciding that it didn't suit her. They have a wonderful time but their joy is cut short when they are told that Jane has been rushed to a hospice. Anna lets her in and tries to stop Carla knocking on the flat door, but she does. Christian was weirded out by her revelation and punched Hayley when she ran after him, leaving her bleeding on the ground. As the year came to a close, Hayley started her chemotherapy sessions and began planning her funeral. The following day, Hayley tells Roy to let a few people know that she only has weeks left but does not want visitors. Hayley then went to visit her family, and when she returned she was stunned when Roy told her he'd had sex with Tracy. Hayley is delighted to learn that Roy has booked a day off so they can go to Blackpool. Then awaiting the results of her CT scan, Hayley couldn't concentrate at the factory and explained her situation to Carla. Press for Change, the transgender campaign and information group, were particularly concerned with the direction of the storyline, but after the first two months a trans advisor connected to Press for Change, Annie Wallace, was regularly consulted for eighteen months by scriptwriters and the actor, and trans groups appeared happier with the stories and scripts that resulted from this liaison. In the middle of the ceremony, Tracy arrived and caused a scene by shouting for Roy, resulting in Steve having her ejected. Her passion for bowls was passed on by her father. The Croppers fled from the wedding with Patience, but faced immediate pressure from the Barlows to give Tracy back the baby. When Hayley finds him later, Christian is still angry and punches her when she refuses to leave him alone. In 2010, following a discussion of the ramifications of their not being legally married, Roy and Hayley decided to make it official. 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