Stan and Hilda Ogden were often at the centre of overtly funny storylines, with other comic characters including Eddie Yeats ( Geoffrey Hughes ), Fred Gee ( Fred Feast ) and Jack Duckworth ( William Tarmey ) all making their first appearances during the decade.

Coronation Street became known for the portrayal of strong female characters, with characters like Sharples, Walker and Tanner, and Hilda Ogden, becoming household names during the 1960s.

Consequently, the show has a long tradition of psychologically abused husbands, most famously Stan Ogden and Jack Duckworth, husbands of Hilda and Vera, respectively.

Stan Ogden and Hilda Ogden were introduced in 1964, with Hilda ( Jean Alexander ) becoming one of the most famous British soap characters of all time.

Other recurring archetypes include the war veteran ( Albert Tatlock, Percy Sugden ), the bumbling retail manager ( Leonard Swindley, Reg Holdsworth, Norris Cole ), and the perennial losers ( Stan and Hilda Ogden, Jack and Vera Duckworth, and Les Battersby-Brown ).

Viewership peaked on Christmas Day 1987 when an average of 28. 5 million viewers tuned in to see Hilda Ogden leave the street to start a new life as a housekeeper for long term friend Dr Lowther ( although there is some confusion as to whether or not this was actually the highest rating episode due to a special omnibus repeat of that week's episodes being combined with the original airing ).

He played himself greeting the characters: one of them, Hilda Ogden, was very impressed with the ' Canney-Letty ' ( Canaletto ) room.

* Jean Alexander, actress best known for playing Hilda Ogden in Coronation Street, was born at Toxteth in 1926 but now lives in Southport.

She is best known to British television viewers as Hilda Ogden on the soap opera Coronation Street, a role she played from 1964 – 1987 and also as Auntie Wainwright on the longest running sitcom Last of the Summer Wine from 1988 to 2010.

Three years later, Alexander returned to Coronation Street as Hilda Ogden.

Laurence Olivier formed the Hilda Ogden Appreciation Society with prominent members.

Reports in February 2010 said that there were plans for Hilda Ogden to feature in the show's 50th anniversary episodes in December 2010.

Over the next nine years he became, with Stan Ogden ( Bernard Youens ), a foil to Stan's long-suffering wife Hilda ( Jean Alexander ).

In 1964, she auditioned for the role of Hilda Ogden on the television series Coronation Street ( the role went to actress Jean Alexander as the casting directors wanted someone who did not weigh as much ).

Driver was cast as Betty in 1969, after first auditioning for the role of Hilda Ogden.

It was here that she was spotted by one of her customers, producer of Coronation Street, Harry Kershaw, who persuaded her to audition for the role of Hilda Ogden in 1964 ; she eventually had to turn the role down as she was tied into an advertising contract with Procter & Gamble and they refused to release her.

Driver has commented, " Harry Kershaw, producer of Coronation Street, persuaded me to audition for Hilda Ogden – just think I could have been wearing curlers for 30 years.

The video hailed the brief return of Coronation Street favourite Hilda Ogden, who had not been seen in the soap since 1987 ; Betty travelled to meet her at her new home.

A spokesperson for Granada Television commented, " It shows what happens when Betty goes up to visit Hilda Ogden at her home in Derbyshire.

* Hilda Ogden, from the British soap opera Coronation Street

Critic Grace Dent has likened Dot and Jim to Coronation Streets Hilda and Stan Ogden, comparing a scene in EastEnders where Dot nags Jim and he prays for a quiet life to a similar one from Coronation Street, that aired decades before.

However, the ' twelve-tone composeress ' Hilda Tablet, a friend of the late Richard Shewin, became the most interesting character in the play ; and in the next play, she persuades the biographer to change the subject of the biography to her-telling him " not more than twelve volumes ".

In fact, Allen's character bears strong resemblance to Maurice Leblanc's French works about Arsène Lupin, published many years later ; and both Miss Cayley's Adventures and Hilda Wade feature early female detectives.

In the broadcast of the 2007 TV Land Awards, White starred in a parody of Ugly Betty, aptly titled Ugly Betty White, in which she played America Ferrera's title character, with Charo playing White's sister Hilda, and Erik Estrada playing her father Ignacio.

* Gaylord Buzzard, a character in the cartoon strip Broom Hilda

Played by Hilda Haynes in 1982 and 1983, whose character was soft spoken and whose name was Emma.

Although Hilda must have had a strong character she inspired affection.

During the 14 May 2007 edition of Steve Wright in the Afternoon, guest Shane Ritchie referred to Old Woman as Nana Moon: a character from the soap EastEnders played by Hilda Braid.

* Hilda Spellman, a main character in Sabrina, the Teenage Witch

* " Hot Ice " Hilda, a key supporting character in the anime Outlaw Star

* Hilda Wangel, a character introduced earlier, in Ibsen's The Lady from the Sea.

He wrote of Hildur as " his bird of the woods ", the phrase he initially uses to describe his character Hilda, but the character refuses this, accepting only that she is a " bird of prey ", as was Bardach.

The character of Hilda is a blend of all three women, but Hildur Andersen was the most significant.

Victoria Alice Moon ( née Montgomery ) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Hilda Braid.

Helen Mack's character is never referred to as " Hilda " in the film.

Similarly, Patrick Fyffe's affinity with musical comedy and operetta informed the character of Dame Hilda.

Reed became intrigued by the character of Dame Hilda and subsequently wrote a sequel The Private Life of Hilda Tablet in which Reeve is bullied into undertaking the biography in " not more than twelve volumes " of Dame Hilda.

Hilda Alice Ogden ( née Crabtree ) is a fictional character from the television series Coronation Street, one of the best-known of all the regular characters in the soap opera, whose name became synonymous with a certain type of working-class woman.

For much of her period as a character in the Street, Hilda worked as cleaner of the Rover's Return Inn.

Arguably the serial's most popular character of all time, Hilda was voted the greatest TV character in a Radio Times poll of over 5, 000 people.

Despite various producers expressing their desire to see the character return, actress Jean Alexander has been openly critical about the direction Coronation Street has taken, vowing never to reprise the role of Hilda again.