Coronation Street legend, 93, in huge update six years after retiring from show

A star’s son has given an update on his actress mother six years after she last appeared on the show. Eileen Derbyshire, 93, shot to fame as soap icon Emily Bishop, taking on the role way back in 1961 and retiring from acting work in 2016. Though she reprised her role in 2019 for a brief on-screen appearance via video call, she’s rarely seen in public after setting down her acting shoes.

In Soapland, Emily is living in Edinburgh, moving to Scotland after years of volunteering in Peru. But in real life, Eileen has been keeping her personal life incredibly private, with her son Oliver – a sports journalist – giving a rare update to fans. He told The Times that his mum is “private, and one of the last of a dying breed of old-fashioned actresses who do it for the love of acting, not for all the attendant publicity”. Recently, Oliver has been sharing snaps from his mum’s archive – showing various props from the old days of the Street, cast photographs and a framed collage for the soap’s 30th anniversary.

He wrote on social media: “Back at my mum’s place. Found these packed away. Halcyon days of .” He explained of the collage: “Still in its wrapping – photo marking 30th anniversary of the start of the Street.”

One concerned fan chimed in to ask: “I’m loving these memories, but is your mum okay?” to which Oliver responded: “She’s doing OK. It’s kind of you to ask. She’s 93 now so she has a few issues but she’s well looked after and is happy.”

In 2021, Eileen suffered some real life heartbreak when her husband of 55 years sadly died after a battle with . Thomas W. Holt met Eileen in 1964, and the pair settled down in a Cheshire cottage together before welcoming son Oliver together.

Oliver said of his dad: “My dad never forgot Stockport even when he was deep into his struggle with Alzheimer’s Disease. He wanted to go back there and revisit all the places of his youth. Sometimes, he asked me if I’d give him the bus fare for the journey.

“He was unconscious by the time I arrived but, after I had been sitting at his bedside for a while, I told him I’d been to watch the home game against Sutton United 10 days earlier.

“I told him that when I sat down, I’d made a point of glancing over – just as I always do – to the seats in Section A where we sat that first time he took me to Edgeley Park. I told him I could still see the man in the sheepskin jacket. I told him I could still smell the cigar smoke.”