The Coronation Street creator Tony Warren has passed away after a short illness.
The openly gay writer, Tony Warren MBE has passed away after a short illness it has been confirmed by the Coronation Street official twitter account. He was 79.
Tony Warren created Coronation Street in 1960 for ITV, when he was just 24. He wrote the first 13 episodes of what would become the UK’s longest running soap drama.
He was always openly gay, even at a time when homosexuality was illegal in the UK.
In a statement, ITV said:
“It is with great sadness that Coronation Street confirms legendary creator and acclaimed writer Tony Warren MBE passed away peacefully last night surrounded by his loving friends, aged 79, after a short illness.
“All who worked with Tony throughout his illustrious career had the utmost respect for his achievements and he remained a consultant on the Manchester-based soap until the day he died.
“He was considered one of the television industry’s greatest minds as he devised the idea for the Weatherfield soap at the age of 24, at the very beginning of his acclaimed writing career.”
Out actor Antony Cotton, who appears in the soap confirmed the news by Tweeting his sadness at Mr Warren’s passing and praising his “greatest legacy”.
With heavy heart & great sadness I can confirm that our pal Tony Warren has died. He leaves the greatest legacy. I'll miss him so much
— Antony Cotton MBE (@antonycotton) March 2, 2016
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Mr Warren was awarded the MBE in 1994.
