Rhodri Marsden's interesting objects: The Ogdens' ceramic ducks
The ducks first appeared at number 13 Coronation Street in the late 1970s and became an icon of the show
* This weekend would have been the 100th birthday of Bernard Youens, the actor who played one half of British television's most celebrated couples, Stan and Hilda Ogden. His character spent a great deal of time sitting in his armchair studying racing tips while watched over by three ceramic ducks hanging on the wall, the second always at a slightly awkward angle. The ducks, which first appeared at number 13 Coronation Street in the late 1970s, became an icon of the show; they were even given their own square on the Monopoly board created in 2000 to commemorate the show's 40th anniversary.
* Hilda, played by Jean Alexander, loved them. "The sight of them ducks..." she once said, curtly and defensively, to a contemptuous Percy Sugden, "...well, they've kept me hand away from t'gas tap. And that's a fact." Despite that, her love of the ducks arguably cemented their reputation as a "stereotype of lower-middle-class aspiration".
* The Ogdens' ducks were nice examples (or good copies) of Beswick Pottery. According to the Beswick Price Guide by Harvey May, they appear to be three of a series of five Mallard Wall Mounted Plaques, designed in 1938 by a freelance artist, Mr Watkin, and produced in five sizes, from 596/0 through to 596/4. Post-war, affordable Beswick figurines became hugely popular, and these particular ducks were manufactured in Stoke-on-Trent right up until 1973. Fans of retro kitsch can now pick them up on eBay for around £50 a pop.
* The final appearance of the ducks on screen, on Christmas Day 1987, was watched by Coronation Street's largest-ever audience of 27 million people. "They're beautiful," said Hilda as she sipped a sherry alongside Sally Webster. "I just wish that middle one would buck itself up a bit"
@rhodri
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