Sue Nicholls

Susan Frances Harmar Nicholls (born 23 November 1943) is an English actress, known for her roles on British television in Crossroads (1964–1968), The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin (1976–1979) and, Rentaghost (1981–1984) and especially for her long-running part as Audrey Roberts in the soap opera Coronation Street (1979–1982, 1984–present). She also appeared on Broadway in the 1974 revival of the comedy London Assurance. Nicholls first appeared as Audrey in Coronation Street in 1979 and played the role intermittently for six years, before joining the cast permanently in 1985. She won the 2000 British Soap Award for Best Comedy Performance and the 2003 British Soap Award for Best Dramatic Performance, and received the Outstanding Achievement Award in 2019. Early life and education Susan Frances Harmar Nicholls was born in Darlaston, Wednesbury. Her father was Sir Harmar Nicholls, later Lord Harmar-Nicholls, the former Conservative MP for Peterborough (1950–1974) and MEP for Greater Manchester South (1979–1984), and subsequently a life peer; she is thus entitled to be addressed as "The Honourable Susan Nicholls". She had a sister, Judith. She was educated at the School of St Mary and St Anne (now known as Abbots Bromley School for Girls), and is a graduate of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Career Nicholls first became known as Marilyn Gates on Crossroads, a role she played from 1964 to 1968. A song she first sang on the programme, "Where Will You Be?", charted on 3 July 1968, eventually reaching number 17 in the UK Singles Chart.