Coronation Street full-time. In her book, she revealed that she sang on the first night of Peter Stringfellow's Hippodrome 'Gay Evening' in London, adding: "I always had a loyal gay following – and the lesbians loved me too!" By this time, she was also often asked to work as a compere. Terry Dobson, a member of the pop band Black Lace, recalled a time in 1977 in his book: "Lynne Perrie was in and out of her dressing room, a change of costume between every act, not that much time, two songs, some six or so minutes and she was on the stage again, bring off the act, then introducing the next ... brilliant, and very professional; you could tell she had been doing this sort of thing for years." As well as on the stage, Perrie also continued to sing occasionally on television, notably on a UK charity telethon in 1990, in which she performed an original song called "Ships that Pass in the Night". Acting career Early career Perrie made her acting debut as Mrs. Casper in the 1969 film Kes, even though she had no formal acting training. The success of Kes led to Perrie's television career. She appeared in early episodes of several popular television shows, including children's serials Follyfoot and The Intruder, long-running courtroom drama series Crown Court, and sitcom The Cuckoo Waltz. Perrie's first regular television role was in the popular Yorkshire TV comedy series Queenie's Castle, written by Keith Waterhouse and Willis Hall. The sitcom starred Diana Dors, with Perrie in second female lead playing her arch-enemy Mrs Petty, the busy-bodying residents' association secretary with conservative values. Queenie's Castle was first broadcast on bonfire night in 1970 and ran for three series over two years, with the final episode being broadcast in September 1972. Eighteen episodes were made, with Perrie appearing in nine of them. Coronation Street Perrie's role in Kes ultimately led to her getting the part of Ivy Tilsley in the soap opera Coronation Street in 1971. The show's casting director Paul Bernard had seen her in the film, and cast her without audition. She first appeared as a minor character, but the producers were sufficiently impressed with her performance to offer her a more substantial role. She became a recurring character from 1972, and was later promoted to the main cast when the character moved into Coronation Street with her