Jenny Bradley
Jenny Bradley is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street, played by Sally Ann Matthews. She made her first appearance on-screen on 6 January 1986. Originally fostered by Rita Fairclough, she has been featured in storylines including her troubled relationship with her father and Rita's partner, Alan Bradley, his death when he is killed in a tram accident after chasing Rita in Blackpool and a brief underage romance with married man Robert Weston, their separation in 1991 led to Jenny leaving Weatherfield on 1 March 1991.
Jenny returned for a short stint on 17 September 1993 when she visited Rita for money, but Rita's rejection of her resulted in Jenny leaving again on 8 October 1993. She returned for four months from 18 February 2015 after meeting Kevin Webster through online dating, and they began a relationship. She is seen to develop an obsession with his young son Jack, which culminated in Jenny abducting him, before being found in Hull, where she is arrested by police, leading to her departure on 15 June 2015. On 11 August 2015, it was announced that Jenny would be returning permanently on 27 January 2016. Although upon her return she is portrayed as a tragic character, her role has become more comedic. She married Johnny Connor in 2017 and later storylines revolved around their relationship. Jenny and Johnny later separated and she became the sole owner and landlady of the Rovers Return Inn.
Development
Departure and brief return
Matthews decided to leave the programme in late 1990 and made her last appearance on 1 March 1991, in which Jenny moved in with married dentist Robert Weston. Matthews chose to leave in order to prove herself as an actress: "I hadn't been to drama school, I am northern and I had been in a soap. People used to say 'she's just a soap actress' and I would think 'no, she's an actress'. I thought I would go and do lots of regional theatre to earn my stripes and gain respect as a result."In 1993, Matthews accepted an offer to return as Jenny for ten episodes. Matthews hoped that by showcasing an older Jenny, she could change casting directors' perceptions of her. Matthews replied: "I was still getting offered rebellious teenage roles and I was 23. I thought I would go back so people could see I was older now and it worked." Jenny's departure scenes aired in October 1993. Matthews was subsequently asked to return, but declined due to fear of typecasting.
Reintroduction
Matthews' feelings towards returning to Coronation Street changed four years before the next invitation came. On 4 October 2014, it was reported that Matthews was in talks about returning to the show. It was then announced on 20 October 2014 that Jenny would be making a return to the show in February 2015. Matthews said: "It was only in 2010—when the 50th celebrations started and I was asked to do this and that—that I thought, ‘I’m never going to get away from it, people still recognise me from it, I’m dead proud I was in it, I should embrace it. So, that is when I started to feel differently about it and when they rang and asked me this time I said yes." Speaking about Jenny and Rita being reunited, Matthews said: "Jenny doesn't see Rita initially. She meets Kevin first and so I didn't share scenes with Barbara for a while. However, the scenes I have done with her have just been like picking up from where we left off. There is a lot of unfinished business with them—Rita isn't very happy.When asked about the differences between the show now compared to her previous stint, Matthews replied: "There were immense differences which I am used to because that is how TV is. Comparing my time then and my time now, the main difference is that we don't rehearse anymore. In the old days, we would spend all of Monday afternoon, all of Tuesday and all of Wednesday rehearsing and then we would shoot Thursday and Friday. There were less regulars then and as a group of actors, you were together for two and a half days so even if you didn't share scenes with some people, you still knew everybody very well. Everyone knew each other much better than they do today - there are still some actors I haven't met yet this time round."
Relationship with Kevin Webster
Shortly after the announcement of her return, it was announced that Jenny would begin a relationship with Kevin Webster. Bosses of the show revealed details of the storyline which would see Kevin making a connection with a mystery woman online. He decides to meet up with her and is shocked to come face-to-face with Jenny. Jenny has also turned to the online dating site after a nasty divorce and was pleased to find Kevin's face among the profiles, as she reveals that she had a crush on him when they were younger. Kevin and Jenny then strike a relationship after a successful meeting. Speaking about Jenny's dynamic with Kevin, Matthews said: "She really likes him. She is single and is nervous about online dating. She sees him and he is somebody who is familiar. I think she probably always quite fancied him back in the day and she thinks 'why not?' She definitely is interested in Kevin but whether she is using him to get back in Weatherfield, time will tell. Whether it could be a fling that will develop, time will tell!". Speaking about the reaction to them as a couple, she went on to say: "People don't react very well to them at all. We just had some scripts in and there is a brilliant hour-long episode coming up with Sally. I love the way her character has developed into this incredible job and I love what she is doing because it's hilarious. That is going to get Jenny's back up. Sally will obviously be very defensive of Kevin and so will Sophie. People will have heard stories and that is the interesting thing. When Jenny comes back, she meets people that she has never met before and they are nice to her but then somebody will have a word in their ear and attitudes change."Kidnapping Jack
On 19 April 2015, it was reported by The Sun newspaper that an upcoming plot would see Jenny kidnap Kevin's young son Jack. The kidnapping would be the culmination of a storyline which would see Jenny become increasingly obsessed with Jack, as she spends time looking after him. Discussing Jenny's kidnapping of Jack, Matthews explained: "I've not played it as premeditated at all. I don't believe that Jenny has planned any of it. You've got to remember that when Jack's childminder was ill a few weeks ago, Jenny was very reluctant to look after Jack. You've got to remember that she really didn't want to get involved. As soon as she did, she tried to break it off with Kevin. Kevin assumed that she was breaking it off because she thought that Rita was uncomfortable with their relationship. It wasn't that - it was just that her past was starting to come into her head and she didn't know what to do with it. That's the beginning of where we're going to go with this storyline. Jenny did have a child who died in the past. We are now going to see the consequences of that with what Jenny is going to do. She's got a deluded idea that she has to run off with Jack in order to keep him safe, so she's going to be very conflicted. She's totally lost it." Matthews also admitted that she is nervous about how fans may react when they see Jenny's unstable behaviour escalate. She laughed: "Sometimes the public assume you are that person. It was bad enough when Jenny slapped Maria, God knows what it's going to be like now! I'll have to start putting Jenny's dark wig on, But there is a genuine reason why Jenny is behaving the way she is. I'm not playing it that she's a 'nutter'. Because of that, when it all finally comes out, I think there could be some understanding."Producer Stuart Blackburn also offered his thoughts on the storyline, praising Matthews for exploring the difficult subject matter with sensitivity. He said: "I think why the story is working is the way Sally Ann is playing it. I've never considered that character a 'nutter'. She's a terribly damaged woman whose life stopped the day her child died. She's just been unable, however hard she tries, to move away from that."
Relationship with Johnny Connor
On 8 February 2016, Richard Hawley, who portrays the character of Johnny Connor, revealed in an interview on Good Morning Britain that Johnny would embark on a relationship with Jenny. Hawley admitted that he was surprised about the storyline as he thought Johnny would more likely begin a romance with Liz McDonald, portrayed by Beverley Callard. He went on to say "It's interesting what is going to happen between Johnny and Jenny. He is a sucker for vulnerability and she's getting a hard time at the factory from all the workers at the moment. He has a very vulnerable side too. So, in a way, I think they are both good for each other. They both want a fresh start and I think this will mark a new dawn for them."In March 2016, it was announced that an upcoming storyline would see Jenny return to Blackpool along with Johnny for a holiday together - the last time she was there was when her father Alan Bradley was killed by an oncoming tram in 1989. Discussing how Jenny feels about her father's death after all these years, Matthews said: "It still haunts her because she's back on the street and people are talking about Blackpool and it just makes those feelings a bit stronger."
In July 2018, it was reported by The Sun that Jenny and Johnny would become the new owners of the Rovers Return Inn. Matthews said: "Jenny is pretty adaptable. She sulks for two minutes, then runs to the moon with the idea. As soon as Johnny persuades her about The Rovers, she goes for it big style and she starts to make all kinds of plans. She wants it to be a cut above everything else."
Departure
On 1 August 2025, Sally Ann Matthews announced in an Instagram post that she would be leaving the role: ""I was supposed to stay for five months but ended up doing an extra ten years because I loved it so much!"Jenny departed on 1 October 2025.