[1] She had previously appeared as Mrs Edgley in Coronation Street spin-off Pardon the Expression (1965–1966) opposite Arthur Lowe.

[4] Driver described her parents as absent of affection, stating that they never celebrated birthdays and rarely gave her toys and gifts.

[4] Driver's mother had never wanted children, and developed an interest in her daughter only when she discovered she had a talent for singing.

When she was aged seven, the Drivers went to see a production called the Quaintesques, a group of men dressed as women, when the star, Billy Manders, asked the audience to join in with a chorus.

She commented, "I imitated hits by Gracie Fields such as 'Sing As We Go', and 'The Biggest Aspidistra in the World', corny little numbers that I detested but mother adored ...

"[4] At the age of eight, Driver began performing professionally, forced by her mother to appear with Terence Byron Repertory Theatre Company.

While performing in London at the age of 14, Driver was spotted by the agent Bert Aza, who was in partnership with his brother Archie Pitt, Gracie Fields' husband.

Despite her young age, he booked her for the lead in a revival of Mr Tower of London (alongside comedian Norman Evans) which ran for about two years.

The producers felt so bad about the way Driver had been treated that they refused to take her name off the film credits, even though it was long thought she did not appear in the theatrical release.

Shortly after, during a six-month run in a revue called Twice in a Blue Moon, Driver and her sister parted company with their mother following a cardiac asthma attack which restricted her mobility.

[4] Driver continued in variety, opening in the Coventry Hippodrome and sharing the bill with the Andrews family - father Ted, mother Barbara and Julie.

[6] Driver travelled to Australia, where she performed her own show, and her career also took her to Cyprus, Malta and the Middle East.

On her return to England she appeared in the Ealing Comedies, on stage in The Lovebirds, Pillar to Post and What A Racket, and on television with James Bolam in Love on the Dole.

[6] Driver was cast later, alongside Arthur Lowe, in the series Pardon the Expression, a spin-off of Coronation Street.

In an interview on the Parkinson show on 11 November 2006, Sir Ian McKellen revealed that Driver still drove herself into work at 7:30 each morning, despite her age.

She was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) by Queen Elizabeth II in the 2000 New Year Honours.

In August 2008, it was announced that Driver was one of several Coronation Street stars who faced large salary cuts.

Driver said she fell in love several times in her teenage years, but each relationship was ruined by her mother, who wanted to keep her daughter single so as not to lose her free "meal ticket".

[4] Driver stated that she was bitter about the path chosen for herself and her sister: "I never wanted to be in the theatre and we really resented missing out on our childhood.

[8] Petersen had appeared as part of a double-act on The Betty Driver Show in 1949, where they met and fell in love.

She was in such a bad financial state that her sister had to send her money to allow her to return home to the United Kingdom.

[15][19] On 11 March 1970, Driver was awarded a decree nisi in an undefended lawsuit at Salford Divorce Court.