Elsie Tanner (also Howard) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street, played by Pat Phoenix from the series' inception in 1960 to 1973, and again from 1976 until 1984.

[1] At the beginning of the series, Elsie had two adult children, Linda (Anne Cunningham) and Dennis (Philip Lowrie), from her marriage to Arnold Tanner (Frank Crawshaw).

Linda had trouble with her Polish husband Ivan Cheveski (Ernst Walder) and his short temper, but they eventually reconciled and had two sons, Paul (Victoria Elton, Marcus Saville and Nigel Greaves) and Martin (Jonathan Caplan).

Elsie was also involved with bookie Dave Smith (Reginald Marsh) in the early 1970s, owner of local football team Weatherfield County FC.

After her third failed marriage, Elsie surrounded herself with youngsters and acted as mother figure to Suzie Birchall (Cheryl Murray) and Gail Potter (Helen Worth), who lodged with her during the late 1970s.

A plotline also took Elsie to Torquay: Ron Mather (Joe Lynch - who also played the character Harold Digby in 1975) an Irishman who had worked on the markets and had tried emigrating to Canada.

Elsie left for Torquay with Ron, planning to return for the wedding, though she fell ill and so both couldn't attend Gail's happiest day.

They weren't aware at the time that Gail would have many other happy days, and even more challenging ones… She finally left Torquay because Frazer had been sexually harassing her, and returned on Christmas Eve 1979.

On the night she left, Elsie walked down the street and old memories filled her head; squabbles with Annie Walker (Doris Speed) and Ena Sharples (Violet Carson) and fights with her son, Dennis.

In Dorothy Catherine Anger's book Other worlds: society seen through soap opera, she brands Elsie a "tarty woman" who has the ability to "attract men like bees to honey".

[2] In Larry Warren's book Left at East Gate a First Hand, he joked about the probability of UFO landing being "as unlikely as Elsie Tanner getting into a nunnery" and branded her as having dubious morals.

Wrap Her Up, a 1985 single by Elton John and George Michael, mentions Elsie Tanner in a roll call of strong famous women's names at the end of the song.