SalfordOnline.com were saddened to hear of the death of local legend ‘Vinegar’ Vera Done, 77, who passed away peacefully in her sleep on Sunday 19 July at Salford Royal Hospital with her family at her bedside.
Hundreds immediately flooded onto our Facebook group to offer their tributes.
Vera was an unparalleled character and almost every person in Salford had a tale to tell about her and her long-term partner Mike MacGuire.
Rumours of her death were frequent on social media and such was her notoriety that she even spawned a fake Twitter account.
Vera was a true Salford girl. She was born Veronica Beck in 1938 in the long-demolished heart of the city in Hanky Park at 48 Rossall Street, Pendleton.
Vera in the 1970s
Many a story was told about Vera; some were true, some far-fetched, so who better to set the record straight than her son Phillip James ‘Jimmy’ Done, a familiar face around Salford?
Jimmy told SalfordOnline.com: “My mum was a very funny woman, very astute and a good judge of character. She did have a hard life but she managed to overcome every obstacle put in her way.
“To be honest she didn’t like the nickname, ‘Vinegar’ and I always had to call her either mam or Veronica or face getting a belt around the ear.
“I was told that she got the nickname because she resembled the character Nelly Pledge from the television series, Nearest and Dearest which was set in a pickle factory.”
Read: Memories, tributes and poems to ‘Vinegar’ Vera Done flood in from all over the world
“I have since been told that she once worked at Norco Pickles in Swinton where they filmed the series and the vinegar would soak into your clothing, I’m not sure how true this is, but it all adds to her legend.
“In terms of work I am a hod carrier and she told me one day that she used to do the same, and I can believe that!
“She was once approached by a television production company who wanted to make a film about her life. She wasn’t comfortable with that and thought people would just take the mickey.
“Many people will remember her ex boyfriend Mike MacGuire who died several years ago, they were a right pair, made for each other, I used to call them Bonnie and Clyde!”
Jimmy continued: “In recent years I used to take her to her favourite pub on a Sunday afternoon for a couple of pints and a chat with old friends: The Priory off Broad Street in Salford.
“She used to love it.
“Not many people will know that she was a really good singer, her favourite tune was ‘Born Free’, which says it all really.
“She had a fall several years ago which made her ill, followed by a heart attack, and she was put in the Heath Cottage care home in Swinton.
“When I visited her she told me that being in there was like the film One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest and couldn’t wait to get out, that was typical of her sense of humour.
“The 4-5 weeks she was there she was looked after with compassion and concentration as with all of there patients and I’d like to thank all of the staff there for looking after her.
“Last week she was taken into Salford Royal Hospital as her condition deteriorated. When I went to see her on the Sunday evening I woke her up to speak to her, typically she gave me a b*llocking for waking her up!
“I asked her if she wanted to see a priest and she wanted to know why, claiming that there was nothing wrong with her, a priest arrived and it was a woman!
“Mam took one long look at her and said to me: ‘Wow, am I here already?’ She thought she had died and gone to heaven!
“I am so glad that she was with family when she died and she passed away quietly, just as she would have wanted.
“To me she was a wonderful mother and I am so proud of her in so many ways, a real character and for that I love her even more.”
Today Jimmy contacted SalfordOnline.com to tell us that when unpacking his mum’s belongings he found a note from Greater Manchester Police along with an empty Christmas hamper.
She had been receiving them from the police for the last 4-5 years so it would appear that they had finally buried the hatchet at last, and it has to be said that it was a nice gesture from them.
Jimmy has asked me to say that if any officer who knew her would care to come to the funeral, they were more than welcome.
So we bid farewll to a true Salford legend, in my opinion she was as well known as Harold Riley or Albert Finney and I for one will miss her and the stories about her, she will never be forgotten.
Vera’s funeral will be on Friday 31 July at 12pm at St Paul’s Church, Broadwalk, Salford Precinct followed by a service at Agecroft Cemetery at 1pm, all are invited.
Main image of Vera Done by Dave Quinn
