How Rita knows Dennis

Last night we saw Rita catch a glimpse of a rumpled and bearded homeless man who was looking at the brickwork on Number 11 where the name of Dennis Tanner was carved and dated 1951. There must have been something in his eyes, because she thought she recognized him. This photo was from Barbara Knox's first episode in 1964 when she appeared as an old mate of Dennis's. He used to be an agent for some musical acts in much the way Alex Gilroy was in later years so knocked around the clubs a fair bit.

I don't think he was Rita's agent but he knew her and considering what a gorgeous red-headed babe she was, Dennis no doubt always had a few cheeky words for her. In this scene it was clear that they were friends though maybe hadn't seen each other in a while. She wasn't in the show more than a few episodes and then dropped off the radar until 1972 when she returned full time but there's no reason to assume she didn't see Dennis again off screen around Weatherfield until he married in 1968 and moved away.