Coronation Street legend Helen Worth could be set to reprise her Gail Platt role just weeks after bidding farewell to the ITV soap.
Helen, 73, bowed out of the cobbles after a whopping 50 years on Christmas Day, in emotional scenes that saw her long-running character marry Jesse Chadwick (John Thomson).
Her new husband arranged for a classic car to take them to the airport, and Gail told her children – who were all her favourites – that her ‘work was done.’
Best pal Sally Metcalfe (Sally Dynevor) asked if it was a final goodbye, but her friend insisted that it was just an ‘au revoir.’
‘Are you ready, Mrs Chadwick?’ asked Jesse as the car rolled down the street, to which Gail replied: ‘Ready as I’ll ever be, Mr Chadwick.’
Discussing her exit, Helen Worth said: ‘It’s been a fabulous fifty years, and I just wanted to thank all of you, some of you who may have been watching for fifty years.
‘Is there anybody? And those of you who’ve been watching for a few years. Thank you.
‘Thanks for coming on the journey with me. I‘ve had a wonderful time. I’ve loved it all.
‘All the stories, and of course, working with the wonderful Platts, which, for me, is what it’s all about. And there’ll be more Platt stories, and I hope you’ll be watching.
“Lots of love and thanks from me.’
Now, it seems that her words to Sally could well prove true – as executive producer Iain Macleod has revealed that he’s already discussed Helen’s return to the show.
‘Helen and I have had a conversation where she’s said, “There might be times in my future where I’ll come back”,’ he told The Daily Star.
‘If there’s a big storyline going on with the Platt family, she might want to come in and play a role in that.
‘We certainly wanted to leave the door open so that was possible. We wanted that to still be on the cards.’
This could mean that an upcoming explosion stunt, which will see the Platt family home go up in flames in the coming weeks, could see Gail make a welcome journey home from her villa in the south of France.
In November, Metro exclusively revealed that a number of residents’ lives will be left hanging in the balance, with a source telling us: ‘The early part of the year is going to kick off the new era of Corrie with a bang pretty literally and one of the show’s core families are right at the heart of the fire storyline.
‘With a new boss at the helm, the show isn’t pulling any punches and it’s fair to say some fan-favourite lives are on the line.’
Behind-the-scenes pictures then showed cast and crew gathering outside of the burning building on the soap’s production base in Trafford, Greater Manchester.
Iain continued: ‘It will be a real treat for viewers if the opportunity arises for Helen to pop in here and there.
‘She could play a role in some big moments.’
