Coronation Street bosses confirm Gail Platt’s Christmas ending storyline as Helen Worth leaves

It’s safe to say every Coronation Street fan was rocked to the core yesterday when the news broke that Helen Worth was leaving her role as Gail Platt after 50 years – and everyone was left wondering how bosses could write out such an icon.

We’ve seen so many legends come and go on the ITV soap over the years.

For some, like Deirdre Barlow (Anne Kirkbride) and Stan Ogden (Bernard Youens), the actors passed away before they could film an exit storyline, and therefore the characters were given an off-screen departure.

Others, like Jack and Vera Duckworth (Bill Tarmey and Liz Dawn), decided to retire from their roles and were able to film fitting, emotional death scenes that provided closure to both the actors and to the audience.

That doesn’t mean that our Gail has to be killed off though – on Christmas Day 1987, Corrie achieved its highest ever viewing figures when Jean Alexander’s Hilda Ogden left for pastures new, with the characters raising a glass to her in the Rovers Return and gathering around the piano for a sing song.

One thing’s for sure, it would be wrong to give Helen something lowkey after five decades of service to the continuing drama world.

In a statement released yesterday, executive producer Iain Macleod gave no hints as to how we might wave her off: ‘Gail has given us countless hours of entertainment but it should also be said that Helen herself is a consummate professional and a thoroughly good egg.

‘Everyone connected to the show will miss having her around the place just as much as the viewers will miss having her on their screens and we wish her all the very best for the future.’

What was confirmed was that Helen will begin filming it next month, with her last scenes due to air later in the year.

However, in last night’s (5th June) ITV Evening News, entertainment reporter Rishi Davda seemed to have some extra intel: ‘Helen Worth is just behind [Ken Barlow actor] Bill Roache in terms of time spent on Corrie’ he began.

‘She’ll begin filming her exit story next month – thankfully, producers have promised a happy ending.’

We sincerely hope so!

Metro.co.uk understands that the happy ending won’t be explosive, but rather an emotional affair that will happen around Christmas time. No doubt bosses are looking to recapture the success of Hilda’s festive exit.

After being driven into a canal, pushed down the stairs by son David (Jack P. Shepherd) wrongly imprisoned for the murder of her fourth husband Joe McIntyre (Reece Dinsdale) and losing a further three husbands in dramatic circumstances, it’s about time she got a break.