Coronation Street star lands new role after quietly quitting ITV soap in off-air exit
Coronation Street star Lorna Laidlaw has reportedly called time on her role on the ITV soap, but the actress is set to reunite with some of her co-stars in her brand new acting gig
Coronation Street star Lorna Laidlaw has reportedly quit the ITV cobbles and landed a new job one year after suddenly vanishing from the soap.
The beloved actress – who played the role of nurse Aggie Bailey in Weatherfield – made her last appearance on the show back in June 2023. After 12 months of silence, a source has revealed to The Sun that the brunette beauty has officially left the show.
But fans won’t be heartbroken for long because Lorna will be returning to the small screen soon – and she will be surrounded by some of her fellow Corrie icons. According to sources, the telly favourite has joined the cast of the Channel Five drama The Good Ship Murder.
And this time the star could be here to stay after the gripping drama was renewed for two more series and a 2024 Christmas special earlier this spring. It sees former Corrie stars Shayne Ward as former detective turned cruise ship singer Jack Grayling and Catherine Tyldesley as First Officer Kate Woods.
It is understood that current cobbles star Claire Sweeney is also set to appear in the Channel Five drama. A telly insider told the publication: “Lorna is a hugely talented actress and it’s a great gig to land.
“The show films in beautiful Malta and the cast and crew are a close knit group so it’s a really great atmosphere to work in.” Daily Star has reached out to a spokesperson at ITV for a comment.
The actress originally joined the soap back in 2019 as part of the show’s first ever black family alongside her on-screen husband Trevor Georges. In her final episodes, fans watched Aggie host a dinner party for an old friend at Sally and Tim Metcalfe’s house, embarrassed by her sudden change in circumstances.
Her character has previously lived in a stunning mansion in the heart of Cheshire. But the family fell on hard times when her husband Ed’s gambling addiction cost them everything.
It later emerged that she didn’t need to bother to spruce up her lodgings after it was revealed her friend Yvette (Arabella Weir) was in the same boat. Aggie soon disappeared from the street, with writers explaining her character left Weatherfield to care for her unwell aunt in Birmingham.
Later updates suggested the doting mum decided to put her career first and threw herself into nursing in the city. When Ed relapsed again, Aggie was said to have divorced him from afar and vowed never to return to the cobbles.
Viewers were shocked when the star failed to visit her children or her beloved granddaughter Glory. Since then, Coronation Street bosses have made no mention of the actress’ absence from the show.
Fans shouldn’t be surprised if the matriarch fails to make an appearance for her on-screen daughter Dee-Dee Bailey’s upcoming wedding this September.