Coronation Street star Sue Devaney addresses Debbie’s exit amid her huge storyline

Coronation Street legend Sue Devaney has opened up on her forthcoming exit from the soap, as her character Debbie Webster struggles with early-onset vascular dementia. Debbie was diagnosed in April 2025, and the storyline will ultimately lead to Devaney’s departure.

In a new interview, the former Dinnerladies favourite opened up about leaving the show, vowing to “make the most” of the time she has left on the job.

“I think when an actor gets to a certain age they think, ‘This is quite nice. I can go home every night, I can have my tea, I’m not living out of a suitcase.’ And it’s nice to have a regular wage, because as an actor you never know what’s next,” she told BANG Showbiz (via Female First).

“So as you get older you think, ‘This is quite nice.’ But if it’s not to be, it’s not to be.

“It’s only in soap where you think, ‘I’ve got a job for a while.’ But we never know when it’s going to come to an end, or the character is going to be killed off, so you just have to make the most of it.”

Asked if she knows what her final episodes entail, she admitted: “I don’t know, and I don’t like to know. I think it’s nice to just get the scripts and just play along with it.

Scenes next week will see Debbie finally losing patience with her troublesome son Carl, as the build-up to the upcoming mystery murder intensifies.

Carl is one of five characters identified as possible victims of the shock twist, which will air later this month. The others are Jodie Ramsey, Maggie Driscoll, Megan Walsh and Theo Silverton.

After reaching the end of her tether with Carl, Debbie will be seen telling him that he won’t be getting his hands on her business, but she will give him cash if he leaves Weatherfield forever and never contacts her again.

It’s been a big month all-round on the soap, as a special episode earlier this week saw Todd Grimshaw finally report his partner Theo to the police after suffering months of domestic abuse.

Fans hailed the episode as a “masterpiece” after it aired, with heavy praise coming in for Gareth Pierce, who plays Todd, and Vicky Myers, who portrays DS Lisa Swain.

One of Coronation Street’s most beloved characters is to be killed off in a harrowing storyline, which kicks off in 2025 Metro can exclusively reveal.

Actress Sue Devaney, who made her debut as Debbie Webster way back in 1984, will depart the role, which is a favourite with fans.

Viewers will see the character diagnosed with dementia in coming months, with a long-running storyline then planned, which promises to be heartbreaking.

‘It’s one of the show’s biggest storylines of the year, and a real chance for Sue to finally get her time in the spotlight – it will just be devastating for fans that it will effectively be her final storyline,’ a source told Metro.

‘It’s one of many major storylines new boss Kate Brooks has in the bag, and there will not be a dry eye in the house.

‘There is no doubt in the Corrie family that she will give the performance of a lifetime and make Debbie’s exit one to remember for years.’

Metro understands that the storyline has a very long way to play out, so Sue will be on our screens beyond 2025.

When I approached Corrie for comment, they told me: ‘We do not comment on future storyline speculation.’

Sue first appeared as then 15-year-old Debbie 40 years ago and stayed for a year before making an unexpected comeback in 2019.

She returned as a ruthless property tycoon, working secretly alongside shady Ray Crosby to carry out a controversial development.

After making enemies in Weatherfield, Debbie was a pariah for some time but has since re-bonded with brother Kevin Webster (Michael le Vell) and runs the glam Chariot Square Hotel.

With viewers often calling for more screen-time for Debbie, it will no doubt be with mixed feelings that they see her propelled to the centre of the drama next year.

Sue is also known for her impeccable comedy timing in her delivery of Debbie’s many iconic lines.

It comes amid the imminent exit of another Corrie legend, with Helen Worth leaving her role as Gail Platt after half a century.

Promising a warm but chaotic Christmas Day ending for Gail, incoming producer Kate – known for her success on Emmerdale – told us: ‘This is a story with the Platts at the heart of it, it’s really festive.

‘It’s a story about how secrets impact and implode on a family, so there’s a lot of betrayals, and lots of secrets are exposed during this episode.

‘I think we’re all in need of a bit of escapism at the minute and we’ve had quite a dark but brilliant few months on the cobbles.

‘The Christmas period for us is all about trying to tap into the family dynamics of the Platts, what makes people tick and ultimately trying to make sure that we give glorious Gail the exit that she deserves.