Coronation Street star Simon Gregson has admitted he was shocked by co-star Helen Worth’s exit as Gail Rodwell.
The star announced her departure from the cobbles last June, with her final scenes airing on Christmas Day as Gail departed for France with new husband Jesse Chadwick.
Appearing on Loose Women yesterday (January 2), Simon – who plays Steve McDonald on the ITV soap – opened up about his initial reaction to his co-star’s decision to leave.
“It was a bit of a shock at first when we found out she was going because obviously she’s part of the furniture,” he said. “But I totally get it – 50 years.”
He added: “I didn’t have any scenes with her, I’ve not been involved in that storyline. I mean obviously me and Helen have done lots of scenes in the past, but that was long before I knew she was leaving.”
Despite her exit, Corrie boss Iain MacLeod recently shared that there have been talks about a potential return for Gail in the future.
“Helen and I have had a conversation where she’s said, ‘There might be times in my future when 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.”
MacLeod added: “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.”