Gail Platt returns to Coronation Street! Iconic character played by Helen Worth ‘will be back for Christmas Day episode’ – a year after her soap exit

Gail Platt is reportedly returning to Coronation Street for their Christmas Day special this year – a year after her high-profile soap exit.

Gail (who now has the surname Chadwick) is played by actress Helen Worth, 74, with dramatic scenes last Christmas seeing her say goodbye to the show.

Now it has been reported she will be making a one-off appearance during this year’s festive episode and that it has already been filmed.

A source told The Sun: ‘Corrie bosses are keeping the exact details under wraps but it’s understood she takes the chance on Christmas Day to connect with the family.

‘And it could be more timely as the Platts find themselves in yet another drama, one that they’ve had to deal with by themselves since the Platts’ matriarch moved abroad.

‘It’s a move which is guaranteed to thrill soap fans, who wondered whether we’d ever catch a glimpse of show favourite Gail on the cobbles again.’

Gail Platt is reportedly returning to Coronation Street for their Christmas Day special this year – a year after her high-profile soap exit

Gail (who now has the surname Chadwick) is played by actress Helen Worth, 74, with dramatic scenes last Christmas seeing her say goodbye to the show with husband Jesse Chadwick

ITV has been contacted by Daily Mail for comment. 

Helen shared a heartwarming goodbye message after her dramatic exit from Coronation Street on Christmas Day last year. 

The soap star took to X to send a video to fans thanking them for following her throughout her time on the ITV show. 

Helen played Gail Platt for half a century and during her time on the show she was married five times, including to Brian Tilsey (Christopher Quinten), who was tragically stabbed to death, and Martin Platt (Sean Wilson), one of the soap’s long-serving characters.

Helen had been at the centre of an array of explosive storylines, including her daughter Sarah’s teenage pregnancy, and the death of her fourth debt-ridden husband Joe McIntyre (Reece Dinsdale) during a failed life insurance scheme.

One of Gail’s most iconic moments came in a 2003 episode when she found out her husband Richard Hillman (Brian Capron) was a serial killer.

But Helen’s final scenes were shown last Christmas in an emotional moment that saw her start ‘day one of her new life’ with husband Jesse Chadwick (John Thompson) abroad.

And following the emotional episode, Helen took to X to thank fans and promised more Platt family storylines to come. 

Now it has been reported she will be making a one-off appearance during this year’s festive episode and that it has already been filmed

Dressed in a smart blue blazer over a bright red turtle neck and sat in her iconic living room, Helen said it had been a pleasure to work on the soap and be part of the Platt family for so long. 

She said: ‘Hello all of you. It’s wonderful to have this opportunity to say ta ta.

‘It’s been a fabulous 50 years and I just wanted to thank all of you some of you who may have been watching for 50 – is there anybody?

‘And those of you who have 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 the stories and of course it’s been wonderful 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.’

Helen’s final episode was as action-packed as her 50 years on the soap had been and the Christmas day storyline saw an engagement, a pregnancy, an arrest, multiple fights and a lot tears. 

Helen’s final scenes were shown last Christmas in an emotional moment that saw her start ‘day one of her new life’ with husband Jesse Chadwick (John Thompson) abroad