The actor wanted to thank fans of the ITV soap for their support as he bowed out after six years

Coronation Street has shared Peter Ash’s final message to fans as he told them Paul Foreman’s story and his time on the famous cobbles had ‘come to an end’ after heartbreaking scenes.

Viewers of the ITV soap were left in tears on Monday night (September 9) as Paul died, 17 months after being diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease, the life-limiting illness that affects 5,000 adults in the UK at any one time and for which there is currently no cure.

After months of watching his decline, Bernie Winter and Summer Spellman called for help as Paul struggled to breathe. After being rushed to the hospital, doctors informed his family there was nothing more they could do but make him comfortable.

Meanwhile, viewers were pleading for a miracle as Paul’s husband Billy Mayhew wasn’t around, having gone out out desperately looking for his lost phone with the help of David Platt.

Back at the hospital, Bernie, Summer and Paul’s sister Gemma Winter-Brown headed in to say their emotional goodbyes to Paul with Billy still trying to make it to the hospital in time.

But in a tragic turn of events, Billy didn’t make it to the hospital in time to fulfil his promise of being by Paul’s side when the time came, thinking he’d only managed to say he loved him one last time over the phone.

However, as viewers of the ITV soap know, Paul had already passed as Summer Spellman got Billy, who was running to the hospital after getting trapped in traffic in Frescho’s car park, on the phone. Paul’s mum Bernie encouraged Billy to say what he needed to Paul while Summer and Gemma watched on with devastation.

Soon after, Billy arrived and was heartbroken to see a doctor confirming Paul was gone before bursting into the room and taking his husband in his arms for one last time.

Following the scenes, Corrie shared a video message from Peter as he thanked fans for their support throughout the storyline. He said in the clip filmed on the cobbles in the Victoria Gardens part of the set: “Helle everyone, it’s Pete Ash here! So, my time on Corrie has come to an end.

“So I just wanted to say thank you to everyone for the support you’ve given me over the years with the storylines I’ve done. I really appreciate it. We’d be nothing without our fans, so thank you very much. I have had the time of my life filming Corrie. I’m going to miss everyone but I’m excited to see what’s next.”

He rounded off his message by adding: “So, from the bottom of my heart, I just want to say thank you to everyone for watching over the years.”