The soap icon has addressed her exit as Gail Platt’s final scenes were broadcast on Christmas Day
Helen Worth has issued a farewell message after she officially exited Coronation Street. The soap star’s final scenes as Gail Platt after 50 years were broadcast on tonight’s emotional Christmas Day episode.
The Corrie icon was given a happy ending after many years of hurt as she married Jesse Chadwick, who is played by John Thomson. Gail left Weatherfield for good to start a new life in France as residents on the Cobbles waved her off in tearful scenes.
Helen addressed her exit in a final goodbye message shared on Corrie’s official social media accounts as the credits rolled on tonight’s programme. The 73-year-old said: “Hello, all of you. It’s wonderful to have this opportunity to say, ‘ta ta!’
“It’s been a fabulous fifty years, and I just wanted to thank all of you, some of you who may have been watching for fifty years. Is there anybody?
“And those of you who’ve 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.
“All the stories, and of course, 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. Bye.”
Helen forged close bonds with her ITV co-stars during her time on the show, who were really in tears in the emotional farewell scenes. Jack P Shepherd, who played onscreen son, David Platt, told the ECHO and other press how difficult it was to say goodbye to Gail.
He admitted he struggled to act it out even in rehearsals because he knew there would be tears. Jack told the director “I can’t do it” as he was only going to have “one in him” with the two saying a final goodbye to each other.
Jack also revealed how he initiated a last minute change to Gail’s scene so everybody could be involved in the soap icon’s final scene. He said: “We had a little do on her last scene. Originally, her last scene filming was a scene with me and Julia [Shona] in the Platts’. I went: ‘No, no, her last scene has to be just all of us. Like, we all just have to be in the Platt house’. They said: ‘There isn’t one. There isn’t one where you’re all together.”
“I went: ‘Well write it! You know, you can’. So they went: ‘Yeah, we can’. So they did – they wrote one. I said: ‘We don’t have to be doing anything. We can all be non-speaking. Just make sure we’re all together in the Platt house. For God’s sake, please. For when she finally goes, don’t just have someone random with her or whatever’.
He continued: “Helen wanted to go quietly – she wanted to go out the back door. She didn’t want to create a fuss for people. But I said: ‘It’s not so much for you. It’s not you doing the fanfare and the big farewell. It’s for the building. It’s for everyone’.”
In her exit statement in June, Helen announced she is leaving the show as it felt a suitable way to mark her 50th anniversary since she joined the Cobbles. She said: “This year felt like the perfect time to leave the show after celebrating 50 years in the most wonderful job on the most wonderful street in the world. I made the decision at the start of the year and spoke to the producers, who were very kind and understanding.”
The legendary soap star added: “I have been truly blessed to have been given the most incredible scripts week in week out, and to have worked with fantastic actors, directors and a brilliant crew. The past 50 years have flown by and I don’t think the fact that I am leaving has quite sunk in yet.”
