Helen Worth will leave U.K. soap ‘Coronation Street’ after 50 years of a fictional family’s drama. Fans wonder if her character will get a happy ending.
“Coronation Street” actor Helen Worth is leaving her role as the Platt family matriarch after 50 years on Britain’s longest-running television show.
“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,” the 73-year-old actor said in a statement from network ITV. “I made the decision at the start of the year and spoke to the producers who were very kind and understanding.”
As filming begins on her final scenes as Gail Rodwell, ITV called Worth’s upcoming departure “a major storyline for the Platt family.” Those scenes will air this fall.
Worth’s decades-long tenure on the show — on which she started as the character Gail Potter and by marriage ran through the surnames Tilsley, Platt, Hillman, McIntyre and Rodwell — has run more than 4,450 episodes. Gail saw “Coronation Street” through some of its most exciting and controversial plotlines.
The actor’s first years on the show featured Gail’s messy teen years, including losing her virginity to a married man.
