Coronation Street icon Gail Platt to leave on Christmas Day as boss reveals 'sad' exit scenes

Coronation Street's new boss Kate Brooks told The Mirror what leads to Gail Platt's 'sad' exit from the ITV soap which will air on Christmas Day, with 'secrets' exposed

It will be a "sad" Christmas Day for Coronation Street viewers this year, as ITV soap legend Gail Platt will be departing in the big festive episode.

Corrie boss Kate Brooks has confirmed Helen Worth's final scenes on the show feature on Christmas Day, around a series of bombshells and twists and turns. It's going to be a huge ep, that will result in Gail leaving Weatherfield behind for good.

Helen has played the soap icon for 50 years, with her exit leaving co-stars and viewers devastated. Now the time has come to wave goodbye to the Platt matriarch, as she features in "wonderful" yet "sad" scenes on December 25, set against the backdrop of her wedding to Jesse Chadwick.

According to Kate, fans will be "crying and gasping" over what unravels. Fans wanting to watch the episode first thing on Christmas morning will be left disappointed, as bosses have chosen not to stick with the stream-first format for the special scenes.

Kate told The Mirror: "[The episode is] set against Gail’s wedding, whether she goes through with that or not, I cannot tell anything. But this is a story with the Platts at the heart of it, it’s really festive, basically it’s a story about family and how secrets impact and implode on a family.

"So there’s a lot of betrayals, lots of secrets are exposed during this episode and it will be like classic Corrie with a bit of a twist. [We want] to make sure that we give glorious Gail the exit that she deserves."

Helen announced her shocking exit from the ITV soap earlier this year, releasing a moving statement in June. She confirmed after 50 years that now was the time for her to depart, and more recently she filmed her final scenes before enjoying a leaving do with her much-loved co-stars.

Speaking about Gail's final episodes, confirming the Christmas Day departure, Kate told us: "She’s been such an icon on the street for such a long time. 50 years of television, which is amazing. We can’t tell a story on Christmas Day about her exit without it feeling and being steeped in nostalgia.

"There’s tons of nostalgia in this episode and hopefully people will be crying, they’ll be laughing, there’ll be gasps as people watching it go, ‘Oh my goodness, that’s just happened’ but yeah, old school Corrie but just with a real modern twist and I think people will really, really enjoy it."

There's set to be some big bombshells too, with Kate spilling that "secrets come to the forefront", with Gail about to find out she's been betrayed by those closest to her. She's left questioning whether she can go through with her wedding, and by the end of the episode we'll see Gail bidding farewell to Coronation Street in scenes said to be "wonderful and sad".

Confirming her decision to leave the show in June, actress Helen 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. 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."

Coronation Street airs Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 8pm on ITV1 and ITV X.* Follow Mirror Celebs and TV on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .