Coronation Street fans stunned by 'extreme' change with the Platts as star 'replaced'

Coronation Street fans were left distracted as they didn't expect to see an 'extreme' change within the Platt clan ahead of matriarch Gail's exit this Christmas.

As viewers of the ITV soap know, actress Helen Worth announced her decision to bow out of her long-running role after 50 years over the summer. She has since filmed her exit scenes as Gail with them set to be aired in the iconic Christmas Day episode on December 25.

During Monday night's (December 9) trip to Weatherfield, Corrie fans saw Gail starting her plans to leave the street she's called home for five decades as she also decided to fast-track her wedding plans to Jesse Chadwick.

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In the scenes, Gail observed her neighbours from a distance and as she stood outside her home, No.8 Coronation Street, which was already put up for sale earlier in the year, and decaided to agree to Jesse's plans to use the money from her house and his divorce to move to France.

She said: "Life goes on and I think I'm ready now to take that step," before instructing him to put an offer on a villa. Then, during Wednesday's (December 11) Corrie, she called a Platt family meeting to break the news to her mother and her children.

Not only was did the revelation that their wedding was just two weeks away cause surprise among her love ones, but adding their plans to head off into the sunset and spend their days in Europe created quite the atompshere.

David was furious, releasing not only was he having to share his birthday with Christmas and his mother's sixth wedding day, but also feeling that his mum had turned her back on him with her plans to leave Weatherfield behind.

But he was soon distracted when his nephew Harry, Sarah's son, emerged from his bedroom clutching a handful of £20 notes that he'd found in the wardrobe, with viewers knowing it's the cash he stole from Harvey Gaskell after Damon Hay planned to give it to Sarah to help Bethany after her botched cosmetic surgery.

The surprise didn't stop there as this time, it was Corrie fans who were stunned to see Harry sporting a more grown-up head as he had been recast. The role is now being played by young actor Carter-J Murphy. The role of Harry was previously shared by twins Freddie and Isaac Rhodes, who have been on screen since 2017, following Harry's birth in 2016.

@LyndseyFitz noted: "Harry’s got a new head!! #Corrie." @swainspeare said: "Wait… THAT’S HARRY???? they’ve aged him up aba five years surely! #corrie." @StuartBeckMP commented: "The Harry Platt recast is a tad extreme. Did they purposefully choose an actor who was the exact opposite of the previous one. #corrie."

@Dee_Cee95x posted: "A new Harry Platt! Or has he just grown up loads in the past year? #Corrie." @dan_thatdan wrote: "Don’t tell me that is HARRY? #corrie." @lbozza17 shared: "Genuinely thought a random child had just wandered into the platts then i remembered it’s Harry with a new head #corrie." @bredrew2 echoed: "I was like, "Who's that little boy tiptoeing around the Platts?" And then it hit me: we got a new Harry! #Corrie." @mikepriestley13 added: "A new Harry platt who finally has a voice! #Corrie."

And some thing he could be a replacement for Mason Radcliffe who is trying to reform from his bullying ways. @keith_fit asked: "Did they just shrink Mason for the new Harry? #Corrie." @tamlizann25 shared: "The new Harry looks like a mini Mason #Corrie a future street terror." @KeeganNufc09 added: "Oh they've recast Harry he looks like he's gonna be absolute trouble #Corrie."