Actress Helen Flanagan could be set to return to Coronation Street after soap bosses reportedly begged her to come back.
The mum-of-two has been on maternity leave since last summer and gave birth to daughter Delilah, her second child with footballer fiancé Scott Sinclair, in June.
According to The Sun on Sunday, Corrie producers held crisis talks after Lucy Fallon became the seventh star to quit the show in just three months and they are keen for Helen to return as Rosie Webster.
A source told the paper, “Things are pretty bleak behind the scenes.
“Bosses want to bring joy back, on and off screen. The plan is to bring back one or two high-profile stalwarts who are a hit with older viewers.
“They’re keen for Helen to sign after maternity leave. But producers will not budge on the gruelling schedule, and will continue the shock ‘modern’ storylines, even if they risk alienating older viewers.”
Legendary character Curly Watts, played by Kevin Kennedy, is also rumoured to return as producers look to revive the ITV soap amid a mass exodus, which has seen some of the show’s biggest stars jump ship.
“No one has been particularly happy since former show boss Kate Oates left,” a source told The Sun.
“There are lots of scheduling issues and the workload has become very difficult to manage with six episodes a week.
“There are now lots of unhappy people who are jumping ship but many of them are ‘putting a spin on it’ publicly because they don’t want to upset their mates left trying to save the show.
“It’s not a great time to work on the show."
Check out this week's Corrie spoilers:
Coronation Street spoilers: week 19 SLIDER
Coronation Street spoilers
After chatting with Tracy, Mary is suspicious of Freda when she catches her showing estate agents round No.3.
Coronation Street spoilers
Barging into the house, Mary is horrified to find an urn on the mantle piece, and in a moment of madness believes Tracy's teasing that perhaps Freda has done away with Norris...
Coronation Street spoilers
A scuffle ensues, but as Mary has poor Freda in a headlock outside the front door a taxi pulls up, and who should jump out but Norris himself!
Coronation Street spoilers
Baffled at the scene in front of him, Norris can't believe that the two women in his life are fighting over him.
Coronation Street spoilers
Norris invites Mary into Number 3 where he explains that he and Freda are engaged and he wants a divorce so that they can marry, but Mary isn't so sure.
Coronation Street spoilers
Explaining that she still cares for him – not to mention is suspicious of Freda's motives – Mary tells Norris that she won't agree to a divorce.
Coronation Street spoilers
Meanwhile, Dev makes a surprise visit to Primer Doner where he's furious to find Gemma with her feet up watching a film, and Tim helping himself behind the counter.
Coronation Street spoilers
Dev decides to make an example of Gemma and Tim, and tells Asha and Aadi that how well they do at school will affect their futures – and their pocket money.
Coronation Street spoilers
Later on at the Bistro, Dev needs a serious chat with the twins after receiving a call from the school telling him Asha has skipped her exams. When Aadi reveals she spends all her time on snapchat instead of studying, Dev is livid.
Coronation Street spoilers
At Speed Dahl, everyone is preparing for a big weekend party and Ryan is thrilled that Bethany has secured him a gig DJing at the event – if a little nervous!
Coronation Street spoilers
But commotion ensues when Geoff fumes at Yasmeen, insisting that he used to be a DJ too, and why didn't they employ him?
Coronation Street spoilers
Geoff and Yasmeen's relationship is under strain when she finds out that Geoff asked Tim to cancel coming round for dinner, and he accuses her of doing anything she can to avoid spending time alone with him.
Coronation Street spoilers
Touched by Bethany's efforts to secure him a gig and big him up, Ryan gets her alone to thank her and as they flirt, he moves in for a kiss...
Coronation Street spoilers
Rejected by Bethany, Ryan grows closer to Alya when she tells him she's impressed by his DJing, and wants to book him in for a regular slot at the restaurant.
Coronation Street spoilers
The conversation quickly turns flirty, and when Ryan asks Alya out on a date, she agrees.
Coronation Street spoilers
Feeling that she owes him an explanation, Bethany invites Ryan over to the flat above the salon and tells him that she'd been too nervous to kiss him before.
Coronation Street spoilers
As she bares all to Ryan, the two of them end up sharing a kiss, but Ryan feels guilty as his thoughts turn to Alya.
Coronation Street spoilers
Later on, when Alya sees Ryan and Bethany together, she's hurt that he's played them, and Ryan begs her not to tell Bethany that he asked her out.
Coronation Street spoilers
Meanwhile, Freda shows Rita a pile of letters for Mary that Norris has kept at number 4, and when it transpires that they are from Brendan, Freda worries Norris still has feelings for Mary.
Coronation Street spoilers
When Norris insists that he was only keeping the letters to stop Mary from getting hurt by Brendan, Freda is having none of it, and accuses him of caring for Mary more than her.
Coronation Street spoilers
Elsewhere, Sally is back in touch with Paula and when she passes on the news that she's meeting her for lunch at the Bistro, Sophie feels betrayed.
Coronation Street spoilers
But when Sophie and Paula bump into each other at Speed Dahl later on, it's clear that the two of them have missed each other.
Coronation Street spoilers
In the moment, Paula invites Sophie along to a pony trekking holiday she's going on in Spain. When Sophie agrees and brings Paula over to the house, Sally is thrilled to see they're back together.
Coronation Street spoilers
And it seems like Tim is finally getting on board with Sally's healthy lifestyle regimen, as he proudly shows off his new gym gear and suggests they go for a power walk together.
Another report by the Mirror also suggests that even more stars are planning to leave the soap.
“I know of another half dozen actors who are considering their positions,” said an insider.
“The bosses have had a series of meetings to discuss the situation, but don’t seem to have come up with any concrete plans. They've got this old-school mindset of ‘no one is bigger than Corrie’.”
Coronation Street continues weeknights on ITV.
NOW WATCH: Zac Efron and Lily Collins warn people about dangers of dating and say they love escape rooms!
If you’re a sucker for the Spice Girls and love a bit of One Direction, you need heat Radio in your life. We’re online at heatradio.com. You can still get us on the free app on your Android, iPhone or tablet. Tune in on Freeview channel 716 on the telly or get us on your smart speaker by asking it to "play heat radio."