Coronation Street’s John Thomson reveals Jesse’s future with Eileen Grimshaw as he returns to soap
CORRIE star John Thomson has revealed Jesse Chadwick’s future with Eileen Grimshaw.
The actor will make a huge comeback to the long-running ITV serial drama as part of Helen Worth’s exit storyline.
Bosses at Coronation Street were forced to hastily rewrite scenes after Sean Wilson stepped back for “personal reasons.”
He was meant to come back onto the cobbles to reprise the role of Martin Platt, who was widely thought to be the most successful of Gail’s five marriages.
John will once again appear on the street in his place as Jesse, 14 years after his last appearance and a lot of unanswered questions.
During his first stint, the character was known for his relationship with Eileen Grimshaw (Sue Cleaver).
Now the actor has revealed what’s in store for the duo and it’s clear there might be tension ahead.
“He’s not really prepared to see Eileen after things ended so badly between them,” he explained.
“When Jesse left he’d been spreading his bets over two sisters, which is slightly morally bankrupt to say the least.
“He’s changed dramatically because he’s very remorseful for that behaviour, so for him to think that Eileen would even contemplate having him back after he made a play for her sister is not on his radar.”
He added: “I don’t think the new Jesse could possibly entertain that there would ever be anything with Eileen again because of his actions in the past.”
As it turns out, Jesse and Gail were reintroduced to each other when she was on her travels in Thailand.
And he’s now come back to Weatherfield once he received word that Bethany (Lucy Fallon) suffered some medical complications.
John admitted: “He met Gail in Thailand, he’s heard about Bethany and he’s very worried.
“So on his travels he’s returned via Weatherfield to check on Gail, because they’ve stayed in touch via email.
“He’s heard all about Bethany and he’s very concerned for Gail.
Gail's biggest Corrie storylines
Over the years the character of Gail Platt has been the centre of several major plots.
Here we take a look back over actress Helen Worth’s biggest storylines:
Teenage daughter’s pregnancy
One of Gail’s most controversial storylines was in 1999.
It came when her 13-year-old daughter Sarah became pregnant.
Multiple marriages
Gail holds the record for the series’ most married female character.
She has been wed a whopping six times, each one worse the last.
Married to a serial killer
One of Gail’s multiple marriages saw her wed Richard Hillman, who turned out to be a serial killer.
At the climax of the storyline, 19 million fans tuned in to watch Hillman drive his wife and her family into a canal.
Scrapping on The Street
Gail has proved over the years she can’t resist a good scrap.
Her most memorable bust-up saw her attack Eileen Grimshaw on the cobbles in 2004 while in her dressing gown.
Jail bird
In 2010, Gail found herself wrongly banged up in jail.
She was wrongfully arrested for murdering her 4th husband Joe McIntyre.
Jesse is set to roll back into town just as his ex Eileen Grimshaw returns to Weatherfied.
She will be absolutely stunned to see him, but even more shocked when she discovers he has not come to see her, and is looking for her neighbour and nemesis Gai.
And the surprises keep coming when Gail and Jesse reveal that they met each other when Gail was travelling a few years ago and have kept in touch.
But is there more to Gail and Jesse’s friendship than meets the eye and is he being entirely truthful about his reasons for getting back in touch?
He’s not really prepared to see Eileen after things ended so badly between them.
John Thomson
Knowing Jesse’s past history with Eileen, Gail’s family are understandably suspicious of his motives and they could be set for more conflict.
The actor also revealed that his character comes with baggage and even remarried in the time he’s been away from the soap.
“Well he did remarry, but that didn’t work out,” the star revealed. “He was also badly let down by a friend which culminated in him being left in some dire circumstances.”
John added: “So as a means to reinvent himself he started to travel the world to, as they say, find himself.”
Coronation Street's 2024 shock exits
Corrie has said goodbye to several cast members this year. Let's break down who's left the famous soap:
Eliza Woodrow (Savannah Kunyo) has said farewell to Corrie to start a new life in Germany.
The youngster moved to live with her dad Dom Everett, who went back on the £10,000 bribe Eliza’s grandfather Stu had offered to keep him out of her life.
Paul Foreman (Peter Ash) will bow out of the soap this summer when he loses his fight with motor neurone disease (MND) in tragic scenes.
After being diagnosed last year, the fan favourite was devastated to learn he only had months left to live.
Viewers know he is planning to take his own life to end his suffering.
Summer Spellman (Harriet Bibby) departed the cobbles after being offered the opportunity of a lifetime to study in America.
Though she struggled to decide with her stepdad Paul’s impending death from MND, she was convinced she had to live her life to the full.
Simon Barlow (Alex Bain) has struggled with the sudden departure of his father Peter from the cobbles.
The Weatherfield legend left his family and loved ones behind on Boxing Day, 2023, when his wife Carla Connor encouraged him to travel around the world with a friend.
Simon’s been on a downward spiral ever since and his exit could end in tragedy.
Alya Nazir is set to leave the cobbles as actress Sair Khan prepares to go on maternity leave ahead of the birth of her first child.
It looks likely she’ll be heading to Dublin after securing a lucrative new job, leaving her colleague and fling Adam Barlow behind.
Show stalwart Sue Cleaver, who plays Eileen Grimshaw, is taking a break to star in the Sister Act The Musical UK tour. She will be back filming in May once her dates on the tour come to an end.
Her character left the Street after her son Jason broke his back after falling off a moped in Asia.
Coronation Street is available to watch on ITV1 and stream on ITVX.