Coronation Street: Richard Hillman returns to surprise Gail Platt on the eve of her wedding on Christmas Day

Coronation Street will see the return of one of its most feared characters this Christmas – as Richard Hillman appears to return from the dead to persuade his former wife Gail Platt not to marry her latest love.

The two characters, portrayed by Brian Capron and Helen Worth, will meet again 20 years on from Hillman’s fatal canal car crash, in which he tried to murder his wife Gail, her two children Sarah and David, and her grandchild Bethany.

Though Gail and her family survived the ordeal, which unfolded after Hillman was unmasked as a serial killer, her husband met a watery grave.

Despite a string of failed marriages in the following years, Gail is hoping sixth time is a charm as she prepares to walk down the aisle on Christmas Day with her new beau Jesse, played by John Thomson.

But she gets the shock of her life when her former husband, whom she once described as “Norman Bates with a briefcase” turns up in her living room on Christmas Eve.

The thrilling scenes, which were filmed in top secret, sees Gail battle with her emotions as she faces her past while contemplating her future.

Viewers will be left wondering if Gail can go through with her sixth marriage, or if the spectre from her past is enough to make her jilt Jesse at the altar.

Brian Capron, who returned to the cobbles for the first time in over 20 years to film the scenes, said: “It was a lovely experience, they’ve written a very clever scene. It’s a very tricky thing to bring a character back from the dead but I think the writers thought very carefully about how to do it and they’ve come up trumps.

“For me it’s got the right kind of dark humour which there always was with Richard Hillman which I love but also a slight hint of menace. I thought they balanced it perfectly.”

It comes as Helen Worth bows out of Coronation Street after portraying Gail for 50 years.

Capron added that working alongside each other again was a great experience, adding: “I think we have a very special relationship which is why the Hillman storyline worked out so beautifully.

“I never wanted it to look like he was a really bad, horrible person so we worked very hard on making it a very loving relationship. It gave a lot of dimension to the character, thanks to Helen, so it was great to be back with her for the day.”

Coronation Street will air on Christmas Day on STV at 7pm and on STV Player.