Coronation Street's Damon Hay (Ciarán Griffiths) and Harvey Gaskell (Will Mellor) to return for a “high-octane" and "sexy" storyline

Coronation Street has announced that characters Damon Hay and Harvey Gaskell will both be returning for a “high-octane story" involving Adam and Sarah Barlow after their respective actors Ciarán Griffiths and Will Mellor have signed up to reprise their roles.

The new storyline centres on the unfinished business from Tina O'Brien’s character Sarah's affair with Damon, who was last seen on screen in June when Adam (played by Sam Robertson) ran him out of town.

Speaking during a recent press call, Coronation Street's producer Iain MacLeod said: “We arrive in the new year and Adam and Sarah are rubbing along okay. They're trying to amicably co-parent Harry, as per the agreement when they split up, and it's going alright.

“Then suddenly, 'wallop', Adam finds himself in this nightmarish situation all at the hands of Damon, who's unexpectedly come back. You may remember that he was run out of town by Adam's scheming.

“In our minds, Damon has been somewhere away from Coronation Street plotting his revenge. It arrives as a fairly blunt force on the first episode in the new year.”

Iain continued: “The story then becomes a love triangle. Damon has been spending his intervening months pining for Sarah. I felt there was a really intense feeling between those two – a really natural chemistry and connection.

“Damon comes back with a two-pronged plan. The first is that he wants to get his revenge on Adam. The second is that he wants Sarah back, because he feels like she's the one.

“He will essentially have to contend with the fact that these two plans might not be compatible – can he have his revenge and also have Sarah? The answer might well be 'no', so which one is he going to choose?

“It's a brilliant, exciting, high-octane story. I love those characters. They feel really glossy and really naturally at home in this big Coronation Street storyline.”

Will Mellor’s character Harvey then comes into it as Adam hopes to enlist him in his plan to get rid of Damon.

Harvey, who is himself “no fan” of his half-brother Damon, is currently serving a jail sentence for killing Natasha Blakeman in a case of mistaken identity two years ago.

Iain added: “They might form an unholy alliance. They have a shared problem in the form of Damon and think they can help each other in that regard.

“It's got fantastic actors in it, as all stories do. The storyline is packed full of twists, turns and excitement. Dare I say it in this day and age, but it's quite sexy as well. I think it's got lots of intensity and passion and a whirlwind romance with Damon and Sarah.”

Damon and Harvey’s return comes off the heels of another old favourite – Blackpool’s very own Lucy Fallon, who played Sarah Barlow’s daughter Bethany Platt between 2015 and 2020.

The 27-year-old mum of one begun filming for the ITV soap again in October and her scenes are expected to air towards the end of the year.

In a video shared to X (Twitter) by Coronation Street, Lucy said: “Hello everyone, it’s me Bethany. It’s my first day back filming today. I’m very excited, a little bit nervous and I can’t wait for you all to see what Bethany is up to. Bye!”