Coronation Street has confirmed Simon Barlow’s (Alex Bain) exit story – and it involves his dad Peter (Chris Gascoyne).
Alex, 22, has teased his departure from the long-running ITV soap for months in a series of Instagram posts declaring how much he’ll miss working there.
Last month, he had a leaving party that was attended by a wealth of current and former Coronation Street cast members.
Next week, his final storyline begins to play out as sneaky cult leader Rowan Cunliffe (Emrhys Cooper) tries to convince him to head to an Altovalent Institute retreat.
Exactly what these retreats involve, we have no idea, but it probably involves some reality coding nonsense that he’s drummed into Simon’s adoptive mum Leanne Battersby (Jane Danson) for months.
Viewers will remember that the pair first met Rowan at the Chariot Square Hotel, after Simon was handed a drink driving conviction and heard about Rowan’s ‘self-help classes’.
He had hit the bottle in the wake of Peter’s exit, who had left to work on a yacht and didn’t manage to say goodbyes to his son.
Both Simon and Leanne were charmed by Rowan’s demeanour and in return, he showered in the glow of their flattering comments, inviting them both back to the hotel for further seminars.
Leanne became transfixed on pouring her heart out to him, spending hundreds of pounds and telling him about her past as a sex worker and the death of her son Oliver.
She even admitted that she could never love Simon in the same way.
This week, Leanne darted off without saying her goodbyes to the family, something which troubled Simon and caused him to fall off the wagon.
In upcoming scenes, Nick (Ben Price) tries to contact her but finds that she’s shut herself off from the world, and instead he reaches out to Rowan in the hope he can get through to her.
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Immediately dismissive, he suggests that Simon joins Leanne at the retreat and he begins to pack his bags.
Nick and Toyah (Georgia Taylor) plead with him not to go, and are forced to contact Peter in an act of desperation.
Simon’s taken aback when Peter offers him a job on the yacht – and accepts the opportunity. At the café, he excitedly shows Carla some pictures of his dad on his travels, but she is left heartbroken to realise he’s found a new partner.
Will Simon finally get his happily ever after, or will there be further turmoil with Leanne when she returns?
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