Coronation Street has signed West End star Frances Barber, 68, in what insiders call a 'huge coup' for the ITV soap – as fan favourite Mollie Gallagher prepares to leave the cobbles for a stage role.
Barber, whose career spans 48 years on stage and screen, will appear as a guest star playing a relative of Bernie Winter (Jane Hazlegrove). A show insider told The Sun: 'With her pedigree, bagging Frances is a huge coup for Corrie bosses. She's an iconic actress who steals every scene she's in. It's only a guest role for now but who knows what could happen in the future.'
“Coronation Street signs Frances Barber as Mollie Gallagher exits for a theatre tour.”
The actress, a veteran of Doctor Who, Silk, Cold Feet, Friday Night Dinner and Benidorm, joins a roster of theatrical legends who have appeared on the soap, including Sir Ian McKellen, Sir Patrick Stewart, Sir Ben Kingsley, Joanna Lumley and Miriam Margolyes.
Meanwhile, Mollie Gallagher, who has played Roy Cropper's niece Nina Lucas since 2019, is leaving the soap after six and a half years. The actor won Best Serial Performance at the National Television Awards in 2021 for her role in a hate crime storyline.
A Coronation Street spokesperson said: 'Mollie has created a unique and well-loved character in Nina over the past six and a half years and everyone will be sorry to see her go. It is fantastic for Mollie that she has been given this incredible opportunity to play such an iconic role and we wish her all the best for the theatre tour.'
Gallagher's new role is on a theatre tour, though further details have not been released.