Prison release revealed as Coronation Street star confirms Christmas return

Looks like he’s out! (Picture: ITV/Danielle Baguley/Shutterstock) Richie Parkinson’s (Nathan Essex) arrival and the sheer calamity that followed certainly gave Coronation Street a shot in the arm this year. Rocking up in Weatherfield as the cousin of beloved street stalwart, Tim Metcalfe (Joe Duttine), the two engaged in a boozy catch up session while Tim’s wife, Sally (Sally Dynevor), spent the night away, and all seemed well. I mean, there was a bit of drama when Richie headed home to wife Rachel, who promptly booted him back out for not telling her where he was, sending him straight back to the Metcalfe house to spend a night on the couch. From there, though, things became truly horrific when Tim headed to Richie’s to return his wallet, and found his cousin in the house with the corpse of his wife. With Richie locked up, Tim and Sally took in his deeply disturbed daughter, Lucy (Anya Dewin), though they’ve realised they may well have bitten off more than they can chew, with her extreme behaviour causing chaos, and something clearly amiss between her and her dad, with the latter insisting that the former ‘stick to the story’. While he’s been off-screen since, Nathan has teased a return to the cobbles, with a picture of him posing outside a festively-decorated Rovers. Nathan captured the image: ‘Very festive in Weatherfield’, with Anya Dewin commenting: ‘Yayyyyyy Dad!!!!!’, and Catherine Tyldesley, who plays land lady of the Rovers, Eva Price adding a string of hands-up emojis. The actor previously teased his return to the show in an interview with BBC Wales: ‘When you get a job like this, they kind of tell you the story arc, but, of course, because it’s a new storyline, I only know stuff up until a certain period. ‘I’ve been kind of given sort of a brief that this is what could happen, but I don’t know myself. Nathan is back on the set (Picture: Mark Bruce/ITV) Ask Metro Use AI to go deeper into the stories you care about – powered by Metro and trusted publications. ‘All I know is it’s quite a big Christmas hook, and you know the dream, I would love to be in Coronation Street on Christmas Day. While you’re tucking into your Ferrero Rochers or your Roses, yes, I’ll be on your screens. I don’t know. Perhaps. Isn’t that the dream?’ Speaking on his joy of working on the ITV soap, Nathan said: ‘To be there, like doing a job there, walking down these famous cobbles, honestly, it really gets to you,’ ‘Corrie means so much to so many people. It is a national institution. We’ve all grown up on it at some point in our lives.’ Christina is trying to bond with Lucy (Picture: Mark Bruce/ITV) The murder of Rachel has taken a further twist in recent weeks, when Christina Boyd (Amy Robbins) confessed to George Shuttleworth (Tony Maudsley) that she was Rachel’s biological mum. ‘She had this child, she was in a very difficult situation, and she gave the baby away as a young woman,’ explained Amy. ‘And that’s absolutely carved out the rest of her life. It’s the reason that she’s never been able to fully commit to her second child. She found mothering Daisy [Midgeley (Charlotte Jordan)] so difficult, because she was feeling so guilty about the first baby that she gave away.’ How will Richie escape prison? (Picture: Danielle Baguley/ITV) Christina has been planning how she can be a part of Lucy’s life, with her taking her for a drink in the café this week. Sally was deeply unimpressed to find them, with Lucy bunking off school, and took Christina to task, promising to speak to social services regarding potential access, but warning Christina to steer well clear until she’s heard from them, reasoning that Lucy is already deeply troubled and not wanting to cause any more trouble. With Nathan filming again on the Corrie set suggests that he’ll be released sooner rather than later, but the question is, who’ll be taking his place in prison? Deals of the Day Kurt Geiger's new Notting Hill collection is a love letter to London's chaotic weather I’ve found the Hoover gadget that could make cleaning your floors so much easier I tried L'Oréal Paris's new PDRN serum and my skin looked glossier after one use This new Cricut gadget turns your favourite photos into stickers in minutes From kitchen hatches to burgundy walls – the biggest home trends for 2027 Arrow MORE: Emmerdale’s Chris Coghill is basically Kev as he buys caravan to live in Arrow MORE: Coronation Street’s Jack P Shepherd’s baby update but ‘ship has sailed’ on key moment Arrow MORE: Emmerdale’s Chris Coghill shares pic with rarely seen daughter as they match up The Soaps Newsletter – Weekly Sign up for exclusive spoilers and interviews, handpicked by our Soaps Editor.