Coronation Street spoilers follow from Tuesday's episode (December 24), which is available to watch now on streaming service ITVX but hasn't yet aired on ITV1.
Coronation Street has aired an eerie return scene for dead character Richard Hillman.
Brian Capron has reprised his role as the iconic soap villain, who came back to haunt his former wife Gail Rodwell in the Christmas Eve episode.
The creepy scene came as Gail faced a major crossroads in her life ahead of her planned Christmas Day wedding.
Early in the episode, Gail and her fiancé Jesse Chadwick headed to the Rovers Return for a farewell party, but the happy occasion was derailed by Audrey Roberts.
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Still convinced that her daughter was making a terrible mistake by marrying Jesse, Audrey spitefully warned Gail that her new partner was keeping secrets from her.
With the party ruined before it had even begun, Gail and Jesse headed home to talk things through in private.
Jesse reluctantly came clean over his risky decision to help Gail's son David by laundering Damon Hay and Harvey Gaskell's stolen money.
Gail was stunned that David would endanger the Platts by stealing from dangerous gangsters – while Jesse also faced her wrath for hiding the truth from her.
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These weren't the only revelations that Gail had to deal with, as David decided to expose Audrey's recent efforts to manipulate her with a fake illness.
Feeling badly betrayed by three of the most important people in her life, Gail kicked Jesse, David and Audrey out of the Platt house.
As Gail pondered her future, she looked through an old photo album before drifting in and out of sleep on the sofa.
Suddenly, Gail was confronted by a mystery intruder in the living room. This turned out to be a vision of her third husband Richard, who menacingly greeted her.
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Richard is thought to be back on the show for a dream sequence, which forms part of Gail's exit storyline.
Brian Capron originally played Richard between 2001 and 2003. The sinister character's serial killer storyline was one of Corrie's most successful sagas, culminating in his watery demise when he drove the Platts into a canal.
News that Richard would make a cameo first leaked earlier this month.
Gail will leave the show in the hour-long Christmas Day episode tomorrow.
Coronation Street airs on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 8pm on ITV1 and streams on ITVX.
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