There are a few new additions arriving on the cobbles shortly as Coronation Street is expanding the cast ahead of the extra episode being added to the schedule this year.

First up, Weatherfield's current resident villain Pat Phelan will have some family members joining him soon, which we suppose means he will be hanging around causing trouble for a while longer. Pat soon finds out he has a daughter called Nicola who shows up shortly, and not only that, but she has a son. Perhaps being a dad and grandad will stop Phelan conning and killing people for a while, although we won't hold our breath.

Mary will also have some family joining her, as her long-lost son Jude (funny how they all have long-lost children in soaps), who was in Coronation Street briefly last year, will return to the cobbles as a cast regular alongside the rest of his family.

Their arrivals also follow the expansion of quite a few families in Corrie, as former Emmerdale producer Kate Oates has taken the helm recently and believes "family relationships are the lifeblood of soap operas", bringing back Toyah Battersby, most of the Barlows, and even Sally Webster's sister.

Via The Sun