CORONATION Street icon Sue Devaney is said to have been furious when she discovered she was being killed off.
Debbie Webster, who Sue has played for 40 years, will die as part of a long-running new health storyline that is set to take centre stage in the ITV soap opera for 2025.
The sister of Kevin Webster will be diagnosed with dementia in harrowing upcoming scenes.
And it seems news of her exit left the actress blindsided, with a source telling The Sun: “Sue was very shocked when she discovered she was being killed off.
“She was initially very sad and then furious and then upset again. It’s taken her a long time to come to terms with it.
“She had no intention to leave the show and couldn’t believe it when they called her in and broke the news.”
An insider added: “Sue is a total professional and is already putting her all into what she sees as hugely important long running storyline.
“She saw the positive impact of the MND storyline and hopes that her dementia story can have the same effect and raise awareness of the condition.”
Debbie originally joined the cast in 1984 at 15 years old but remained for only a year.
Actress Sue then reprised the role in 2019 and has remained with the programme ever since.
She has become a firm favourite with fans over the past few years with many heralding her as one of the soap’s greatest comedy characters of recent years.
She is best known for being the owner of the Charriott Square Hotel and for her involvement with evil businessman Ray Crosby and his once planned takeover of the entire street.
Sue has made no secret about how much she loves the job and back in 2021 told The Sun: “I absolutely love playing her.
“When I first came back, I never imagined I would be around for that length of time and I am delighted.
“Every day when I drive into work, I have a big grin on my face. I am so happy to be here.
“When I get to work with new people I haven’t worked with before that I have watched on screen, I am so excited.
“She is such a fun character to play.”
The news of Sue’s shock exit comes as budget cuts across the soaps have meant bosses have been forced to take tough decisions regarding cast members.
The stars are becoming increasingly worried about paying their mortgages as permanent contracts are now few and far between.
A source said: “The cast of Corrie is huge and some aren’t getting enough episodes.
Dementia – the most common form of which is Alzheimer’s – comes on slowly over time.
As the disease progresses, symptoms can become more severe.
But at the beginning, the symptoms can be subtle or mistaken for normal memory issues related to ageing.
The US National Institute on Aging gives some examples of what is considered normal forgetfulness in old age, and dementia disease.
You can refer to these above.
For example, it is normal for an ageing person to forget which word to use from time-to-time, but difficulting having conversation would be more indicative of dementia.
Katie Puckering, Head of Alzheimer’s Research UK’s Information Services team, previously told The Sun: “We quite commonly as humans put our car keys somewhere out of the ordinary and it takes longer for us to find them.
“As you get older, it takes longer for you to recall, or you really have to think; What was I doing? Where was I? What distracted me? Was it that I had to let the dog out? And then you find the keys by the back door.
“That process of retrieving the information is just a bit slower in people as they age.
“In dementia, someone may not be able to recall that information and what they did when they came into the house.
“What may also happen is they might put it somewhere it really doesn’t belong. For example, rather than putting the milk back in the fridge, they put the kettle in the fridge.”
“A few paid per episode are struggling to pay mortgages are having to supplement income with personal appearances and ads on Instagram.”
They went on: “A lot of cast members are now on ‘guest contracts’ like Maureen Lipman and Kate Ford.
“These are short term, so they can come and go and take extended breaks.
“The cast have been told they can’t guarantee any contracts beyond the end of 2025.
“Bosses are trying to use a lot of the younger cast who are on less money so the episodes are cheaper to make.”
ITVX won't host early episodes for some days, but soap bosses have yet to confirm which dates won't have an early release
Monday December 23 – 8pm ITV1 & ITVX
Tuesday December 24 – 8:45pm ITV1 & ITVX
Christmas Day – 7pm ITV1 & ITVX
Boxing Day – No episode
Friday December 27 – 8pm ITV1 & ITVX
Monday December 30 – 8pm ITV1 & ITVX
Tuesday December 31 – 8:15pm ITV1 & ITVX
New Year’s Day – 7pm ITV1 & ITVX
