Coronation Street star Tina O’Brien cut a casual figure on Saturday as she was pictured leaving her gym in Manchester.
The 40-year-old actress – who plays Sarah Platt in the long-running ITV soap – was spotted for the first time since her on-screen mother Helen Worth left the cobbles earlier this week after 50 incredible years.
Tina looked sporty in a Dalmatian print sports bra and burgundy gym shorts for the intense training session.
She wore a chunky knit cream cardigan with striped panels on the sleeves and the number 78 as she walked to her car.
The soap star completed the look with a pair of pastel sneakers and white Nike socks, and further accessorized with a pair of gold statement earrings.
Coronation Street star Tina O’Brien cut a casual figure on Saturday as she was pictured leaving her gym in Manchester
The 40-year-old actress – who plays Sarah Platt in the long-running ITV soap – was spotted for the first time since her on-screen mum Helen Worth (left) left the cobbles earlier this week
Tina looked fantastic as she wore a Dalmatian print sports bra and burgundy gym shorts for the intense training session
Tina hit the gym makeup-free and tied her blonde locks into a loose bun that allowed her bangs to frame her petite features.
She carried her essentials in a large black gym bag and seemed in good spirits after completing her workout.
It comes after 73-year-old Helen Worth, who portrays Gail Platt as a fan favorite in the hit soap, gave up her role after successfully portraying the character for 50 years from 1974.
The news devastated fans across the UK and some took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to speculate how her character’s storyline would end.
One fan begged: ‘Oh please let her go to Thailand. Please don’t kill her.’;
“How are they going to wrap up the Gail character, will they kill her off, will they leave it open for her to show up here and there, where does that leave Audrey? So many questions.’;
“Oh god, I’ll miss her. Another great actress is leaving. Please give her a happy ending.’;
‘It’s better that you don’t kill that character. That would be a sloppy way for such an old character.’;
She wore a chunky knit cream cardigan with striped panels on the sleeves and the number 78 as she walked to her car.
She completed the look with a pair of pastel sneakers and white Nike socks, and further accessorized with a pair of gold statement earrings
The actress also embraced her natural beauty as she went makeup-free and seemed in good spirits after completing her workout
‘Please let her have a happy ending! A nice husband who isn’t a serial killer who she can run away with. For that I would pay attention to Corrie again.’
It has not yet been revealed how Helen’s character Gail will leave the show, but ITV confirmed that she will start filming her exit story next month and that the ’emotional’ scenes will hit screens at the end of this year.
Sharing the news of her departure, Helen said: ‘This year felt like the perfect time to leave the show after celebrating 50 years in the most beautiful job on the most beautiful street in the world.’
‘I made the decision at the beginning of this year and spoke to the producers, who were very kind and understanding.’
“I have been truly blessed to have been given the most incredible scripts week in and week out and to have worked with fantastic actors, directors and a brilliant crew.”
“The last fifty years have flown by and I don’t think the fact that I’m leaving has fully sunk in yet.”
Fortunately, Helen hasn’t had as dramatic a life as her character, once admitting that she’d be “in a mental institution” if her life was anything like Gail’s.
She added: ‘I come home and see friends and go to the theatre. Luckily I find it quite easy to switch off; I’d be a nervous wreck if I didn’t.’
She was also pictured toting her essentials around in a large black gym bag as she got into her car
It comes after Helen Worth, 73, – who portrays Gail Platt as a fan favorite in the hit soap – gave up her role after successfully portraying the character for 50 years from 1974 (pictured with Christopher Quinten in 1979)
Half a century after she first walked onto the cobbles, viewers see Helen say goodbye to the streets in a major storyline for her family, including son Nick Tilsley (Ben Price), daughter Sarah Platt (Tina O’Brien), son David Platt (Jack P. Shepherd), granddaughter Bethany Platt (Lucy Fallon) and Gail’s mother Audrey Roberts (Sue Nicholls).
Executive producer Iain Macleod added: “The words ‘legend’ and ‘icon’ get thrown around a lot these days, but they really apply to Gail and Helen Worth.”
‘But given her humility, I know Helen won’t thank me if I say that! In Helen’s hands, Gail has been a huge part of Coronation Street for five decades and central to some of its most memorable storylines – often stemming from her catastrophic bad luck in choosing husbands!’
‘Her ill-fated marriage to Richard Hillman was one of the most groundbreaking stories in soap history and cemented Gail’s already established status as one of Corrie’s greats.’
“As the matriarch of the Platt clan, her loving, prickly relationships with her children and volatile mother Audrey embody what makes the show great: complicated family dynamics brought impeccably to life by Helen’s dramatic and comedic chops, alongside those of her fictional clan.
The news devastated fans across the UK and some took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to speculate how her character’s storyline would end.
‘Gail has provided us with countless hours of entertainment, but it must also be said that Helen herself is a consummate professional and a good egg through and through.’
“Everyone involved with the show will miss having her around as much as viewers will miss having her on their screens, and we wish her all the best for the future.”
Helen made her debut as young Gail in 1974 and was soon followed by her desperate mother Audrey (played by Sue Nicholls).
In her nearly 50-year run on the soap, she has been married five times, including to Brian Tilsey (Christopher Quinten), who was tragically stabbed to death, and Martin Platt (Sean Wilson), one of the soap’s long-serving characters.
Helen was also at the center of a series of explosive storylines, including the teenage pregnancy of her daughter Sarah (Tina O’Brien) and the death of her fourth debt-ridden husband Joe McIntyre (Reece Dinsdale) during a life insurance policy gone wrong.
It has not yet been revealed how Helen’s character Gail will leave the show, but ITV confirmed that she will start filming her exit story next month and that the ’emotional’ scenes will hit screens at the end of this year.