James Bailey has just made a return back to Coronation Street, which has prompted fans to wonder if Aggie will also come back.
Dee-Dee’s brother James came back to the cobbles last night (Monday, March 17) after a recast.
But, will Aggie return back to the Bailey family as well? Here’s why Lorna Laidlaw’s return appears to be ‘off the table.’
Coronation Street: James Bailey’s return
Last night in Weatherfield, Dee-Dee’s younger brother James returned to the cobbles to visit her.
James had surprised his sister before asking her how she was coping with her pregnancy.
Dee-Dee was delighted to see James, finding out that he’d given up football and was considering coaching.
The reunion was then put on hold though when Dee-Dee had to rush off to the hospital. She was then told that the hospital had found another donor match for Frankie. So, they wouldn’t have to wait until her baby was born.
Back in Dee-Dee’s flat, James made a secret phone call, plucking up the courage to speak to his sister about a certain topic…
The character of James has been recast and is now played by actor Jason Callender, taking over the role from Nathan Graham.
Fans desperate for Aggie Bailey return to Weatherfield
With one member of the Bailey family back on screen once more, fans are now wondering if another will soon follow.
Fans may remember that James, Michael, and Dee-Dee’s mum Aggie ‘mysteriously’ left the soap in the summer of 2023 as the character went to Birmingham to look after a sick aunt. She then went on to break up with husband Ed over the phone as a result of his gambling addiction.
But, now that James has returned, fans are hopeful that Aggie will be next.
One fan commented: “Why hasn’t Aggie Bailey been recast too? Would she really leave her daughter alone after the whole Joel murder/Lauren storyline and daughter now having his baby? She needs a mum and has done for a while. Why recast James but not Aggie? Makes no sense at all.”
Another viewer added: “If they can recast James Bailey as easy as that, why can’t they also recast Aggie as well? Or is Lorna Laidlaw ever coming back… It’s all a bit mysterious…”
A third person shared: “The Baileys have a new James. Will they be getting a new Aggie too?”
A fourth fan agreed: “Why does no one ask where Aggie is? She has been gone almost two years now. I guess she will be the next one to come back with a different head.”
A final viewer finished: “Don’t recognise James, I was hoping Aggie was back…”
Will Lorna Laidlaw return to Corrie as Aggie?
With Dee-Dee needing her mum after the whole Joel drama and her current pregnancy, now would be the perfect time for Aggie to return to the soap.
However, like James, if this was to happen it would likely be another recast situation.
After leaving Corrie, actress Lorna Laidlaw went on to appear in projects such as The Good Ship Murder and also directed a stage adaptation of The Wizard of Oz in Birmingham last year.
Appearing on the Chicken Soap for the Soul podcast, Lorna admitted that she had often clashed heads with producers over the way the Bailey family was being portrayed. With this being the case, it looks unlikely that Lorna would be up for returning to the soap.
Lorna Laidlaw clashed with soap over Bailey family portrayal
On the podcast, Lorna shared: “I think [the producers] wanted [the Baileys] to have Jamaican accents and I questioned that.”
“I knew it wasn’t truthful. I said to them, ‘I would guarantee that all the actors you’ve auditioned don’t speak in a Jamaican accent because they were born here.’ I don’t understand why you give them a Jamaican accent because it makes you feel like they’ve just come here and it makes them that further apart from being rooted in Manchester or wherever you want them.
“So we had that discussion. There were lots of little discussions. You know, some people had rehearsed in a Jamaican accent and I just said that I think it’s wrong.
Speaking of Ed and Aggie’s relationship, she also added: “Black love is a really big thing at the moment, and it is making sure that you see Black characters kissing, actually kissing. Those Black characters did not kiss.
“The one thing about this family is that they loved each other, but it is that conscious thing, because you don’t see it very often.
“It’s that you don’t think about it, and I’m going, ‘We need to see it, and it needs to be rooted in these soaps, that actually, these families are loving and they kiss and snog each other, just like all the other families,’ and none of the writers wrote that.”
Read more: Coronation Street: When is Dee-Dee’s baby due? All we know
Coronation Street usually airs on Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 8pm on ITV.
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