The adorably eccentric Roy Cropper (David Nielson) will be drawn in to one of Coronation Street’s biggest stories of 2026, according to Executive Producer Kate Brooks.

The socially awkward proprietor of Roy’s Rolls café is no stranger to drama on the Cobbles. His heartwarming love story with a trans-woman, his wife Hayley Cropper (Julie Hesmondhalgh ) was a ground-breaking story for Corrie and arguably the defining moment which secured the character’s place in the hearts of the nation.

More recently, Roy was wrongly accused and charged with the murder his former employee Lauren Bolton leading to a major “whodunnit” storyline. Once Roy was exonerated, he was released and returned to Weatherfield, where fresh drama awaits…

Now Roy is set to have a significant role in another big story focusing on another beloved Cobbles legend – Bernie Winter-Alahan (Jane Hazelgrove).

The plain-speaking matriarch and co-manager of Roy’s Rolls is as sweet as a sticky bun and as hard as day old Eccles cakes. Like Roy, she’s no stranger to heartbreak on the Cobbles. One of her most devastating moments in the show was coming to terms with losing her son Paul Foreman (Peter Ash) to Motor Neurone Disease.

Bernie also recently lost Billy Mayhew, her son Paul’s former husband who was like another son to her. Billy was tragically killed in the Corriedale car-crash, leaving Bernie bereft.

Kate Brooks explains why Bernie’s nurturing personality and current struggle with grief make her such an ideal choice for this upcoming story.

‘Bernie is brilliant, she’s such a fun character.’ Kate enthuses. ‘She’s really stoic. She’s watched her son die, which was horrific, and now she’s having to come to terms with the fact that Billy has also died.

‘The thing with Bernie is she wants to take care of people, she wants to be people’s rock. As a result of that she’s buried a lot of grief. If you cast your mind back to when Paul died it was very rare that we saw Bernie lose it or burst into tears. She was strong for everyone and the strength of that whole family.’

Kate revealed how this new direction for Bernie will test her rocky relationship with husband Dev Alahan (Jimmi Harkishin).

‘So we wanted to explore what would happen if she had to deal with another really tragic death and how that grief manifests. We take Bernie on a really interesting journey as she struggles. It gets to the point where, because it’s been bubbling for such a long time, it actually kind of erupts. When it does, there’s consequences for Bernie.

‘It’s not as straightforward as Dev (Jimmi Harkishin) sweeping in and making everything OK. It’s a really muddy, murky story that we take her on and we see another side to Bernie that we’ve not seen yet.’

An unlikely but hilarious match, Bernie and Dev’s relationship has been gloriously chaotic with a slap-dash wedding in August 2025 where everything that could go wrong, did go wrong – including a burglar, a lost locket, Bernie’s allergic reaction to lilies, and a makeshift hospital ceremony where they said “I do” before having a mini-rave to celebrate.

Unfortunately, there’s been serious trouble in paradise of late primarily due to Bernie’s repeated yet well-meaning, meddling in Dev’s daughter Asha Alahan’s (Tanisha Gorey) life and mental health. With their marriage on the rocks, now the couple face another obstacle.

‘Obviously it’s going to be a test for Bernie and Dev. They are a really strong couple and no matter what we throw at them, they can overcome because they love each other. They absolutely adore each other.’

‘So it’s a big test for them, it’s a big story for Bernie. Roy’s embroiled in that story as well. It’s a really interesting one to keep an eye on because it’s going to be quite a big start to the year for Bernie.’

Kate has already revealed a special episode coming to our screens in February, kicking starting a murder mystery where one resident of the Street turns up dead, and the five suspects have a huge impact on the other residents of Coronation Street.

‘Within the episode in February we’ll reveal there’s been a body found on the street by one of our characters. They’ll be questioned by the police. Then we’ll reveal to the audience who that body might be. We’ll reveal the five potential victims in that episode.

‘So we’ll know it’s been narrowed down to five. What we don’t know is who it is, because a lot of those potential victims have created a lot of waves in the street. It’s a who-they-dunnit-to, which will probably lead to a whodunnit.’

Will Bernie be one of the Weatherfield five?