Coronation Street star reveals Christmas upset after dramatic exit plot

Former Coronation Street star Tristan Gemmill may have left the ITV soap nearly seven years ago, but the actor has revealed that his dramatic on-screen departure managed to "upset" some family members.

The star made his debut as Robert Preston, the former husband of Tracy Barlow and Joni Preston, in 2015. He appeared on the soap for four years, before being killed-off in the Christmas Day episode in 2019.

The dramatic instalment saw Robert shot while at the Rovers, with Derek Milligan being the culprit. Despite being taken to hospital, the character died from his injuries after going into cardiac arrest.

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In an interview with The Mirror alongside fellow soap stars such as Bill Ward and Ben Nealon, Gemmill recalled that he decided to watch his final episode with his children, though it proved to be a bad decision as they grew upset over his character's death.

"Being shot through the door of the Rovers was harsh. It [was] a hell of an exit," said the actor, who has also appeared in Casualty and Family Affairs. "We all watched it on Christmas Day with my kids."

"I thought 'Oh, look, we've had Christmas lunch. Let's sit down and watch daddy's episode of Coronation Street, because it's where he leaves the show.' It was a big mistake! They got so upset and I spent hours calming them down," he added.

Despite leaving a while ago, Gemmill shared in April 2024 that he was still in touch with some of his co-stars from the soap, with the actor saying the cast and crew were a "lovely group of people".

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"I'm still friends with Chris Gascoyne [Peter Barlow], Mikey North [Gary Windass], Georgia Taylor [Toyah Battersby] - a bunch of them. It's a lovely group of people," he said. "I've been fairly lucky with the actors that I've worked with."

In current developments in Weatherfield, Sue Devaney recently teased details about her impending departure as Debbie Webster, and also spoke about her character's role in the storyline involving Eva Price.

Coronation Street airs on weeknights at 8.30pm on ITV1 and streams on ITVX.

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