Coronation Street veteran Julie Goodyear to return as Bet Lynch

Coronation Street bosses have confirmed Julie Goodyear is to return to the soap.

Goodyear played Bet Lynch in the series for 25 years, appearing in more than 2,000 episodes.

The 59-year-old will make her comeback early in the summer after a seven year absence.

A Coronation Street spokeswoman said: "Bet is hugely popular with the fans and we are delighted that Julie has agreed to return to the show."

Goodyear said: "I am delighted and honoured to be invited back to Coronation Street - for me it's like coming home.

"I can't wait to catch up with all the gossip with my mates. I'm looking forward to working with them again and meeting all the new people on the show."

Fans of the soap will be kept guessing about the storyline that will bring Bet back to the Street.

There are no plans to put her back behind the bar of the Rovers, but the spokeswoman for the show promised her return would be "dramatic."

She said: "We are currently working on some fantastic storylines to write Bet back into the series and I am sure viewers will be excited to find out what has happened to her since we last saw her."

Bet left the show in 1995 for a life in the sun in Tenerife, but returned for a series of late night episodes set in Brighton in 1999.