Corrie producer explains Vera appearance

Coronation Street's series producer Phil Collinson has explained why the soap decided to feature deceased character Vera Duckworth in her husband Jack's final episode.

Earlier this week, 11.6m viewers watched as Vera appeared before Jack as the Weatherfield legend passed away peacefully at home.

The special scene saw Liz Dawn reprise her popular role nearly three years on from Vera's own death scene.

Speaking of Vera's reappearance on screen, Collinson is quoted by PA as saying: "It's something I've heard a lot. People say, 'When my mother was dying she saw my father', or 'When my grandmother was dying she said she saw her mother'.

"It's a story I've heard a few people say. We're storytellers at the end of the day. Yes, it's Coronation Street and yes it reflects real life, but we're storytellers.

"I suppose a little romantic in me would like to imagine that somebody comes at the end for us all who we love. And it somehow made Jack's exit so much more epic and about more than just a man who lived in a back street, and yet that's all it was about."

Bill Tarmey, who played Jack for over 30 years, recently described the character's final episode as "delightful".

> Jack Duckworth tributes pour in