Coronation Street legend Peter Barlow - AKA Chris Gascoyne - visits Sheffield United pub after ITV soap exit

A Coronation Street legend charmed punters when he dropped into a popular Sheffield United pub weeks after his tearful departure from the show. Chris Gascoyne played Peter Barlow for more than two decades before exiting the ITV soap over Christmas in an emotional farewell, parting from the love of his life Carla Connor (Alison King) to start a new life.

Drinkers at The Railway pub on Bramall Lane were surprised to see the actor drop in on Sunday (January 21), when he was in the city to watch Sheffield United's dramatic draw with West Ham. Carol Donaldson, the pub's landlady, told The Star it had been a pleasure to meet him.

"I didn't know he was a Blades fan until Sunday but he was the most lovely guy," she said. "He was very patient because people wanted photos with him."

Carol as revealed Chris had visited the boozer with the US screenwriter Jeff Gutheim, whose other half is the comedian Catherine Tate. She said: "Jeff was lovely too. I spoke to Catherine on FaceTime and she was right down to earth.

"Chris said The Railway was an amazing pub with what I had done to it, that the atmosphere was fab and that I'm a great landlady, very welcoming. It was a fab night, they didn't want to go."

Chris Gascoyne, who was born in Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire, around an hour's drive from Sheffield, had played Peter Barlow on Coronation Street since 2000. ITV confirmed last summer that the actor would be taking what it described as an 'extended break' from the show, to pursue other acting projects, though the door had been left open for his character to return.