Hayley dies in Coronation Street – 2014

Theirs was an unexpected love story which shattered taboos. And by the end, Corrie fans were as much in love with Hayley and Roy as they were with each other.

When transgender Hayley was suffering from terminal pancreatic cancer and decided to end her life, Roy was by her side.

Our tears flowed as Hayley, played by Julie Hesmondhalgh, told Roy: “I’ve been so lucky, I’d not swap the few years we’ve had for a thousand of anyone else’s because I know what it is to be loved, truly loved.”

Then, after she had gulped down the lethal cocktail which would end her life, 10 million viewers surely wept watching a stricken Roy, played by David Neilson, holding his wife, at peace and no longer in pain.