Coronation Street character Roy Cropper is set to remarry – two years after he assisted the suicide of his transsexual wife Hayley.
The cafe owner – played by actor David Neilson in the long-running soap – has fallen for widow Cathy Matthews (Melanie Hill) and writers for the show want them to "take things to the next level" when Cathy proposes, and Roy says yes.
A source revealed: "Roy had to deal with the death of Hayley and had very tough and emotional storylines for months so writers felt he needed a happier 2016.
"He and Cathy have been getting on brilliantly and so she decides to take things to the next level and gets down on one knee."
It will be the third marriage for Roy, who was forced to marry Tracy Barlow so that he and Hayley could adopt her child but the nuptials were later annulled.
He went on to wed Hayley – played by Julie Hesmondhalgh – but tragedy struck when she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2014.
And ITV bosses hope the new romance will bring some "happiness back" into Roy’s life and that the news will also please viewers.
The source told the Daily Mirror newspaper: "It is a bit of a shock to Roy and some of the others on the Street but viewers will be pleased to see him have some happiness back in his life. He is a much-loved Corrie character and although no date has been set, it looks odds-on that this will be another big soap wedding."