Julie Hesmondhalgh was upset on "so many levels" when filming her final 'Coronation Street' scenes.
The 43-year-old actress - who plays cancer patient Hayley Cropper - admits she's devastated by her exit storyline, which sees the factory worker lose her battle with pancreatic cancer, but she's proud that she has been able to highlight the important issue.
She said: "It's been really upsetting on so many different levels, playing this storyline and everything that it means, everything that it means to anyone who has lost someone or going through something similar, and then there's the sadness of saying goodbye to Hayley.
"And of course saying goodbye to 'Corrie' and all of my wonderful friends. It's been a really emotional time."
Julie will be seen on screen until early next year and she has praised ITV bosses for the way they have carefully portrayed the connection between Hayley and her husband Roy (David Neilson) during the difficult time.
Speaking to Soap Squawk, she explained: "It's been so beautifully written I've been so pleased with the way that it's gone. In soaps you rarely get this long and lovely goodbye.
"This has always been a love story, first and foremost, between Roy and Hayley, all be it an unusual and off-beat love story, and this is a proper end to it."
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