A huge Corrie villain is set for an explosive return this year

Uh oh.

Coronation Street has had its fair share of villains over the years. The likes of Alan Bradley, Richard Hillman, Pat Phelan and Tony Gordon - among many others - have terrorised the residents of Weatherfield at one point or another. And let's not forget the 'super villain' who is going to be causing havoc on the cobbles this year. Now, Digital Spy report that one of the many, many Corrie villains will be back on our screens very soon. Show bosses are said to be bringing back Rick Neelan, the dangerous and ruthless loan shark who was last seen in 2012. Greg Wood will reportedly be reprising his role as the sinister character for another stint in Weatherfield later this year. A source told the publication:

"Rick will be coming back for a few months and will be up to his old tricks by terrorising some of the local residents. "Viewers will have to stay tuned to find out who he'll be targeting this time, but it's safe to say that it's never good news for the characters when Rick is around."

Eagle-eyed fans may remember Rick from his 2009 storyline, which saw Joe McIntyre - Gail's then-fiancé - struggle to repay the loan shark after he bought his debts of £5,000. When Joe struggled to repay him, Rick began to issue horrifying threats - including threatening to harm his daughter, Tina - and upped the interest on the loan. On Joe's wedding day to Gail, Rick turned up at the reception and told him that he had to now pay weekly interest - resulting in a nasty confrontation after, again, Joe was struggling to repay him. Joe died during an attempt to fake his own death - but Rick still persisted to try and get his money. Instead, he turned his attention to Gail and Tina, and even set fire to a newspaper before posting it through Tina's front door. Rick returned in 2012, where he gave a loan to Terry Duckworth - and forced son Tommy to carry out some illegal jobs to repay the debt, including smuggling drugs into Amsterdam. But Tina had had enough and took the drugs, before convincing Rick to meet her by the canal. Rick went to extreme lengths to get it back, kidnapping Rita on the day of her wedding to Dennis Tanner. After a face-off in which he threatened to throw Rita into the canal, Rick was eventually arrested.