A Coronation Street star is set to return to cobbles at last, eight months after he bid goodbye to Weatherfield.

Matt Milburn is reportedly already back on the set to reprise his role as former footballer turned painter and decorator Tommy Orpington.

According to reports, the actor has filmed his first few scenes ahead of his short stint in the spring.

A TV insider told The Sun: ‘Matt will be back for a little stint in the Spring and then he’ll go again.

‘He was back filming the first week of January after his run in Panto over Christmas came to an end. Everyone was delighted to see him around the set.’

Matt first appeared as Tommy on Corrie in October 2016, and has appeared sporadically on the cobbles for the past eight years.

Matt Milburn is reportedly already back on the set of Coronation Street to reprise his role as former footballer turned painter and decorator Tommy Orpington (pictured)

Matt first appeared as Tommy on Corrie in October 2016, and has appeared sporadically on the cobbles for the past eight years 

His biggest storyline came last year, when he embarked on a steamy affair with fan-favourite Tracy Barlow, played by Kate Ford.

The pair’s pᴀssionate romance began in February when Tracy enlisted Tommy to help redecorate her home.

While the couple attempted to keep their affair secret, in April Tracy finally told her dejected husband Steve McDonald (Simon Gregson) that their marriage was over and she and Tommy left to go to Spain together.

Speaking about being asked to reprise his role as Tommy for the saucy storyline last year, Matt gushed: ‘I was absolutely thrilled and over the moon, because it’s something I’ve wanted for years.

‘I’ve played Tommy intermittently since 2016 so to be told that I was going to be coming back and given something far more substantial, I was delighted.

‘Tommy is the perfect character for me to play because I love football and he’s a famous northern footballer. It’s great to be back.’

And he isn’t the only member of his family to have enjoyed a stint in Weatherfield, as his brother also appeared on the soap.

Matt is the younger brother of actor Greg Milburn, who uses Greg Wood as his stage name and played menacing gangster Rick Neelan on Corrie.

His biggest storyline came last year, when he embarked on a steamy affair with fan-favourite Tracy Barlow, played by Kate Ford (pictured) 

The pair’s pᴀssionate romance began in February when Tracy enlisted Tommy to help redecorate her home and in April Tracy finally told her dejected husband Steve McDonald  (Simon Gregson) that their marriage was over and she and Tommy left to go to Spain together

Loan shark Rick went on to terrorise residents after his debut in 2009 but his nefarious activities ultimately led to his death at the hands of Gary Windᴀss, portrayed by Mikey North, in 2019.

Outside of his gangster role on the ITV soap, Greg Wood also starred as Trevor Royle in Hollyoaks and Terry Gibson in Brookside.

Matt has admitted that it was down to Greg that he got inspired to become an actor, after watching him perform as a teen.

He previously told TV Times: ‘Watching my brother in his first college play ignited my fire for [acting]. Seeing the adrenaline surge through him afterwards, I thought: ‘I’d love to give that a go.’ But I just never did.

‘I struggled from my late teens to early 20s to pin down exactly what I wanted to do. I did a BTEC in Sports Science as I thought I wanted to be a PE teacher.

‘Then I did A-Levels, and was about to do sports journalism at university when my first opportunity to act came along.’

He continued: ‘Greg was due to film a play for his mates at university, but he got a part in Brookside [as Terry Gibson], so he put my name forward without telling me.

Matt is the younger brother of actor Greg Milburn, who uses Greg Wood as his stage name and played menacing gangster Rick Neelan on Corrie (pictured)

Matt has admitted that it was down to Greg (left) that he got inspired to become an actor, after watching him perform as a teen 

‘The play was Patrick Marber’s Dealer’s Choice, which revolves around poker.

‘We filmed in the basement at night, and it was exhilarating! About three weeks later, I auditioned for Hollyoaks – it was like my university experience.’

Revealing that things picked up from there, Matt was soon poached for his first soap role in Channel 4’s Hollyoaks as Joe Spencer.

Last year, he admitted to Lorraine Kelly on her show that Greg ‘was the whole reason I’m sat here’, before gushing: ‘He’s an amazing actor and someone I look up to.’