Coronation Street star Tina O'Brien is to return to the cobbles.

The 31-year-old actress, who gave birth to her second child days ago, will reprise her role as single mother Sarah-Louise Platt - whose arrival in Weatherfield will cause more problems for her long-suffering mother Gail McIntyre (Helen Worth).

Sarah-Lou, now divorced from Jason Grimshaw (Ryan Thomas), will make her entrance in spring 2015 alongside her now teenage daughter Bethany, who has grown up into a "wild child".

And her comeback is set to cause a stir amongst the Grimshaw family, given her chequered romantic history with brothers Jason and Todd (Bruno Langley).

O'Brien, who joined the ITV soap in 1999, played Sarah-Lou for eight years before deciding to leave in 2007. Her exit saw her alter-ego leaving Weatherfield for a new life in Milan, after admitting to planting drugs on her half-brother David (Jack P Shepherd), which sabotaged his career in Italy.

She is best known for her character becoming a teenage mother at the age of 13, which made headlines for its controversial storyline.

O'Brien said: "I am delighted to be returning. Sarah has a lot of history and unfinished business on the street and I'm looking forward to finding out what she's been up to and why she's returned home."

The actress - who has two children in real life, and previously dated screen husband Ryan - will start filming her scenes in early 2015.

She previously said she would like to return to Coronation Street, telling Digital Spy in 2012: "I had the best eight years ever on Corrie, I loved it. But I had been there since I left high school at 16 and felt I had to go.

"It was all I'd known and I had to get out and experience the big wide world. But now that I'm older, yes, I would love the opportunity to go back one day."

Since leaving the show, O'Brien, who teaches acting classes in Manchester, has appeared in Waterloo Road, Call The Midwife and Casualty. She also took part in the 2010 series of Strictly Come Dancing, but was eliminated in the fifth week of the competition.