A Coronation Street star and his wife, who live in Rawtenstall, are expecting their third child together.

Sam Aston, who plays Chesney Brown on the ITV soap, and wife Briony made the birth announcement in a photoshoot for a national magazine.

The couple already have two children, three-year-old Sonny and 18-month-old Daisy.

They have also revealed the gender of the baby, adding that they are having a girl.

Speaking to a national magazine, the couple revealed that they were initially expecting twins before losing one of the babies to vanishing twin syndrome, when a twin or multiple disappears in the uterus during pregnancy.

Briony said: “It was very bittersweet – that’s exactly how I’d word it.

“We were excited and thankful, because we always wanted a baby that was healthy.

"Then we found ourselves questioning what could have been, while feeling grateful for what we’ve got.”

Sam said: “At first, you’re thinking, ‘What would it have been like to have twins? Would we have had one of each, a boy and a girl?’

“It’s definitely bittersweet, but we just feel very grateful that the other baby is absolutely fine.”

Earlier this year, Briony spoke to The Lancashire Telegraph and says we need to break the stigma around miscarriages, after revealing that she has had suffered two in the space of four months.

She said: “The last few months have been challenging. We have had the positive and exciting parts of trying for a baby.

“You try to stay hopeful but the uncertainty of the pregnancy is an emotional rollercoaster.

“It has been really tricky [staying composed] for my children.”

Briony is a hypnobirthing teacher and a doula, which is a person who supports women through labour and birth.

Her Crawshawbooth baby yoga business, Happy Baby Studio, is temporarily closed she and co-owner Olivia Phillips can focus on building their families.

She was also on a course to become a midwife but has paused this to focus on her family. 

Sam has played Chesney in Coronation Street since 2003.

His job role has prepared him for fatherhood as his character became a father-of-five in 2019 when his partner on the show, Gemma Winter, gave birth to quadruplets.