Sid Sumner (Billy Price), the son of Stuart, joins as a guest character in May, before being promoted to the regular cast in November.
Naomi Cohen (Ariana Fraval), the detective sergeant investigating Harry's murder, and builder Woody Turner (Jake Quickenden) join the show.
[16] Keen to portray himself as the respectable owner of the Teahouse, Stuart was actually the leader of a dangerous Far Right Organisation with the intention of grooming vulnerable young men into fostering Islamophobic beliefs.
Along with his right-hand man, Jonny Baxter (Ray Quinn), Stuart successfully groomed Ste over the course of a year and fuelled his hatred of Maalik family.
[18] Shahid is introduced as part of a far-right extremism story when he becomes the victim of a racist attack from a gang including Stuart Sumner (Chris Simmons), Jonny Baxter (Ray Quinn) and Ste Hay (Kieron Richardson).
On the extremism plot, he commented, "I've enjoyed getting my teeth into the challenging storyline – the subject matter is very relevant and I'm keen to see the response when it airs.
[28] Sid returns as a regular during the following month and producers then plotted the character in the show's year-long county lines drug trafficking storyline.
Glasspool explained that Sadie wants money because her family have ejected her from their home, but she is also hoping that Harry will "step up, be a dad and be in the kid's life".
[32] When asked by Penwill, Lee said that she thought Sadie would make a good friend for Mercedes McQueen (Jennifer Metcalfe) or Peri Lomax (Ruby O'Donnell) due to their similar personalities and experiences.
Harry's father Tony Hutchinson (Nick Pickard) and Breda McQueen (Moya Brady) to help, and gives birth to a boy, Isaac.
[37] Levi arrives to help to diagnose Maxine after seeing her appear on daytime television show This Morning to discuss her undiagnosed condition.
[38] The actor told Inside Soap's Sarah Ellis that Levi would "leave no stone unturned" in his journey to diagnose Maxine.
[37] The characters first meet while Scott is performing as a drag artist in The Dog in the Pond public house, which Levi's friend Mitchell Deveraux (Imran Adams) takes him to see.
[43] In his appearance, Reynolds' character approaches Maxine Minniver (Nikki Sanderson) and offers her "some words of comfort and sage wisdom".
[43] On-set, Reynolds received support from Sanderson, Adam Rickitt (Kyle Kelly) and Jacob Roberts (Damon Kinsella).
[46] Writers incorporated Azim into the story when Ste Hay (Kieron Richardson), who has been groomed into joining the group, reaches out to him for help.
[48][50] Show scriptwriter Jonathan Larkin named the pairing as a potential new couple, although the romance was cut short by Richardson leaving the soap.
Imran Adams explained that Scott sees characteristics in Azim that he wants from Mitchell: "to be proud and openly gay, and someone who doesn't have to hide.
[60] Johnathon Hughes of the Radio Times confirmed that the character would appear on a recurring guest basis,[60] and writers plotted her into the show's "Who Shot Mercedes?"
[61] Fraval stars opposite her husband, actor Gregory Finnegan, who portrays Harry's boyfriend, James Nightingale, and her first scenes on the soap were with him.
Cohen returns his personal items to his wife, Courtney Campbell (Amy Conachan), and explains to his siblings, Grace and Liam, that Jesse died from alcohol poisoning.
[81] Tony Hutchinson (Nick Pickard), who was Breda's prisoner for months and is suffering with post-traumatic stress disorder as a result, asks D.S.
[88] Producers devised Edward as the soap's new supervillain character, a trait which has previously been occupied by Doctor Browning (Joseph Thompson) and Lindsey Butterfield (Sophie Austin).
[104] Toby is introduced alongside his "wife", Celeste Faroe (Andrea Ali), as they move in next to Darren Osborne (Ashley Taylor Dawson) and Mandy Morgan (Sarah Jayne Dunn), who they befriend.
[104] Gordon secured the role in August 2019,[14] and he expressed his delight at joining the show's cast after struggling to find employment for a year.
His final scenes see him arrested for the murder of his cousin Lisa Loveday (Rachel Adedeji) after being reported by his father, Felix Westwood (Richard Blackwood).
[104] Celeste is introduced alongside her "husband", Toby Faroe (Bobby Gordon), as they move in next to Darren Osborne (Ashley Taylor Dawson) and Mandy Morgan (Sarah Jayne Dunn), who they befriend.
[109] Calland stated that Jordan's "dark direction" occurred following a difficult upbringing and the death of his mother, which lead him to search for a "father figure" in the "drug world".
[109] Calland expressed his excitement at joining the cast and working on "a hard hitting and relevant" storyline, which he hoped would create awareness for the issue.
[109] Jordan is given a love interest in Leela Lomax (Kirsty-Leigh Porter) after he becomes involved with her family following her decision to foster Sid.