Coronation Street star Jimi Mistry has revealed it had always been the plan for his character to be killed off.

The Blood Diamond actor swapped Hollywood for the cobbles 18 months ago, but said that his long-term plan had always been to make a permanent exit – as viewers saw him do in tonight’s episode.

Coronation Street
Leanne (Jane Danson) almost found her happy ever after with Kal (Jimi Mistry) (ITV)

Kal Nazir, played by Jimi, was caught up in the fire drama at Victoria Court flats in the ITV soap, where he failed to escape the inferno after waving brand-new fiancee Leanne (Jane Danson) off to safety shortly before a gas canister next to him exploded in the blaze.

Jimi said: “What I definitely wanted to happen was for me to come in and me to leave, and when I left, I left. I wanted it to have a beginning, a middle and an end, like a drama or a film.

“I don’t think there’s any stronger way of leaving than this. In the history of Corrie I think it’s one of the most dramatic story arcs there’s ever been, so to be a part of that was a perfect ending. You make your mark within that programme, but you can also move on.”

Coronation Street
Jimi Mistry’s time as Kal in Coronation Street has come to an end (ITV)

However, Kal’s departure does not mean the end of life in Weatherfield for the rest of the Nazir clan – in fact, Jimi even said he thought it put them in a stronger position.

He explained: “Me and Stuart (Blackburn, executive producer) talked about this story, and I knew about it when no one else did. I don’t think the family were necessarily aware that I was going to go out this way. They knew there would come a point where I was going to move on, but I don’t think they knew it was going to be so dramatic.

“It’s great for the family because it gives them a really strong starting point for post-Kal, all the blame and betrayal that they’ll all start feeling. Whose fault was it, why did we come here?”