It has been established that Carla has niece that is gay

See 2 minutes in on this clip

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WnNZsM6cJNc

It was never stated if this niece was a Connor or not.

So this new girl could be the girl previously mentioned.

Well spotted. Some time back, in the café, Les Battersby was giving Hayley grief over her sex change and Gail ordered him out and told him he was barred. A few days later he was back in and everyone was acting like nothing had happened.

The point I'm making is soaps don't always follow consistency even though they should.

Apparently some people were sad to see Maddie leave, what was so special about her anyway? She was quite rough and dishonest. She was rude to Sophie's mum and stole from her and tried to steal from her house too, hitting Tim for disturbing her into the bargain. She was also caught out with something afterwards and was given another chance.

Her and Sophie had only been together five minutes and then Sophie starts acting all heart broken and pitiful. It's just total beggars belief.

A better exit for Maddie would have been to find out that she was never really a lesbian, she never felt anything for Sophie and was just using her and then running off with a boyfriend. That would have been very fitting with her character, would have caused loads more plot opportunity and would have made a change from killing her off.

I can't be the only person to have thought something like that.

but that would mean she could come back. I assumed like Tina she was killed off for wanting to leave

Or maybe Carla.

Now that would be interesting...a lesbian fling with Michelle.

I think Michelle does fancy Carla anyway, and would fit in with Michelle's new butch look.

I've noticed she got mentioned more times than Deirdre, a resident of the Street for the past 42 years. Maddie gets a mural, and then got that auction thing in her name. Why not Kal as well, he perished in the fire actually helping to save Amy!

Many characters have left without being killed off and not come back, so Maddie wouldn't need to come back. Plus she's not as good a character as Tina. Michelle Keegan can get other jobs elsewhere and wouldn't need to go back.

Maddie was the sort of lowlife that would have sex with anyone who would keep her - gay or straight If she had found a man who would keep her in more luxury that Sophie, Sophie could have gone back to the home;less shelter and chosen another homeless girl. The story could then have been repeated while the writers were on holiday.

Exactly, why all the fuss over Sophie and Maddie?

Sophie could follow in her late love Maddie's footsteps ... as a garage cleaner!