horror

Coronation Street’s Sam Blakeman revealed the reason behind his latest struggles in Thursday night’s episode and viewers were shocked by the surprise admission

Coronation Street has revealed the reason behind Sam Blakeman’s latest set of struggles.

The teenager, who is played by Jude Riordan, was introduced as the long-lost son of Nick Tilsey (Ben Price) in 2020, and since then has had to deal with his mum Natasha being shot dead in a case of mistaken identity, and earlier this year, was key to exposing PE teacher Megan Walsh (Beth Nixon) as a sexual predator, the trauma of which led to him being diagnosed with schizophrenia and enduring a spell on a mental health ward.

Just as Sam seemed to be readjusting to life as best he can, things took another turn for the worse. Out of nowhere, the teenager was very snappy with Nick when he told him off for being on his phone and he then was seen being irritable with schoolfriend Hope Dobbs.

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In scenes that aired on Thursday night’s episode of the world’s longest-running TV soap, it was finally revealed why. Viewers may have thought he was acting out after accidentally pushing Rovers Return landlady Eva Price (Catherine Tyldesley) down the stairs in the pub and landing her in hospital.

Eva confessed to partner Ben that Sam was the one who accidentally pushed her and the teenager was summoned to the backroom of the Rovers to explain himself to his aunt, claiming that he had been looking for his phone.

Later on, Leanne Battersby (Jane Danson), who is a somewhat surrogate mum to Sam, questioned him on what had really been going on along with Nick and his partner Toyah. He finally said: ” I’ve been buying crypto. I wanted to transfer it back to myself before I lost it all.”

Cryptocurrency is a virtual form of money which utilises blockchain networks and investors can potentially earn a passive income via various investments and staking, and the purchase of a digital coin before selling it on for a higher price.

When it was pointed out that he hasn’t got any money, Sam confessed that he had pretended to be his dad, who runs the Bistro. Sam told Nick: “I applied for a credit card in your name through a different bank. I’ve got all the passcodes. I set up an email address to deal with everything.”

In disbelief, Leanne raged: “Do you know what? I can’t believe this. Megan or no Megan, illness or no illness, this is totally unacceptable. How much was it, Sam?” When pushed for the amount of debt he racked up, Sam admitted that it had totalled to more than £6,200.

Reacting to the latest scenes, one fan wrote on X: “Sam has f****d up royally,” whilst another said: “Bloody hell, Sam!” and a third wrote: “An unexpected twist for Sam Corrie today!”

Coronation Street airs weeknights at 8:30pm on ITV1 and ITV X.

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PAUL Gorton has revealed more awful details about his home being burgled, sharing how he’s lost thousands worth in personal possessions.

The star opened up about his home being robbed earlier this month and how he begged for the robbers to return what they have stolen.

Going into more detail now, Paul elaborated on how many items stolen from his home were expensive and/or irreplaceable due to sentimental value.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, Paul said that his “pride and joy” was taken, a bicycle worth roughly five grand.

Paul also shared that his wife Kate’s jewellery box had been ransacked, with her grandmother’s ring missing.

He added: “It was costume jewellery, so it was only a couple hundred pounds worth of jewellery, but it did have Kate’s grandmother’s ring in there, it’s super sentimental.

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“Completely worthless but worth everything to Kate, and it’s now gone, I presume it’s just in a bin.”

The BBC One star, who featured on series two of The Traitors in 2024, took to Instagram to share the news of the burglary with his followers.

He penned: “Came home to find our house had been burgled.

“Presume we’ve been watched and the day after we posted that we were on holiday, they broke in. 29th August at 9:30pm.

“The robber or robbers cut the broadband connection (presumably to cut the ring doorbell and any CCTV) and in doing so, told us when they broke in so the police and CSI are on it.

“We’re fine. House isn’t too bad. Robbed my bike. Ransacked my office and wardrobes etc.

“Kate’s jewellery stolen including her grandma’s ring which is probably worth nothing but it was everything to her. All material stuff can be replaced.”

The reality star urged the robbers to seek help as well as to return the items they stole.

He continued: “To the robbers, get off this path you’re on. It goes nowhere and it’s never too late to turn your life around.

“You’ve committed a crime for an unsaleable bike and cheap jewellery.

“PS. If you did rob me, throw the jewellery back on our drive and the bike as both are worthless to you.”

When it comes to scary movies, the motion picture academy has historically been a bit squeamish. Horror has been a cornerstone of the industry since the beginning, but Oscar voters have rarely embraced it. Only one horror film has ever won best picture: 1991’s “The Silence of the Lambs.” Even “Sinners,” which made history this year with a record 16 nominations, couldn’t close the deal.

Now, though, horror has gotten inside the house.

Opening Saturday and running through July 25, 2027, the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures’ new exhibition, “The Horror Show,” explores more than a century of horror, from silent-era landmarks “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari” (1920) and “Nosferatu” (1922) through “Psycho” (1960) and “The Exorcist” (1973) to “Midsommar” (2019) and “Weapons” (2025). Drawn from the academy’s collection and 62 private lenders around the world, it brings together costumes, props, prosthetics, creatures and production art.

An original facehugger from Ridley Scott’s “Alien” (1979), part of the exhibition’s collection of creatures and production materials from the sci-fi series.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Introducing the exhibition at Thursday’s press preview, Robert Englund, who played the razor-fingered Freddy Krueger in the “Nightmare on Elm Street” films, recalled how the genre was once regarded in Hollywood. “Back when I started, we would sort of get the lousy table in the commissary by the kitchen door,” he said. Now, with the academy mounting an exhibition devoted to horror and the genre continuing to thrive at the box office, Englund added, “I think we’re getting some respect.”

Rather than a simple chronological tour through the genre’s history, the exhibition is organized into six themed “chambers” devoted to Gothic horror, psychological horror, science, slashers, religion and ghosts, with settings ranging from a shadowy crypt to a killer’s house and a haunted living room.

Storyboards from 1973’s “The Exorcist,” a clapperboard from 1976’s “The Omen” and the original Necronomicon from 1987’s “Evil Dead II” are among the artifacts in the exhibition’s religion-themed chamber.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Senior exhibitions curator Jessica Niebel says the idea was to walk a line between a traditional museum exhibition and a haunted-house experience.

“Horror films are about evoking an emotional response and we’re hoping the exhibition will do the same,” she says. “These are all original objects and they tell a story. We wanted to place them in an environment that brings them to life and activates them.” (The museum advises parental guidance; a smaller, family-friendly “Zombies!” exhibition is next door.)

So what’s lurking inside? Here are 10 sights worth braving. Read on, if you dare.

See Bela Lugosi’s original Dracula cape

Bela Lugosi’s original cape from 1931’s “Dracula,” on public display for the first time after undergoing an extensive restoration.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Nearly a century after Bela Lugosi first swept it around his shoulders, Dracula’s cape doesn’t need much introduction. Worn by Lugosi in Universal’s 1931 “Dracula,” the simple black cape became as inseparable from the character as his hypnotic stare and Hungarian accent, establishing the visual language of the screen vampire for generations to come. Lugosi, who had first played the Count onstage in 1927, kept the cape after filming and continued wearing it for stage and public appearances until his death in 1956. Now part of the Academy Museum’s collection, the nearly century-old garment underwent an extensive restoration before “The Horror Show.” Remarkably, this is the first time it has ever been put on public display.

Come face-to-face with Hannibal Lecter

Anthony Hopkins’ Hannibal Lecter costume and restraints from 1991’s “The Silence of the Lambs” are on display, including the serial killer’s unmistakable mask.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Anthony Hopkins’ Hannibal Lecter, the brilliant psychiatrist and cannibalistic serial killer at the center of Jonathan Demme’s “The Silence of the Lambs,” is unsettling enough standing perfectly still. When he has to be moved, the precautions are extreme. Hopkins wore this orange prison uniform, straitjacket and muzzle when Lecter is transported under heavy security, strapped upright to a hand truck. Costume designer Colleen Atwood devised the ensemble, while Ed Cubberly created the famous fiberglass muzzle, deliberately leaving it uncoated to evoke the look of dried, taut skin. Seeing the outfit up close is a reminder of just how little Hopkins needed to work with: Even with virtually his entire body immobilized and much of his face obscured, Lecter somehow became more frightening.

Trace the evolution of the Xenomorph

A towering Xenomorph created by Legacy Effects for 2024’s “Alien: Romulus” offers an up-close look at one of horror’s most enduring monsters.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Nearly half a century after Ridley Scott’s “Alien” introduced H.R. Giger’s nightmarish vision to moviegoers, the creature still looks like nothing else in science fiction. The exhibition brings together original Giger artwork depicting the alien egg and an original facehugger from the 1979 film, the spidery parasite whose method of reproduction helped make “Alien” a landmark of body horror. There’s also an original drawing by James Cameron, who took over the franchise with 1986’s “Aliens.” But the hardest thing to miss is a towering Xenomorph created by Legacy Effects for 2024’s “Alien: Romulus.” Up close, its elongated head, skeletal body and glistening double set of jaws reveal just how much unsettling detail goes into a creature often glimpsed onscreen in darkness.

See Dracula’s armor go from page to screen

Eiko Ishioka’s blood-red armor for Gary Oldman’s Count Dracula in Francis Ford Coppola’s 1992 “Bram Stoker’s Dracula.”

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Before Gary Oldman’s Dracula became a pale, bewigged count, he was Vlad the Impaler, encased in one of the most striking costumes in Francis Ford Coppola’s 1992 “Bram Stoker’s Dracula.” Eiko Ishioka designed the blood-red battle armor with a ribbed surface evoking both exposed human musculature and an armadillo’s shell, while the pointed helmet foreshadows the wolf Dracula later becomes. Displayed alongside several of Ishioka’s original design drawings, the armor offers a fascinating look at how her ideas evolved from pencil on paper into something almost anatomical. Ishioka, a celebrated Japanese graphic designer making her first foray into Hollywood costume design, won an Oscar for her work on the film.

Log on to the original ‘Blair Witch’ website

Visitors can explore the groundbreaking viral promotional website for 1999’s “The Blair Witch Project,” which blurred the line between the film’s fictional story and reality.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Long before viral marketing had a name, 1999’s “The Blair Witch Project” was using the still-young internet to convince moviegoers that three student filmmakers might actually be missing in the woods. Directors Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez created the film’s promotional website in 1998, filling it with fake police reports, evidence photographs and an elaborate mythology while carefully avoiding any suggestion that their story was fictional. They posted on message boards and continually updated the site before the film’s release, helping turn a tiny found-footage horror movie into a grassroots phenomenon. Here, you can sit down at a chunky late-’90s computer and explore the original site yourself. Nearby is one of the movie’s crudely constructed stick figures — a reminder that sometimes a few twigs and some twine are all it takes to lodge an image permanently in the culture.

Meet the slashers

Costumes and props from some of horror’s most notorious killers fill the exhibition’s slasher chamber, including Candyman, Ghostface, Michael Myers, Freddy Krueger and Art the Clown.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Slasher movies have always depended on a memorable killer, and the genre has produced some of horror’s most instantly recognizable figures. Freddy Krueger, Michael Myers, Ghostface and Art the Clown are gathered here in full costume, looking less like museum pieces than a welcoming committee you’d rather not encounter. Nearby cases turn slasher movies’ grisly tools of the trade into artifacts, with masks and weapons from “Saw,” “Us,” “M3GAN,” “The Black Phone” and other films. It’s a reminder of how little a slasher movie really needs to get under your skin.

Open the Babadook’s book

The handmade “Mister Babadook” pop-up book created by illustrator Alex Juhasz for Jennifer Kent’s 2014 “The Babadook.”

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Sometimes the scariest special effect is a pop-up book. In Jennifer Kent’s 2014 “The Babadook,” the sinister children’s book “Mister Babadook” heralds the arrival of the top-hatted creature that terrorizes a widowed mother and her young son, while giving physical form to the grief consuming them. Kent turned to illustrator Alex Juhasz to create the handmade book, drawing inspiration from the eerie silhouetted animation of German filmmaker Lotte Reiniger from the 1920s. Opened to one of its more elaborate spreads, the original prop is both beautifully crafted and deeply unsettling, its seemingly innocent children’s-book mechanics revealing a grinning black figure and the ominous command: “LET ME IN.”

Take a selfie with Norma Bates

A re-creation of the mummified Mrs. Bates from Alfred Hitchcock’s immortal “Psycho” gives visitors a chance to pose with Norman Bates’ dearly departed mother.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

The Academy Museum wanted the original mummified Mrs. Bates head from Alfred Hitchcock’s “Psycho,” but there was one problem: She was too fragile to travel. The Cinémathèque Française, which owns the 1960 prop, declined the museum’s loan request. “I was really disappointed about that, but it’s totally understandable,” Niebel says. “We probably wouldn’t have lent her if she were in our collection.” So the museum commissioned Oscar-winning makeup artist and sculptor Mike Hill, fresh off his work on Guillermo del Toro’s “Frankenstein,” to research and create a full-body Mrs. Bates instead. Unlike the many delicate original artifacts elsewhere in the exhibition, this one was made to let visitors get close and take home their own slightly unsettling family portrait. Just don’t get too close. As a nearby sign warns, “Mother isn’t quite herself today — do not touch, she needs her space.”

Get grossed out by Monstro Elisasue

The spectacularly gross Monstro Elisasue bust, created by makeup and special-effects artist Pierre-Olivier Persin for Coralie Fargeat’s 2024 “The Substance.”

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

By the time Coralie Fargeat’s 2024 “The Substance” reaches its gloriously grotesque climax, Demi Moore’s Elisabeth Sparkle and Margaret Qualley’s Sue have effectively fused into the spectacularly deformed creature known as Monstro Elisasue. The exhibition puts designer Pierre-Olivier Persin’s bust of the creature alongside the syringes, vials and other medical paraphernalia from the mysterious Substance kit that sets the movie’s nightmare in motion. Fargeat has described body horror as a “weapon of expression” for confronting the pressures placed on women’s bodies, particularly as they age. As Fargeat puts it in the exhibition’s wall text, she wanted audiences to see that women’s “pearly smiles are made of so many horrendous things that we have to keep within ourselves.”

Make your escape through the Blood Room

The Blood Room, streaked and splattered with cinematic gore, provides the only way out of “The Horror Show.”

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

Fittingly, there is no clean getaway from “The Horror Show.” Every visitor must exit through the Blood Room, a gruesomely immersive space whose walls are streaked, smeared, splattered and practically dripping with the red stuff. To get the gore just right, Niebel turned to Oscar-winning special makeup effects artist Howard Berger, a veteran of such splatterific films as “Evil Dead II” and “Kill Bill.” Berger worked with the museum and its fabricators to create the room’s layers of fake blood, varying the colors and consistencies to suggest everything from dark, dried stains to fresh blood still running down the walls. Just when you think you’ve made it through, the exhibition has one last gruesome touch: To escape, you have to push your way through a set of bloody butcher curtains.

Coronation Street fans think they know what Lucy Parkinson has planned for poor Sally Metcalfe, who appears to be a target of the troubled teen amid some dark behaviour

Fans of Coronation Street think Lucy Parkinson’s plans for Sally Metcalfe could get very sinister.

While Lucy has been lashing out at Sally, who has been caring for her since her mother Rachel’s murder, and her dad Richie’s imprisonment for the crime, she also appears to be setting her up. Things are set to continue when next week, Sally is alarmed by a picture Lucy has drawn.

Sally is soon confiding in her husband Tim Metcalfe about Lucy lashing out, and the drama with the picture. But with Sally not sure she can keep looking after Lucy, there could be worrying twists ahead.

Some fans now think they know what Lucy’s plan is, and where this might lead. With Lucy also targeting the kids Sally and Tim have fostered, will Lucy have them taken away from them?

One fan predicted: “After watching tonight’s episode, I’m sure Lucy’s plan is that Tim and Sally lose custody of Joanie, Shanice and herself.” Another fan said: “I am really worried for Sally, she’s either going to get hurt or Lucy is going to get her reported to the care worker which will have consequences for the other kids.”

A third viewer said: “Tim and Sally will be lucky to get out of this alive and still together.” A fourth fan commented: “She really seems to have it out for Sally and manipulates Tim.”

Another theory saw fans wonder if Sally would be attacked. One said: “I strongly suspect this is all building up to Lucy losing it and attacking Sally.” Another said: “There’s going to be a potential stabbing for Sally.”

Another fan wondered if Lucy had targeted someone else before Sally. They said: “After seeing Lucy had obviously given herself the mark and blamed sally, do we think this isn’t the first time she’s done this?

“What if she’s hurt herself before, and blamed her mum, so her dad killed her out of anger?” It comes as some fans speculated over who attacks Eva Price next week, after spoilers teased someone hurts her.

It’s not yet clear if Eva falls down the stairs or is pushed. One theory is that Lucy attacks her after drama airing next week. Other names thrown into the mix as possible attackers are Jodie Ramsey and Ross Wilkes.

Coronation Street airs weeknights at 8:30pm on ITV1 and ITV X. * Follow Mirror Celebs and TV on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .