Coronation Street’s Ross Wilkes showed his true colours with Cassie Plummer on Friday ahead of her exit from the ITV soap, which is linked to Tyrone’s dad’s arrival
Ross in Coronation Street made his true feelings known on Friday as he blackmailed Cassie Plummer(Image: ITV)
Ross in Coronation Street made his true feelings known on Friday as he blackmailed Cassie Plummer.
The new character, played by actor Ian Burfield, debuted on the ITV soap this week. He’s the long-lost father of Tyrone Dobbs, Cassie’s son.
Cassie failed to recognise Ross when she met him in the hotel bar, and drunkenly began flirting with him. It was Friday’s episode, after Cassie had recognised Ross’ name on his bar receipt, that we saw them come face-to-face again.
This time, it was the moment Ross met Tyrone, and Tyrone realised the newcomer was his father. Later in the episode, Tyrone had told Ross where to go as he did not need a father after 40 plus years without one.
Ross was gutted about this, but instead of trying harder, he turned nasty with Cassie. Bumping into her in the shop, Ross blackmailed her over their moment in the bar.
Threatening to tell Cassie’s partner Steve McDonald and Tyrone about Cassie making a pass at him, Ross told Cassie she needed to help him. He wanted Cassie to basically change Tyrone’s mind about not seeing him.
Obviously wanting a relationship with his son, instead of trying to get Tyrone onside he decided to force Cassie to convince Tyrone instead. Cassie was alarmed, and there’s possibly some stuff about Cassie and Ross’ past that we don’t know.
So with Cassie set to leave the soap this year, and it revealed Ross is linked to the exit, could be turn Tyrone against her? That’s not clear just yet, but what is clear is that Cassie is right to worry about Ross.
She was so rattled by him that she left the room when she and Tyrone were left alone with him. She couldn’t face it, and now on top of that she’s fearful Ross is going to expose her to Steve over the bar incident.
The way that Ross turned on her in the shop, threatening her, proves he’s not to be messed with. Spoilers for next week reveal that Cassie tries to warn people about Ross, saying he isn’t what he seems.
When Ross gets told about this, he takes action. Once again threatening her, it’s not long before Cassie has a decision to make as the blackmailing continues. So will Cassie confess to Steve, and will she be rejected by Tyrone if Ross continues to play games?
Coronation Street have revealed a first look at Betsy Swain’s hospital dash that sees her given a life-changing diagnosis, and as her condition deteriorates, Dylan is blamed
21:08, 08 Jul 2026Updated 21:16, 08 Jul 2026
Coronation Street have revealed a first look at Betsy Swain’s hospital dash(Image: ITV)
A health battle will see Betsy Swain deteriorate on Coronation Street in upcoming episodes, resulting in a life-changing diagnosis.
The teenager will be rushed to hospital after collapsing at home. As she’s discovered, am ambulance is called and her mother Lisa Connor-Swain is left distraught.
As Lisa waits by her daughter’s bedside, she’s joined by her wife Carla Connor-Swain as they wait for news. There’s panic ahead, as Betsy’s condition worsens.
Soon, Betsy’s partner Dylan Wilson is blamed for what has happened to her. But what has he done, and why is Dylan facing accusations? All will be revealed when the scenes air, and Lisa wants answers.
A new trailer for the episodes released by the ITV soap has confirmed the moment Carla is told by Ryan about Betsy. She races to Betsy’s hospital room and finds a worried Lisa, but the trailer gives no extra information about what has happened.
It’s said that the scenes will see Betsy given a life-changing diagnosis, and accusations fly. As Betsy tries to come to terms with what has happened to her, her family will rally around her.
Spoilers released ahead of the trailer had teased the drama set to unfold. They revealed that Ryan Connor is the one who finds Betsy unconscious on the kitchen floor.
A nurse explains to a tearful Lisa that they are taking Betsy for an MRI Scan, and later, Dylan witness Betsy appearing to have a seizure. In the fallout, an upset Betsy begs Lisa not to blame Dylan for what has happened.
But Lisa soon confronts Dylan and blames him for Betsy’s collapse. After, Lisa calls at the station and tells the desk sergeant she’d like to report a crime.
As the week goes on, Betsy doesn’t want to see Dylan, and Lauren Bolton says her pal is in a bad way. Dylan is quickly arrested, and when he’s released, more than one resident make it clear they are against him.
Things take a turn when Dylan suggests Brody is responsible for what has happened to Betsy.
Coronation Street fans think Kevin Webster could be about to rekindle his longstanding romance Abi amid the family tragedy, almost a year after it emerged she had had an affair with the man he thought was his long-lost brother but then turned out to be his long-lost nephew
Kevin was the first to comfort Abi in hospital
Kevin Webster could be about to rekindle his romance with Abi – almost a year after they separated. The mechanic has been played by Michael Le Vell since 1983 and has been central to many of the soap’s biggest storylines, many of them involving his ex-wife Sally (Sally Dynevor), and their daughters,Rosie (Helen Flanagan) and Sophie (Brooke Vincent).
They called time on their marriage in 2010 after Kevin had an affair with Molly Dobbs and although they have been on relatively good terms since, Sally married Tim Metcalfe in the years that followed and Kevin later tied the knot with Abi Franklin in 2021.
On the latest episode of the world’s longest-running TV soap, Abi was faced with horror when she had to rush her young son Alfie, who is the product of her affair with the late Imran Habeeb, for treatmentand it became apparent that mould was causing him to suffer severe respiratory issues.
Abi has been living in one of the flats at Weatherfield Precinct, and her landlord is newcomer Idris Sharma, the cousin of established character Alya (Sair Khan). When Abi was delivered the bad news by the doctor in the hospital, she said through tears: “It means it’s not just an infection. There’s something really wrong. I’m going to lose him!” and instantly turned to Kevin for comfort.
While all this was going on, Idris had become aware of what was going on and recruited teenager Brody Michaelis, whom he has taken under his wing, to deal with the situation. Paying the teenager to bundle a man named Isaac into the back of his car, they pulled up at an unknown location and Idris told him: “You know why you’re here. You put a kid in hospital.
“I don’t let people live like animals. Thanks to you, I’m the bad guy. And for my loss of reputation, you pay. And if I have to come and find you, believe me, it’ll be ten times worse. Think on that.” With Brody still keeping tightly hold of him, Idris drove off and later paid the teenager for his help.
But unbeknownst to to Idris and Brody, Abi had watched the whole kidnap and informed Sally, who is currently acting as a foster mother towards Brody, about what she saw.
Brody, whose father is in prison for murder, told Idris that the whole thing wasn’t really for him but the dodgy landlord continued to pressure him into things.
Reacting to the dramatic scenes, viewers predicted that Abi, who lost her son Seb when he was murdered in an unprovoked attack and also has a few children in the care system, will get back together with Kevin however her latest melodrama turns out.
Taking to X, one fan said: “Honestly, with Kev and Abi being on good terms I’m surprised she hasn’t moved back in with him. Abi can’t lose another kid ffs!”
Another said: “The fact it’s has been 9 months and Abi still hasn’t changed her name back to Franklin, and now they are having her move back into number 13 with Kev and carl supporting her. I am praying they don’t do what I think they are going to do #corrie.”
“I’m surprised dopey Kev hasn’t taken Abbeh back already,” a follower commented, as a Twitter user added: “I wonder if this new storyline for Abi and Alfie will lead to Kevin and Abi getting back together.”
Wall Street strategists remain broadly optimistic on U.S. stocks for the rest of 2026, though forecasts for the S&P 500 (SPY) (IVV) (VOO) vary by more than 1,200 points, according to a compilation from Yardeni Research.
IF you’re looking for a staycation with all the beauty of the Cotswolds but fancy somewhere different – maybe head to East Sussex this summer.
Rye has all the charm of the region and even better – it’s just 10 minutes away from the seaside.
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Rye is a Cotswolds-alternative town in East SussexCredit: GettyIt has cobbled streets, historic houses and independent shopsCredit: Getty
Country lifestyle experts at Welligogs say that Rye is one of the UK’s most beautiful small towns and even dubbed it the “new Cotswolds”.
While it might be miles away from Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire, Rye actually shares lots of the same qualities as towns found in the Cotswolds.
Some of the most famous spots near the Cotswolds include Castle Combe, Bibury and Bourton-on-the-Water which have honey-coloured stone buildings and pretty streets.
In East Sussex, Rye has a similar look with cobbled streets lined with cottages and plenty of independent shops.
Tess Annan, manager at Welligogs said: “Part of Rye’s appeal is its storybook atmosphere.
“For those who love culture, you can spend the morning exploring antique shops and independent boutiques, before wandering up to Mermaid Street for some of the most photographed views in the UK.
“The 14th century Ypres Tower (Rye Castle) is also always worth a trip. Then head towards the nearby beaches for sea air and treat yourself to freshly-caught fish and chips.”
While the Cotswolds has plenty of rivers running through the villages, Rye offers a beach escape for those who want the delights of the seaside instead.
Camber Sands is just 10-minutes away in the car to get from the village to the dunes.
Rye is just 10-minutes from the delights of Camber SandsCredit: Alamy
Caroline said: “The medieval town of Rye in East Sussex isn’t strictly seaside, but you can see the sea from its cobble streets and it has a harbour where boats sail out to the English Channel.
“Plus, if you go back as far as the 15th century, the sea came much closer to the foot of the hill the town is built on.
“It’s the perfect place to spend a day out – taking an hour and six minutes on the train from Kings Cross St Pancras.
“If you fancy a morning on the beach, a bus runs from the town to the stunning Camber Sands beach – a three-mile stretch of golden sand backed by dunes.
“Or you can for a six-mile circular walk from Rye to Winchelsea beach. Back in the town after lunch, there are plenty of fantastic pubs to choose from, my favourites being the 12th century Mermaid Inn and the George In Rye, as well as the Globe Inn Marsh on the outskirts of the town.
“Equally, you could book a taxi and check out Tillingham vineyard in nearby Peasmarsh, with its Michelin Green Star wine tours and excellent pizzas.
“Make sure to save some time to rummage through the many, many antiques shops, as well as Knoops hot chocolate shop and the wonderfully old fashioned Britcher and Rivers sweet shop.”
Coronation Street’s Sarah Platt has confessed to Todd that she killed Theo but a short time later she was the one who had to deal with a shock truth that came her way
21:53, 25 Jun 2026Updated 21:54, 25 Jun 2026
Sarah Platt has told Todd Grimshaw that she killed Theo on Coronation Street
Sarah Platt confessed to Todd Grimshaw that she killed Theo on the latest episode of Coronation Street. The legendary Weatherfield resident, who has been played by Tina O’Brien since 1999, hit the evil scaffolder over the head with a pipe during a confrontation above the builder’s yard – seemingly sending him plunging to his death.
For months, viewers were left guessing as to who had killed Theo, who spent almost a year abusing partner Todd Grimshaw, but Sarah was never one of the official suspects and is yet to even be a person of interest to police, most likely thanks to the fact that on the night in question, she was knocked unconscious in the living room of number eight.
Sarah is currently dating, and looks set to get engaged to DC Kit Green (Jacob Roberts), so she felt it was unwise to involve him. Instead, she roped Gary Windass (Mikey North) into the whole sorry mess, who has been helping her keep the whole thing secret, much to the chagrin of his wife Maria (Samia Longchambon), who thought they had been having an affair.
To make matters even worse, DS Lisa Swain (Vicky Myers), who has a habit of putting innocent people in prison, charged Todd’s adoptive daughter Summer (Harriet Bibby) with murder and, although she was recently released, Sarah said nothing and allowed her to be put behind bars.
Having had enough of Todd constantly blaming Gary for the murder, Sarah finally confessed all to her best friend in Thursday night’s instalment of the world’s longest-running TV soap.
Through tears, Sarah said: “It was me. I knocked Theo off the scaffolding.” as he looked on in shock. “You’re wrong and I’m not even gonna let you think it. He is not corrupt – he wants to marry me!
“Afterwards. I was in shock and…Theo was…dead. And I couldn’t ring Kit, I couldn’t. I didn’t know who else to turn to. “
“He was talking like he’d killed you, and I believed him because why wouldn’t I? You thought he was capable. That’s why you ran.
“Don’t look down your nose at me, Theo ruined your life and then you brought him into mine. I didn’t have the option to run – not when I was 20ft up, on scaffolding on a plank that wide with a psycho waving a bottle in my face. A psycho who was ten times stronger than me and two times the size of me.
“He got in my face and I pushed him away and then he came back at me. All the time, he had this little white fleck in the corner of his mouth when he was ripping into me and I couldn’t take my eyes off it. That I was a sl*g, a w***e, three different kids to three different men and no wonder our baby died because it was an abomination.
“Those were the words he said about an innocent, newborn child. There was a pole. It was just instinct, I closed my eyes and swung and he crumpled.”
Later on, Sarah presumed Todd was going to go to the police but when she found him in the Rovers Return later on, he admitted he just couldn’t do it – even though he angrily told Sarah she had robbed him of the chance to make sure Theo got justice for all the abuse he had subjected him to.
He added: “The most annoying thing about all of it is the fact that I love you…so much. And I can’t see you go to prison.” Todd and Sarah were teenage sweethearts amid the programme’s first coming out story in 2004 and, even after Todd came out as gay, the pair have remained close.
Initially, Sarah threw her arms around Todd as she thanked him, but he then dealt the final blow as he vowed to cut her out for good.
He said: “Listen to me Sarah, this is it, for you and me. We’re done. I don’t want you in my life anymore,” leading Sarah to march back into the pub and continue to drink as she she stumbled round to Whitney Houston’s I Wanna Dance With Somebody before her family escorted her out.
But there was another twist in store back at number eight when Sarah, sat stroking David the dog, was having a conversation with Jodie. Without realising what she was saying, Jodie said: “It’s not easy to get over an attack like that – it takes time. Maybe this wasn’t the best place to bring you to, it must be triggering.”
As Jodie stroked the dog, she said: “At least you’re not barking your head off, this time, eh?” and Sarah immediately began to put two and two together as she said: “How did you know he was barking that night?”
Jodie tried to play the whole thing down but the cogs were already turning for Sarah, who has seemingly worked out that it was Shona’s mysterious long-lost sister all along.
Coronation Streetairs Monday to Friday at 8:30pm on ITV1 and is available to stream from 7am onITVX.
As Coronation Street revealed it was Sarah who killed Theo on Monday, actress Tina O’Brien addressed whether she could be leaving the ITV soap and her reaction to the twist
Coronation Street revealed it was Sarah who killed Theo on Monday(Image: ITV)
Coronation Street’s Sarah Platt has been exposed as Theo Silverton’s killer.
Now, actress Tina O’Brien, who has played the character since 1999, has addressed whether she’s about to bow out for good. Flashbacks during Monday’s episode confirmed what really happened to Theo, and who was to blame.
We saw Sarah accidentally killing Theo after he turned sinister. As he threatened her, she shoved him before hitting him over the head with a metal pole, leading to him plummeting off the scaffolding.
In the fallout, Sarah will be desperate to cover her tracks. But will she be caught out, and could it lead to a prison stint, or possibly a permanent exit from the ITV soap after after nearly 30 years in the role?
Tina shared: “It’s not just about her now, it’s about her family and her son, and there are times when she can’t cope with the pressure and you think she’s just going to hand herself in. And then she thinks about her son growing up without a mum, if she’s convicted and can’t prove she acted in self defence.
“And because of those things, she’s so desperate to do whatever it takes to be part of her family’s life.” It was her ex Gary that she frantically called for help, with him now keeping her secret.
With Gary’s rivalry with Sarah’s partner Kit Green now at boiling point, Tina explained why Sarah told Gary and not detective Kit. She said: “I think she absolutely went into panic mode, shocked, stunned and numb. She obviously didn’t know what to do, she didn’t know how to react and in that moment she thought, I can’t call Kit because of his job in the police.
“And so in that moment, she thought who can I call and it was Gary. There’s a lot of guilt there and I think also, selfishly, she feels like she’s ruined her chance with Kit, because if he knows what she’s done, he might not want her anymore and she so wanted him to be her future.”
This isn’t the first time Sarah has been caught up in a murder plot. Fans will recall that back in 2015, Sarah’s sister-in-law Kylie Platt murdered Sarah’s love interest Callum Logan. Callum had tried to attack Sarah, leading to Kylie killing him with a wrench.
Sarah and Kylie, with the help of Sarah’s brother David Platt, covered up the crime, and buried the body under their house. Sarah’s mental health spiralled in the fallout, and she was admitted to a psychiatric unit for treatment.
With Sarah caught up in another murder, Tina said this time her character could face prison. She teased: “If she’d have called the police straight away and explained what happened, she would have been in a much better situation, because it was clearly not pre-meditated, it was a situation where she felt she had no other choice.
“But to cover it up, to actively cover something up, she knows that she crossed a line that she can’t come back from.” She added on exit fears: “I genuinely didn’t worry, at the end of the day this job is incredible, but to be an actor is not necessarily a job for life. So, I just was really excited to be given the honour of being the murderer, and then hopefully, however it plays out, I’ll enjoy Sarah’s arc.”
So does this hint that Sarah will stick around? After keeping quiet for months, Tina shared: “I’ve literally been a big bag of nerves. It’s been so difficult, I told my mum and I just recently told my daughter Scarlett and my son Beau. You’re seeing all the chat on social media, everyone’s saying I think this, and I think that.
“Actually filming these scenes the weeks after have been the hardest thing I’ve ever filmed because I felt like my face looked guilty constantly and I thought everyone’s going to know it’s me instantly.”
It came as no surprise to Tina though that Sarah killed Theo. She explained: “I completely understand how it happened, why it happened. For me to get into her character and her head, I feel like in that moment, she didn’t feel like she had any other choice.”
Instead of the usual phalanx of cars and buses, Saturday evening traffic on Wilshire Boulevard was replaced by massive balloons, mobile sculptures, gaggles of gallerists and an endless array of elaborate costumes.
The first-ever Los Angeles Art Parade, a collaboration between the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) and famed gallerist Jeffrey Deitch, transformed the stretch of Wilshire known as Museum Row into a human-powered exhibition of the city’s dynamic art scene.
About 146 groups, made up of more than 1,400 participants, marched in the parade, with projects ranging from larger-than-life marionette dolls to squads of children in do-it-yourself costumes to mobile re-creations of LACMA’s most iconic art pieces.
The parade followed an all-day block party thrown by LACMA as part of its Grand Opening Weekend, celebrating the new David Geffen Galleries and the completion of the 20-year-long, $724-million campus construction project. Together, the block party and art parade attracted an estimated 60,000 attendees, who swarmed the galleries, danced to explosive DJ sets, and lined the streets to watch the eclectic procession of artists.
People dance during Flying Lotus’ DJ set at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) in Los Angeles.
(Ariana Drehsler/For The Times)
According to LACMA Director and Chief Executive Michael Govan, the event was a long time coming and “just the beginning” of how his team plans to use the campus space, which he previously called the city’s “living room.”
“We’re not gonna close Wilshire every weekend, but it’s an example of what we can do,” Govan said. “It’s really exciting to see the building work.”
Following a crowd-drawing DJ set from electronic low-fi hip-hop artist Flying Lotus, Govan introduced L.A. County District 2 Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell. She said the event made her “proud to represent LACMA” and to be a Metro board member, referencing the recently-opened Metro D-line extension, which dropped attendees off a quick stroll from LACMA’s entrance.
“Just seeing you all at this amazing public facility does my heart good,” she said. “This is your local government at work.”
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1.Silhouettes of people watching the parade.2.A man and woman wearing tulle over them walk in the parade. 3.The crowd at the Los Angeles County Museum of History, Science, and Art (LACMA) Block Party.(Ariana Drehsler/For The Times)
As the party raged on LACMA’s campus, hundreds of parade participants hurriedly prepared for their debuts in the corners of nearby streets and parking lots. One group inflated a giant disco ball, while another smeared themselves with body paint next to a line of rehearsing dancers. Elsewhere, a megaphone-wielding leader herded dozens of black cats in the style of artist Gary Baseman into some semblance of order.
Deitch originally staged the first Art Parades in New York City’s SoHo neighborhood between 2005 and 2008. While those took a more art-world-exclusive approach, Deitch said the Los Angeles version was designed with inclusion in mind. The call for parade proposals was open to “emerging and established artists and creatives of all ages and backgrounds,” according to guidelines, as long as the work was appropriate for all ages and didn’t require a motorized element.
“The New York one was much more oriented toward people in the art community. We didn’t put out this kind of open call,” Deitch explained. “This is very different in its openness and its diversity. There are some famous artists and famous choreographers, L.A. legends. But there are also mothers from the San Fernando Valley with their children. I really love that.”
Artist Jordan Rountree’s rolling woodcut-sculpture called the Devil Jack in a Box with Crocodile appeared in Saturday’s Block Party and Art Parade hosted by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s (LACMA).
(Ariana Drehsler/For The Times)
“It’s just a very open platform, so you don’t have to have an M.F.A. to express yourself as an artist,” he added.
The procession was dizzying in its variety and scale. While many projects leaned into beauty and whimsy, others took a more overtly political approach, displaying anti-ICE messages on T-shirts and signs, sporting trans pride flags, or, in the case of performance artist Amy Kaps, wearing an unraveling U.S. constitution.
Some even referenced local causes, such as the “Boo Boo Bandage Brigade for Safe Streets,” which advocated for fixing sidewalks and increasing accessibility downtown. One particularly moving display by the Pali-Altadena Collective featured participants carrying miniature models of buildings and landmarks lost in the 2025 fires.
Chicana artist Nao Bustamante and Track 16 Gallery brought “Brown Disco” to the streets, which featured a giant gold disco ball and figures from decades of L.A. queer nightlife.
The crowd at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) Art Parade.
(Ariana Drehsler/For The Times)
“As a brown, queer person, I think that this really brought a light into our community, and now its presence [creates] an intergenerational conversation,” said Track 16 Assistant Director Steve Galindo. “The nightlife scene is how we come out as queer people, so it’s really special to be in the parade.”
“Puppetry has been part of the arts for so many years,” added Daisy Hernandez, the theater’s production manager. “It’s a way that people express themselves, just like every other art form. So that’s what we’re here to do: express ourselves through puppetry.”
This method of transport is a cheap and easy way to get around the city, but it has caused hundreds of accidents in the past year. Now there are calls for a ban across the European Union
The city is clamping down on the method of transport(Image: Getty Images)
A European city has banned a mode of transport that’s popular with tourists on day trips, after a huge number of accidents were reported in the past year alone.
Brussels will rid its streets of shared e-scooters as of January 2027, with authorities in the Brussels-Capital Region announcing the move last week. Currently, the Belgian capital has two remaining scooter operators offering shared e-scooters, Bolt and Dott, and once their licences expire at the end of 2026, they will not be renewed, according to the Brussels Times.
Authorities voiced their safety concerns around the use of e-scooters and the nuisance they can cause to local residents. The move means Brussels follows other European cities who’ve removed shared e-scooters, including Paris, Madrid, and Prague.
Brussels mobility minister Elke Van den Brandt and minister-president Boris Dilliès made a shared statement about the ban, calling shared e-scooters a “growing nuisance to other road users”, and pointing out that 666 accidents involved e-scooters in 2025, a year on year increase of 26%.
They also highlighted that rental scooters were often used for criminal purposes, and were involved in the cases of 25 shootings in Brussels last year.
Boris Dilliès said: “The decision to exclude self-service scooters from the Brussels urban landscape is part of a clear and consistent policy. Often synonymous with disorder, self-service scooters are a source of nuisance, cause serious injuries, clutter the streets and are, unfortunately, increasingly being used by organised criminals. Self-service bicycles, on the other hand, remain for us an essential part of a mobility policy.”
However, in a statement, e-scooter rental firm Bolt argued: “When scooters are the subject of public debate, whether regarding road safety or parking, private and shared scooters are almost always lumped together, even though they are fundamentally different.
“Banning [shared scooters] will not stop people from getting around. It will drive users towards private, unregulated, untraceable and genuinely dangerous scooters, or towards more polluting modes of transport. Neither of these scenarios serves Brussels’ objectives regarding safety, congestion or the climate.”
Since the ban was announced in Brussels, the Benelux Union, a partnership between Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg, has called for the European Commission to create a single framework for all EU countries, which could make it easier for other countries to make their own regulations.
Benelux pointed out there are inconsistent safety standards among member states, and not all vehicles on the market were safe and suitable to be used on public roads. The lack of guidelines also make it difficult to prevent unsafe vehicles from being put out for hire.
The UK has banned privately owned e-scooters from public roads and pavements, meaning the only legal place to ride your own e-scooter is on private land. There are a handful of legal rental schemes in some areas of London, Birmingham, and other cities, with strict criteria such as limiting the e-scooters to 12.5mph, banning riders under 18, and requiring a provisional licence to hire one.
Have a story you want to share? Email us at webtravel@reachplc.com
Coronation Street fans are worried that actress Sydney Martin is about to leave her role as Betsy Swain on the ITV soap after two years of melodramatic twists and turns
Coronation Street fans are worried that Betsy Swain is about to leave the ITV soap
Coronation Street fans are worried that Betsy Swain is about to leave the ITV soap. The Speed Daal waitress, who has been played by Sydney Martin since 2024, has been through an awful lot during her two years in Weatherfield.
Just over a year ago, Betsy lost boyfriend Mason in a knife attack, was then shot by her own mother DS Lisa Swain, who faced no consequences for her actions, and was landed in a freak situation when her other mother Becky came back from the dead, having faked it as part of a corrupt police coverup.
Following on from all that drama , Betsy recently discovered a dead body that turned out to be that of Theo Silverton (James Cartwright) at the end of the much-hyped Murder Week.
In scenes set to air in the coming days, Betsy confides in best friend Laure (Cait Fitton) that she’s been offered a place at the London College of Fashion but she’s worried about leaving Dylan. It’s yet to be seen just how Dylan will react and, on top of that, Betsy explains that she is yet to inform her mother.
Fans of the world’s longest-running TV soap have instantly started to speculate that Sydney, who appeared in Assassin’s Guild before joining Coronation Street, is set to make a dramatic exit from the ITV soap.
Taking to X, one fan said: “betsy off to london? [sad face emoji],” whilst another posted a picture of Carla, Lisa and Betsy and said: “Don’t spilt them up please #corrie I think Lisa will take this hard and Carla will help both Betsy and Lisa to see it from each others perspective.
Another said: “You can just imagine Carla saying something like oh you’ll be fine Betsy in London I could tell you stories about what me and Michelle got up to, and Betsy saying something like and even to this day they involve the police.”
Another wondered if this meant some sort of spin-off was on the cards. In the past, the programme has done various spin-offs such as Just Rosie, which followed Rosie Webster (Helen Flanagan) on her quest for a modelling career, whilst a string of DVD releases like A Knight’s Tale and Out Of Africa were issued in the late 2000s.
Posing the theory, the fan wrote on X: “Is there any indication that Betsy going to London could be a limited summer off-shoot series like Hollyoaks Later where all the teens shared a summer house (obviously without the serial killer). But it will be Betsy’s adventures in the big city?”
It all comes after actress Sydney Martin, 24, was revealed to have been cast in a short film titled Favourite earlier this year. Filmmaker Georgia Leigh-Taylor said: “I’m so thrilled to announce the incredible Sydney Martin and the brilliant Isabelle Smith will be playing Mel and Ashley in my upcoming short film called Favourite.
“After graduating from the same acting school, Sydney and Izzy have both been working professionally in television since 2024, building exciting careers for themselves, taking on powerful storylines, and earning well-deserved recognition.
“Favourite is a dual-timeline drama exploring the lives of best friends Mel and Ashley both as teenagers, and as adults.”
Coronation Streetairs Monday to Friday at 8:30pm on ITV1 and is available to stream from 7am on ITVX.
Coronation Street fans think they have figured out why Idris Nazir is keen on a romance with Leanne Battersby, and it could be linked to a past villain on the ITV soap
13:00, 29 May 2026Updated 13:01, 29 May 2026
Fans of Coronation Street think newcomer Idris Nazir is targeting Leanne Battersby(Image: ITV)
Fans of Coronation Street think newcomer Idris Nazir is targeting Leanne Battersby in a new twist.
Leanne met Idris this week, while it soon emerged they had actually met years earlier. Idris is related to Leanne’s late ex Kal Nazir, but that hasn’t stopped the pair pursuing a romance.
Corrie had revealed Idris would be Leanne’s new love interest before he debuted, and then this week we saw them kiss. Amid Idris’ cousin Alya Nazir being unimpressed by their blossoming romance, some fans think Idris has a motive.
Viewers are theorising that Idris is targeting Leanne on behalf of someone else, and perhaps he knows a past Corrie villain. A new theory has predicted that Idris is “in cahoots with” Harvey Gaskell, who was sent to prison after Leanne helped the police put him behind bars.
Harvey escaped and tried to kill Leanne, actually murdering Sam Blakeman’s mother Natasha in a case of mistaken identity. Harvey then went back to prison.
But fans are wondering if there is more to Idris’ sudden arrival and his interest in Leanne. With it heavily teased he is involved in some dodgy dealings, a theory being shared online is that Idris could be working for Harvey, and targeting Leanne for him.
Taking to social media, one viewer posted: “I know that Idris is a wrongun but, does anyone else think that he might be in cahoots with Harvey and that’s why he’s coming onto Leanne?” A fan replied: “Never thought of that!!!”
Another said: “Oooooh never thought of that it’s not gonna be good news whatever.” A further post read: “Good theory and Leanne said she knew him from somewhere – could have been one of Harvey’s henchmen.”
A further fan confessed: “I really hope not! Couldn’t stand Harvey, hated when they kept bringing him back!” A final fan said: “I’ve just seen someone saying on Facebook they think Idris could be connected to Harvey and that’s why he’s wanting to be with Leanne.
“Might be a bit of a stretch but it could explain why after about 3 hours they’re pursuing a romance, so fast when they barely know each other, AND he’s related to her late partner, all a bit weird.”
Coronation Street actress Nicola Thorp has revealed that she has been in tens of thousands of debt for 17 years after struggling to pay off her drama school fees
Nicola Thorp reveals that she amassed a £30,000 debt due to drama school fees(Image: Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock)
It’s perhaps every drama student’s dream to become an acclaimed actor in film or TV. But former Coronation Street star Nicola Thorp has revealed the downside to following her passion to work in the arts, as she racked up a £30,000 debt accrued from drama school fees.
The 36 year old ITV former soap star, who landed the role of Nicola Rubinstein, on the iconic TV show back in 2017, admitted to being in debt for 17 years. While on This Morning the actress claimed that students were missing their lectures as they were too tired from working to support their schooling.
Nicola studied at the Arts Educational School in London between 2007 and 2010. When asked by host Ben Shepherd about her school fees, she replied: “Yes I did. I had to pay. I am still in about £30,000 of debt now.” She added: “Even 17 years later.” Left in shock by her answer, Ben said: “And that’s the reality for a lot of these students. They don’t have a choice.”
Nicola played Nicola on the ITV soap for two years and left in 2019. Leaving the acting world behind, she has now become a journalist and presenter.
With regular spots on This Morning over the past six years, she has also co-hosted TalkTV’s Talk Today for four years, ending in 2024.
She has also delved into the world of reality TV as she appeared on Celebrity Hunted alongside her husband Nikesh Patel in 2023. The couple became parents to a baby girl the following year.
Speaking of her daughter she took to social media and wrote: “We are delighted to say that we recently welcomed our beautiful baby daughter into the world.” She added: “Everything they say about birth being a rollercoaster of emotions is true. We’re shattered and smitten and everything in between.”
Reporting from Sacramento — The streets near the state Capitol emptied Monday after a man barricaded himself in his parked car near the building for more than two hours, prompting fears of a possible bomb attack.
Sacramento police and the California Highway Patrol cordoned off several city blocks as SWAT officers and hostage negotiators attempted to make contact with the man, who had scrawled “cops or criminals” and “I just want justice” on his Mazda sedan and plastered the car windows with paper signs.
He voluntarily surrendered without incident just over two hours after police were called to the scene at 1:47 p.m. The Sacramento Bee identified the man as Edgar Napoles-Rodriguez, 27, of Sacramento, though the suspect’s name has not yet been released by officials.
According to court records, the former roommate of Napoles-Rodriguez was granted a temporary restraining order against him last week. The roommate alleged in a legal filing with the Sacramento County Superior Court that Napoles-Rodriguez threatened her with a baseball bat and also threatened to burn down her house.
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FOR THE RECORD
April 20, 11 a.m.: An earlier version of this post referred to Edgar Napoles-Rodriguez’s female former roommate as a man. It also misstated Napoles-Rodriguez’s age as 28; he is 27.
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Law enforcement snipers were spotted on the roof of the Capitol during the standoff. A police robot was used when officers attempted to contact the suspect in his car, which was parked on L Street directly in front of the Capitol building. Before surrendering, the man exited the car and began shouting, “Want to shoot me? Shoot me!”
“He may have not had the best of intentions or be the clearest of mind,” said Officer Matthew McPhail, spokesman for the Sacramento Police Department.
The Capitol was not evacuated during the incident, but one entrance was closed.
The Assembly adjourned early Monday but was scheduled to vote on several big issues, including a ban on smoking on college campuses. It wrapped up the meeting abruptly before 3 p.m.
The Senate went through its full agenda as planned and wished Sen. Jerry Hill (D-San Rafael) a happy birthday before adjourning after 3 p.m. without any announcement of the security situation going on outside the building.
Asked about the situation, Claire Conlon, a spokeswoman for the Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León said, “It’s our policy not to discuss Capitol security details.”
The state Capitol’s security has been ramped up considerably over the last decade.
The most significant incident came late on the night of Jan. 16, 2001, when a big-rig truck smashed into the south side of the historic building during a late-night legislative session on California’s energy crisis. The driver, a 37-year-old man with a history of prison time and mental health issues, slammed his tractor-trailer into the granite portico of the building, and it erupted in flames.
That, plus the terrorist attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C., that fall, sparked a slow but steady move toward increased security around the 142-year-old building.
Now, the perimeter is surrounded by barricades that rise up from the sidewalk, and all public visitors are routed through metal detectors and bag-scanning areas on the north and south sides of the building.
Times staff writers Liam Dillon and Patrick McGreevy contributed to this report.
The first stop on Sabine Phillips’ three-hour inspection of her neighborhood was at Fountain Avenue and St. Andrew’s Place, where detached pieces of a sofa had been plopped onto the sidewalk as if this were an outdoor living room.
Phillips slid off her yellow Huffy cruiser, grabbed a pen, and entered the finding into her spiral notebook.
“This stretch is a common dumping ground,” she told me, eyes hidden behind sunglasses under a floppy sun hat.
Her part-time assistant, Keith Johnson, was wearing a “Trash Club Hollyood” T-shirt. He squeezed the handle of his garbage-grabbing tool to snare cookie and chip wrappers that floated near some empty Pacifico beer bottles and a Big Gulp container the size of a drum. When they report neighborhood problems to the city, Johnson said, “sometimes they’re helpful and many times they’re not, so we end up doing things on our own.”
Sabine Phillips, 66, and Keith Johnson, 71, right, ride their bikes documenting debris left on sidewalks of their East Hollywood neighborhood on April 15.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
Much of the discarded furniture and other goods left on the streets ends up being used to build homeless encampments, Phillips said. That often leads to more trash, fires, drug activity and other nuisances that threaten public safety and set residents on edge.
Phillips doesn’t just take notes. She reports her findings into the city’s MyLA311 system on Wednesdays, so city crews can make pickups on Thursdays and Fridays. And they usually do respond, Phillips said. But the cycle immediately repeats, and she has typically reported 50 or more additional items, week after week, month after month.
In a quarter of a century of writing about the many plundered patches of paradise, I’ve been repeatedly impressed by those who step up and make a difference out of some combination of pride, frustration and the spirit of volunteerism. But I also understand the rage of taxpayers who wonder why Los Angeles City Hall is so incapable of managing the basics.
In the race for leadership of the city, even Mayor Karen Bass and Councilmember Nithya Raman say things have got to change, which isn’t necessarily the best commentary on their stewardship.
“Unfortunately, it’s become fairly universal across all 99 neighborhoods in this city that L.A. government isn’t working,” mayoral candidate Adam Miller said at a recent West L.A. appearance I dropped in on, and he added that he’d use his business and nonprofit experience to tackle homelessness, housing and public safety challenges, among other issues. “We pay some of the highest taxes in the country, where people feel like we’re not getting our money’s worth anymore.”
Last week, after my column about the substantial inventory of blight around City Hall — including a graffiti-scarred fountain that’s been out of operation for most of the last 60 years (no lie) — I heard from readers with their own problems.
Richard Vasquez wrote to say the Plaza de Mexico in Lincoln Heights is still a cemetery of missing statues. Richard Zaldivar wrote to say the nearby AIDS memorial was vandalized and multiple calls for help fell on deaf ears. Estela Lopez of the downtown industrial improvement district, where trash is routinely dumped illegally, wrote to say a county report warned that typhus levels downtown had reached an all-time high.
Sabine Phillips documents abandoned furniture and debris found on sidewalks of her neighborhood on Wednesday in East Hollywood.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
I also heard from Stefanie Keenan, who had a clever idea a few years ago, born of exasperation with City Hall. She hired her own housekeeper — that would be Phillips — to help patrol and clean the neighborhood they both live in, and Phillips’ work was featured by NBCLA and substacker Sam Quinones.
“It’s not getting done otherwise, and our neighborhood would have burned down,” Keenan told me.
Keenan, who has been tending to her streets for several years, has been paying Phillips $100 for Wednesday scouting forays and another $100 to fill four or five huge bags on Saturday trash patrol. Keenan, a photographer, told me she has spent tens of thousands of dollars out of her own pocket.
But Keenan doesn’t have unlimited funds, and this was Phillips’ last week on the job. Lord knows what the neighborhood will look like without her on patrol. As she pedaled along her regular route Wednesday, Phillips found several more sofas, among other things.
A freezer. A refrigerator. Rugs. Chairs. Stools. Dressers. Drawers. Bed frames. Mattresses. Box springs. A printer. Electronics. Televisions.
And heaps of trash, some of which blocked sidewalks and some of which spilled off curbs and into streets.
On Lexington Avenue she stopped to make the following entry in her log:
“3 toilets.”
Nothing surprised her, and nothing slowed her down. At a house where a construction worker dumped lumber onto the sidewalk, Phillips strode up and asked what the thought would happen to the scrap pile. He said he had no idea; she made an entry in her log.
Phillips takes a break from documenting addresses of abandoned furniture and debris.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
I tried to recruit Phillips to run for mayor, but the native of Germany wasn’t interested. She did say, however, that she was “the first female bouncer in Berlin,” and that was “at a Hells Angel discotheque.”
The Berlin bouncer kept moving, and scribbling. She filled three pages in her notebook with more than 60 notations, including sidewalk graffiti.
“I’ve seen some weird stuff,” Phillips said. “Twice I found safes outside, just on the side of the curb.”
The studio-adjacent neighborhood she patrols has an eclectic mix of upscale houses and block-long stretches of apartment buildings, with people moving in and out and leaving possessions on the curb as they come and go.
That’s not the city’s fault. But the city could do a better job of educating residents on how to arrange for pickups, and a better job of cracking down when they don’t. I reached out to the office of Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez, but we hadn’t yet connected when I hit my deadline.
At the Lexington Avenue pocket park, Phillips told me she had never seen kids on the grounds.
“I will show you why I would never have kids playing here,” she said, pointing into the sandbox. “There is glass … needles, and … you will see human waste there in the corner.”
A blue tarp covered a makeshift home next to the sandbox. Someone slept on a bench. The slide had a gang tag painted onto it, and two people hovered under the slide on the edge of the sandbox. Phillips said she has seen homeless people use the water fountain to bathe, and a 15-year-old from a nearby high school died in 2022 after buying drugs here.
Jenny Carpio and her dog, Sky, walk past debris along a sidewalk in East Hollywood.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
While Phillips and Johnson were in the park, a city rec and parks employee pulled up. He said he was there to check the condition of the park, which was slated for a new playground that would cost about $300,000. He said a body had been found in the park not long ago. He guessed about 30% to 50% of the city’s parks have similar iproblems.
I’m reminded of Kurt Vonnegut’s refrain in “Slaughterhouse-Five.”
So it goes.
The insanity of investing in a new playground when a dozen festering issues make the park unsafe should be crystal clear to one and all. Surely there’s more to the plan, one would hope — something substantive and sustainable. But that’s a risky bet.
It might be better to admit defeat for now, close the park, and do something else with that $300,000.
Use it to put Phillips, and a team trained and supervised by her, on a fleet of yellow Huffys.
Coronation Street legend Kevin Kennedy played beloved character Curly Watts for 20 years
Angie Quinn Screen Time Reporter
08:00, 18 Apr 2026
Corrie’s Bill Webster punches Curly Watts over Maureen
Coronation Street icon Kevin Kennedy portrayed Curly on the ITV soap for two decades, but off-screen, he battled addiction.
Curly made his debut in the summer of 1983 and is fondly remembered for his romantic misfortunes and a succession of unsuccessful marriages. He was married to Rovers Return barmaid Raquel (Sarah Lancashire), though regrettably, they ended their rocky marriage after just five years.
Ultimately, however, Curly discovered contentment with his second wife, police officer Emma Taylor (Angela Lonsdale). The couple left the cobbles and set off to begin a fresh chapter in Newcastle-upon-Tyne following a perjury incident in 2003. Tragically, their marriage didn’t survive.
Curly returned briefly in a 2010 DVD special for the Coronation Street film A Knight’s Tale, where he disclosed that he and Emma had separated, leaving Curly single once more, reports the Daily Star.
Kevin’s health battle
Away from the BBC soap, Kevin struggled with alcohol addiction and has remained clean and sober for 27 years.
Speaking to The Mirror in 2013 regarding his addiction, Kevin admitted he would add shots of rum to his coffee. He would then consume a bottle of vodka before arriving at the Corrie set, where he secretly drank more in his dressing room to cope with filming.
Kevin said, “If it wasn’t for Coronation Street, I would be dead. If I were lucky, the drink would have killed me straight away by a fall or by walking in front of a bus.
“If I were unlucky, it would have taken everything from me first, kept me alive for another 10 years, and then killed me.”
Having departed the Cobbles in 2003, Kevin established an addiction recovery charity to support others battling addictive and mental health disorders, following more than two decades on his own personal recovery journey from alcohol addiction.
The organisation provides a helpline, staffed by trained coaches all in active recovery, alongside free virtual recovery coaching, support, signposting, and workshops.
Kevin told the Manchester Evening News: “The Kennedy Street Foundation is my passion; all we want to do is help people who find themselves in the desperate situation I was in 22 years ago.”
He further stated: “Our national recovery helpline is receiving calls every day, and we really need to raise as much money as possible in order to be able to help each and every one start their own Road2Recovery.”
Kevin’s other talents away from acting
Since departing Coronation Street 23 years ago, Kevin wrote and produced a programme entitled Spanish Capers, which broadcast between 2005 and 2007.
The 64-year-old, from Manchester, took on a role in Ben Elton’s musical We Will Rock You, portraying a hippie named Pop. Further television credits include appearances in Blue Murder, Doctors (both in 2006), and Holby City (in 2017).
In 2019, Kevin made his return to the small screen, portraying Clyde in a single episode of Mrs Brown’s Boys. The former Coronation Street star also trod the boards between 2018 and 2019, taking on the role of Dennis Dupree in the hit musical Rock of Ages.
According to The Guardian, Kevin is also an accomplished musician who was once signed to Simon Cowell’s record label. He performed in America alongside globally renowned acts, including Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson.
“Along with [the Smiths bassist] Andy Rourke, we were in a band called Paris Valentinos. As soon as I heard Johnny play the guitar, I thought: this is special, what a privilege to be here for this”, he told the publication.
Kevin is equally at home on stage, having played His Royal Highness, King Curlington in Cinderella at a County Durham pantomime in 2024, before going on to appear in the Pretty Vacant UK tour, which charts the story of punk and the new wave generation.
He has also been cast in the forthcoming UK tour of The Picture of Dorian Gray – A New Musical, scheduled to run from October 2026 through to April 2027, in which he will take on the role of Mr. Issacs.
For more information, help, and advice about addiction and recovery, visit Kennedy Street here.
Coronation Street couple David and Shona Platt could be about to split up after some worrying scenes aired during Friday night’s episode of the world’s longest-running TV soap
20:45, 17 Apr 2026Updated 20:46, 17 Apr 2026
David and Shona could be about to split up on Coronation Street
Coronation Street’s David and Shona Platt could be about to split up after worrying scenes aired on Friday night. The couple have been together since 2016 and met after it emerged that Shona was the mother of Clayton Hibbs, who murdered David’s first wife Kylie in broad daylight.
David (Jack P Shepherd) and Shona (Julia Goulding) tied the knot in 2019 and whilst the marriage has so far survived numerous ups and downs but their troubles really seem to have started since the mysterious and calculating Jodie Ramsey (Olivia Frances Brown) turned up earlier this year.
Having arrived in the soap’s crossover with Emmerdale, Shona immediately recognised Jodie as her long-lost sister, whom she had never mentioned before, and after moving into number eight, Jodie has insisted on meddling in their lives whilst posing as some sort of saint who takes care of household duties. This suited David and Shona nicely they went back and forth to the hospital to see their daughter Harper, who is currently in the neonatal intensive care unit after being born prematurely.
Over the last few months, Jodie has made a habit out of stealing various items that belong to other Weatherfield residents, and, earlier this week, she stole a tablet from a little girl by claiming she was a police officer. On Friday’s instalment of the world’s longest-running TV soap, Jodie decided to hand the stolen tablet over to her niece Lily and pass it off as a gift, much to Shona’s dismay.
Shona told her stepdaughter that she was not to accept the tablet, and the schoolgirl stormed off upstairs in the huff. Later that day, the conflict was clearly not resolved as David reasoned: “Look, I don’t want the hassle, babe. Can we not just let her keep it?”
Shona shot back: “We agreed not before her birthday. And if we decided not to get her one, no-one should be giving her one.” A row broke out as David said: “Can we not just let her keep the thing and save the headache?”
Shona raged: “Oh, a headache, am I?” as she stormed off. All this time, Jodie had pretended to be flicking through a magazine as she sat on the sofa in the living room but was listening in and rolling her eyes every time her long-lost sister spoke.
When Jodie apologised to David, he said: “To be honest, I don’t… I don’t care any more. I mean, when you’ve been at the hospital all day, there’s bigger things to be worrying about than flipping tablets. It’s not your fault. It’s just Shona. She’s only ever happy if everyone else is miserable.”
Jodie said: “Hey, come on, that’s a bit harsh, isn’t it?” But, with a concerning reply, David said: “Harsh? Just you wait. You’ll see.” Fans have previously suggested that the storyline could follow a similar path Single White Female, the 1992 thriller that starred Jennifer Jason Leigh and Bridget Fonda and followed a woman whose roommate decides to steal her identity.
One said: “I am getting some single white female vibes, I won’t lie,” and another said: “Shona and Jodie. Remember the movie ‘Single White Female’? Jodie has copied Shonas hair.”
Another said: “I’m convinced Jodie is gonna try and steal Shona’s life, first her clothes, then her kids, then her fella!” There is definitely some mystery surrounding Jodie, as she was previously seen suffering from a panic attack after being harassed by an intrusive caller.
Coronation Streetairs Monday to Friday at 8:30pm on ITV1 and is available to stream from 7am on ITVX.
Coronation Street actor Gareth Pierce has been playing Todd Grimshaw since 2020, but fans were shocked to discover his real accent
Angie Quinn Screen Time Reporter
22:58, 16 Apr 2026
Todd has become a victim of abuse at the hands of Theo Silverton
Coronation Street’s Gareth Pierce is well known for his portrayal of Todd Grimshaw, yet in real life, he sounds remarkably different.
Gareth, 45, rose to prominence when he joined the Corrie cast in 2020 as Todd Grimshaw, stepping into the role previously held by Bruno Langley, who departed the show in 2017.
Over the past six years on the long-running soap, Todd has been at the centre of some heartbreaking storylines, including the deaths of his closest friends Billy Mayhew (Daniel Brocklebank) and Paul Foreman (Peter Ash).
Last year, Todd embarked on a relationship with dashing scaffolder Theo Silverton (James Cartwright), who was already married with two children.
Theo, who had kept his sexuality a secret, found himself ostracised by his family when his wife Danielle (Natalie Anderson) uncovered his affair with Todd, reports the Daily Star.
Despite initially pulling away from Todd to concentrate on his family, the pair quickly rekindled their romance, though the road has been far from smooth.
Matters took a darker turn when James Bailey (Jason Callender) drunkenly attempted to kiss Todd at number eleven, prompting Theo to deliver a stark warning. He has since continued to tighten his grip on every aspect of his boyfriend’s life.
For months, Theo has been subjecting Todd to both mental and physical abuse in a deeply disturbing domestic violence storyline. Most recently, Theo launched a brutal attack on Todd, leaving him bloodied and battered in deeply distressing scenes.
The funeral director has been quietly struggling for months, with Todd’s nearest and dearest beginning to notice that something isn’t quite right. Regrettably, their concern about his wellbeing has driven the scheming Theo to resort to increasingly extreme measures.
Theo manipulated Todd into walking down the aisle with him, but his sinister plans didn’t stop there. The conniving villain subsequently schemed to spirit his new husband away to Belfast, far from his loved ones and support network.
Todd informed Theo that he wasn’t prepared to relocate, prompting the villain to confiscate his phone and hold him captive. As a Weatherfield resident is set to meet a grisly end in an upcoming whodunnit, could Theo be next in line?
Away from the Manchester-based soap, Gareth has left fans stunned after revealing his real-life accent. Last year, he took to Instagram to wish the Welsh women’s football team well as they competed in the Euros.
Sporting a Welsh football shirt, Gareth, who hails from Gwynedd in Wales, said: “Massive week ahead in the Women’s Euros. Wales and England both playing today, but also playing each other on Sunday. Big showdown. Obviously, I’m shouting for Wales.”
Speaking in Welsh, he added: “Good luck, Wales. Let’s go. Come on, Wales!”
Soap devotees were left gobsmacked after watching the clip, as Todd’s Mancunian accent on Coronation Street is worlds apart from Gareth’s natural Welsh lilt.
Flocking to the comments, one viewer wrote: “You learn something new every day. Did not know he was Welsh”, while another added: “Love the slight Welsh accent.
“Didn’t know you were Welsh”, a third chimed in as another exclaimed: “Didn’t know he was welsh c’mon Cymru.”
“Are you Welsh, mate?” asked one fan while another stated: “Mind blown!”
