Coronation Street's harrowing grooming storyline, which has seen paedophile teacher Megan Walsh (Beth Nixon) groom and sexually abuse schoolboy Will Driscoll (Lucas Hodgson-Wale), is building towards a climax, but several twists remain.
Megan's Reign of Abuse
Megan has caused extensive damage. Beyond abusing Will, former victim Lee (Oscar Aldersley) has emerged, while Sam Blakeman (Jude Riordan) suffered a psychiatric breakdown after she psychologically tortured him for uncovering her secrets. Despite exposure, Megan continued manipulating Will to deny everything to police, plotting her escape abroad. It seemed she might get away with her crimes.
Unlikely hero Tim Metcalfe (Joe Duttine) shared his own experience of sexual abuse to reach Will as he tried to flee with Megan. With his eyes opened, Will bravely reported her to the police. Determined to destroy the case, Megan has returned to manipulate Will, urging him to retract his allegations.
New Character Arrival
While Megan's end approaches, further twists are in store with the arrival of her mother, Janine, played by Melissa Jacques. Speaking to TV Times, Catherine Tyldesley (Eva Price) said: 'When Janine reveals who she is, it's like a red rag to a bull for Ben [Driscoll (Aaron McCusker)]. Janine tries to apologise on behalf of Megan. She is bewildered as to why this happened. But sometimes people grow up in normal, loving families and things go wrong. That's what Eva sees.'
'She's like, 'It's not Janine's fault.' Then you've got Maggie, who's like, 'Well, Megan has learnt this behaviour from someone!''
Aftermath and Justice
Corrie boss Kate Brooks previously teased the Driscoll family's aftermath and Megan's punishment. 'It's about the family falling apart, then building themselves back up as they try to repair the damage Megan's done. Will will be quite badly affected by what he's been through. It does go a bit dark.'
'Obviously, there are soap Gods, and as in soap God's law, there'll be some kind of retribution for Megan. She cannot get off scot-free. We will go down the proper channels. Whether it goes to plan or not, I cannot say, but it goes down a very big path.'
Actress Insight
Beth Nixon discussed playing the complex villain. 'I love playing Megan because she's so horrible. They're my favourite types of characters to play. There's so much room to play with her because she tells lies like nothing. There are so many layers.'
'It's interesting because people try to understand her, but we've never gone into why she's doing this. Why is she grooming young boys? There's no justification because it's unjustifiable. But from a storytelling point of view, it's nice that there's no point in justifying it. We don't know why she's doing it, and it doesn't matter.'
