‘Sick in the head’ fume Coronation Street viewers as they blast ITV bosses for Paul Foreman’s final scenes
CORONATION Street fans have slammed writers of the ITV soap over “sick” Paul Foreman scenes last night.
Paul’s (Peter Ash) husband Billy (Daniel Brocklebank) was unaware of his deteriorating condition and was not there to say goodbye to him before he died.
In heartbreaking scenes, Paul died during Monday night’s (September 9) episode of Coronation Street.
Paul has long been battling motor neuron disease (MND) – a rare condition which affects the brain and nerves. And yesterday, he tragically died as a result of the disease.
While with his mum Bernie (Jane Hazelgrove) and adopted daughter Summer (Harriet Bibby), Paul began struggling to breathe and was taken to hospital.
However, they were unable to contact a hungover Billy, who was out looking for his missing mobile phone.
Paul’s condition continued to deteriorate at the hospital and Bernie, Summer and his sister Gemma (Dolly Rose Campbell) were told it was time to say their goodbyes.
When Kit (Jacob Roberts) finally alerts Billy to what’s going on, he races to the hospital but doesn’t make it in time.
Instead, Bernie calls Billy moments before her son dies in the hope that they can say goodbye on the phone.
But in a tragic twist of fate, Paul dies before Billy can speak. Instead of telling him the truth, Bernie tells Billy his husband is listening.
“My beautiful husband, I’m sorry I’m not there yet,” he said, while trying to catch his breath.
“I love you, Paul, and I am gonna miss you every day for the rest of my life. And even though I don’t say it, I would do this a million times over because being with you and loving you has been the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
“You just hold on, I’m coming,” he added.
But sadly, the episode comes to a dramatic end with Billy running into the hospital and realising he’s too late.
Corrie fans are furious at the way this sad storyline played out as they have branded it “the most emotional episode ever.”
Most devastating soap deaths
SOAP viewers are frequently left heartbroken after watching some of their favourite characters bite the dust.
Here is a list of the most devastating deaths that have taken place in soapland over the years.
EASTENDERS
Barry Evans – Evil Janine (Charlie Brooks) lured her trusting fiance to Scotland for a quickie marriage after learning he was dying.
Her plan to inherit Barry’s fortune was thwarted when Barry told her that the doctors had mixed up his medical files.
Furious that she was no longer set for a windfall, she pushed Barry off a cliff after telling him their love was “fake”.
Bradley Branning – Bradley was accused of killing Stacey Slater’s rapist Archie Mitchell (Larry Lamb) after he punched him twice on the night he died.
He was spotted in the Square by a police woman who chased him up a fire escape.
Bradley lost his balance and tragically plunged to his death.
CORONATION STREET
Tina McIntyre – Tina was getting it on with Peter Barlow – despite him being married to Carla Connor.
When she threatened to reveal the truth, Carla’s brother Rob got into a physical altercation with her.
Tina lost her footing and fell off a balcony – then warned Rob she was going to tell the cops he pushed her.
In a panic, Rob brutally clobbered her over the head with a metal pipe.
Molly Dobbs – Molly was one of the victims in Corrie’s 2010 tram crash, alongside Ashley Peacock (Steven Arnold).
Married to Tyrone (Alan Halsall), Molly had been having an affair with Kevin Webster (Michael Le Vell) in the months before her death.
This resulted in the birth of their son, Jack (Kyran Bowes), who was named after Jack Duckworth.
As fate would have it, Kevin’s wife Sally (Sally Dynevor) was by Molly’s side in her final moments.
Sally was stunned as Molly confessed Kevin was Jack’s father, before dying of her injuries.
Vera Duckworth – Having appeared regularly in Corrie since the 1970s, there was no denying Vera Duckworth was an iconic character.
Alongside her husband Jack, the pair formed one of the soap’s most beloved couples.
Viewers were heartbroken when Vera was killed off in 2008, being discovered having passed away peacefully in her chair.
Liz Dawn, who played Vera, made a brief return two years later for Bill Tarmey’s exit as Jack.
Paul Foreman – Fans were heartbroken when Paul Foreman succumbed to his illness after battling motor neurone disease.
Introduced in 2018 as David Platt’s (Jack P. Shepherd) cellmate, he later embarked on a romance – and marriage – with vicar Billy Mayhew.
The MND storyline was announced in 2023 – with the expectation it would result in the character’s death.
EMMERDALE
Sarah Sugden – After the family got into financial problems, Sarah’s son Andy (Kelvin Fletcher) decided to make some quick cash from an insurance company by setting fire to the Sugden barn.
He didn’t realise his mum was inside the building, and she got trapped in the blaze.
Nine villagers – The shocking 1993 plane crash episode brought in 18 million viewers for Emmerdale.
Mark Hughes was killed by a falling wall, Archie Brooks was burned by jet fuel, Elizabeth Pollard was killed by debris and newcomer Leonard Kempinski died in a car crash caused by the crash.
Five other non-recurring characters from the village also died.
HOLLYOAKS
Carmel McQueen – The talented singer died in shocking scenes when a train crashed into a her family’s car.
Carmel managed to free her cousin Theresa from the rubble – but got stuck in it herself.
Moments later the train exploded and Carmel died in the arms of her family members, promising to be their guardian angel.
Responding to a video of Peter — who has been nominated for a National Television Award on Wednesday — posted on the soap’s Instagram page, soap fans raged at ITV writers.
“Nothing can convince me now that these writers aren’t completely sick in the head…. There was no need for Billy to have not got there in time,” one fan fumed.
“Yes, I can’t believe Billy wasn’t there!” raged another.
A third commented: “I agree!! What an awful end to this tragic storyline!! I’m actually shocked.”
While a fourth fan admitted they were furious with the soap writers for making the storyline even more “miserable.”
They said: “The writers are doing everything they can to make every part of Corrie miserable. They can’t drag out the storyline any longer, yet they are clearly deciding to drag out the misery and do everything they can to make the ending sadder than it needs to be.
“They’ve done a great MND storyline and Peter Ash was great through all of it, no doubt about that. It’s just the writers are insufferable,” they fumed.
However, another Corrie fan suggested that perhaps the writers went in this direction because it was more true to real life.
“Maybe because it actually happens in real life? Not everybody gets the chance to say goodbye,” the suggested.
Moving forward, viewers can expect to see Billy struggle with Paul’s death and not being physically present for it.
However, they will sadly have to wait until Friday night to see the aftermath of this heartbreaking episode as Wednesday’s instalment of the soap has been pulled from regularly scheduled programming to accommodate the NTAs.