The impact of the tragic death of Billy Mayhew (Daniel Brocklebank) is starting to hit everyone on Coronation Street.
Billy lost his life when the minibus he was driving back from Debbie (Sue Devaney)’s wedding crashed during the mayhem of Corriedale. As everyone else escaped, Billy was left trapped inside the vehicle unable to unfasten his seatbelt.
As a fire broke out the minibus was on the verge of exploding. Theo Silverton (James Cartwright) went back inside just as Billy had unfastened the seatbelt.
Impulsively deciding that now was his best chance to get rid of the man he despised for being such a close friend to Todd (Gareth Pierce), Theo clipped the seatbelt back in, trapping Billy, and left him to die as the bus exploded moments later.
In a new preview video, Todd and Theo are visited by Summer (Harriet Bibby) and George (Tony Maudsley), who’ve just been to look at the tributes that have been left on the street for Billy.
Summer is especially touched by the messages that people have left for Billy: ‘In my darkest hour you were there for me. You were God’s most beautiful envoy.’ She breaks down at the weight of realising Billy has gone and she’s lost another dad so soon after losing Paul (Peter Ash).
Theo is clearly struggling with the situation and offers to leave Todd, George and Summer alone. It seems like he’s being sensitive, but he’s actually having trouble dealing with his own guilt in the face of Summer’s genuine grief.
‘Why did he have to be the one?’ Summer says and Theo’s response that it’s probably what Billy would have wanted is quite bizarre under the circumstances.
When Summer tells them she doesn’t want to be on her own in the flat she used to share with Billy, Todd’s face is all compassion and love. Theo, meanwhile, quickly makes the offer that she can stay with them as long as she likes before Todd has the chance to speak.
Unlike Todd, however, he’s obviously only doing what’s expected of him rather than what he really wants.
His pattern has always been to be jealous of anyone else taking up Todd’s time, whether that was Billy or Sarah (Tina O’Brien) or Summer, so having the person Todd thinks of as his daughter living with them is exactly what he doesn’t want – particularly as he lives with the guilt of being responsible for her beloved father’s death.
