Coronation Street fans were left feeling “uncomfortable” after the latest scenes played out in the Todd and Theo abuse storyline and one character made a sudden reappearance
20:45, 12 Feb 2026Updated 21:53, 12 Feb 2026
Coronation Street’s Todd Grimshaw has become a victim of coercive control at the hands of his boyfriend Theo(Image: ITV/Coronation Street)
Coronation Street fans were left feeling “uncomfortable” after the latest scenes played out in the Todd and Theo abuse storyline. The undertaker, who has been played by Gareth Pierce since 2020, has found himself the victim of coercive control at the hands of boyfriend Theo (James Cartwright), with the abuse ranging from psychological to physical.
In the latest episode of the world’s longest-running TV soap, it became apparent that Theo had left Todd with a love bite from the night before, something which the scaffolder took pleasure in, noting that he had “branded” Todd as his own. When he was on the way to work, Todd noticed teenager Jake Windass was leaning up against a hearse outside the funeral parlour.
Todd said: “How would you like it if I came round your gaff and leaned against your dad’s motor?” Jake answered back: “He’d probably kick your head in!” Jake noticed Todd’s love bite and made fun of it, but it was then that Todd’s boss, George Shuttleworth, came outside and told Todd off for arguing with a teenager on the street.
READ MORE: Coronation Street’s Todd Grimshaw subjected to bizarre abuse in ‘horrible scenes’READ MORE: ITV Coronation Street fans ‘want to punch telly’ amid ‘harrowing’ abuse storyline
Theo had given Todd a lovebite (Image: ITV/Coronation Street)
Viewers of the ITV soap will know that, as part of his control, Theo recently seized control of Todd’s bank account and has been leaving him with very little cash to live on whilst disappearing on trips away. Things only got worse for Todd later on when he was in the corner shop trying to buy something but had to fumble an excuse because he didn’t have enough money. Jake was in there and jokingly offered to lend him some money, which Todd refused.
Jake said: “I was only being nice. Not as nice, whoever it was that gave you that massive bruise on your neck, though! Do you think you might be pregnant?” Taken aback by the bizarre insult, Todd snapped and physically threatened Jake, only for Jake’s dad Gary to walk in and ask what was going on.
In the end, Gary took Jake’s side and told Todd: “You can’ really take the moral high ground, when you’re walking around with a great big hickey on your neck like a lovesick schoolgirl!”
Jake wound Todd up about it all with a series of bizarre insults but Gary took his side (Image: ITV/Coronation Street)
Back at home, things took a dark turn as Todd found Theo working out on his exercise bike. Theo works with Gary and he’d just received a phone call from him to inform him of Todd’s feud with the teenager. Theo told Todd: “I don’t want an explanation. I want a promise…don’t show me up like that again. I don’t want Gary telling me to keep you under control. It makes me look weak and unmanly.” A frustrated Todd shot back: “I didn’t want any of this!”
Theo then said: “Are you saying you didn’t wanna have sex with me last night? ‘Cause it was consensual. Or have I got that wrong?” Todd hesitated and then said: “It was. It was consensual,” before Theo said: “Is this your twisted way of saying you don’t enjoy sex with me?” He then demanded that Todd tell him he loves him, which, after even more hesitation, Todd finally said: “I love you.”
Viewers took to social media to react to the latest twist in the hard-hitting storyline, with one writing on X: “#Corrie are absolutely nailing it with this Theo/todd story, hard to watch but filmed brilliantly!” Another took to Reddit to share their thoughts.
Theo then heard about the feud and twisted it around into an argument about consent (Image: ITV/Coronation Street)
Bosses of the soap have already teased that a murder will be on the cards, and a victim will be teased with a flash-forward scene. However, the fan was hopeful that it wouldn’t be Theo and he would actually remain alive in order to face punishment for his crimes. They wrote: “I think we can all agree that the storyline has been really uncomfortable and the consensus is that this really goes on and we shouldn’t shy away from such things. My issue is that I think that they will go full soap opera at the end and have one of them bumped off then there will be a whole who dunnit storyline.
“I think they should just follow through and have it discovered and the details of the abuse come out with positive police involvement. The police (generally) are much better at recognising the lies and controlling behaviour of an abuser these days and they should portray that.”
In agreement, another fan said: “I hope thats not the case its a very uncomfortable story line getting moreso each episode I dont think we need anymore violence or murders in the street but it needs to get point across that these are also real life issues thats why Theo needs to be caught out by people who call themselves Todd’s friends!”
Meanwhile, other fans were surprised to see the sudden appearance of Jake, who was born on-screen in 2013 as part of a surrogacy storyline in which Tina McIntyre (Michelle Keegan) carried him for Gary and Izzy Armstrong as a way to pay off debts. The character has featured sporadically over the years, but some fans were left confused as to why he was brought in now.
One said: “This whole quarrel with Jake seemed to have started simply as a means to get Todd abused again by Theo even though realistically, Todd just coming home would’ve started it. Not sure why they brought Jake back just to bully an abused man. Never mind, here today, gone tomorrow, and probably the next 6 months,” and another said: “Jake being a bully feels unrealistic cause not that long ago there was a storyline about his stepbrother being bullied, so I doubt he would become a bully after seeing what the family went through!”
Coronation Street airs weeknights at 8:30pm on ITV1 and ITV X.
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