Viewers of the ITV soap know the character will soon leave
Coronation Street fans have said they are ‘crumbling’ as the emotional scenes continue ahead of Paul Foreman’s death. Viewers of the ITV soap know the character will soon tragically die, over a year after being diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease.
The former builder was told of the life-shortening disease, in which messages from the motor neurones gradually stop reaching the muscles, in April 2023 with there currently being no cure.
Viewers have since been watching the storyline unfold, often with tears in their eyes, as Paul’s condition deteriorates, with Corrie showing the effect not just on Paul but also his wider family including his husband Billy Mayhew and his mum Bernie Winter.
During the latest episode of Corrie on Wednesday night (August 14), there was a frightening moment for Paul after he ordered a visit from his half-brother Kit, who has only recently come into his biological family’s life after being given up by Bernie as a newborn.
After lying to Billy so he didn’t have to attend a family dinner earlier in the week, Kit agreed to visit Paul as he wanted to talk to him. Upon arriving at the flat, Billy told the police officer Paul had been working on what he had wanted to see via his Eyegaze equipment which helps him to communicate.
Billy left, leaving the siblings alone and it wasn’t long before Paul was pleading with Kit to forgive their mum and make amends. Kit was honest and told Paul exactly why that wouldn’t be possible, leaving him taken aback.
But suddenly, Paul started struggling to breathe. Kit immediately went into a panic and called Bernie and the emergency services. When Bernie arrived, she was calm and immediately knew what to do, grabbing her son’s oxygen machine from the cupboard and helping regulate his breathing without any other emergency help needed.
Stunned at Bernie’s approach and how he fell into a panic, Kit wasn’t sure how to deal with what he was feeling and it was Billy who encouraged Kit to follow a clearly distressed Bernie after she left in a hurry. He did end up paying her a visit and she broke down over her fear of losing Paul and it appeared a tiny bit of progress was made in their relationship.
But Corrie fans were left flocking to social media to discuss Paul, the portrayal by actor Peter Ash and the goodbye they’ll eventually have to say. @tracy.c70 said: “I am literally crumbling at this storyline, Peter Ash is just the most outstanding actor that there has ever been, he truly deserves all the awards out there for his truly dynamic acting.”
@jessicalunn13 commented: “Bernie always makes me cry. Don’t know why. Just hits me. Love Paul! Not ready!” @karen.oconnor.965580 wrote: “Bernie’s crying set my off ,its going to be soon isn’t it.” @suenightingale60 added: “Poor paul so sad to see him suffering. Peter Ash is a brilliant actor his acting has been fantastic.”