Coronation Street to be rocked by two funerals

There are going to be two very different tributes paid in the coming days…

Coronation Street is set for two funerals – after a row breaks out how to deliver the best send off for Paul Foreman, who died earlier this month. Billy Mayhew and his mother-in-law Bernie Winter clash over the arrangements after finding themselves unable to even choose flowers together – and end up organising their own events.

Billy is seen preparing for the heartbreaking church service, which is on what would have been their first wedding anniversary but gets a shock when Paul’s dad Denny Foreman turns up drunk alongside Gemma Winter-Brown. He warns his father-in-law – who walked out on his kids back in the 90s – to behave himself and stay out sight.

**Paul’s coffin is carried with Bernie Winter and Gemma Winter-Brown following behind**

**His memory is also commemorated in a colourful rave in the street** (Image: ITV)

In heartbreakingly sad scenes to air on Coronation Street, Todd Grimshaw, Summer Spellman, Kit Green, David Platt, Chesney Brown and Dee-Dee Bailey will carry Paul’s coffin down the aisle with Bernie and Gemma following behind.

Billy takes the bold step of conducting the church service himself. However Paul, who struggled with his motor neurone disease as the condition deteriorated before his death, isn’t laid to rest in peace for long.

Bernie, put out that she wasn’t able to give Paul the funeral she would have liked to, comes up with a plan while chatting to Dev. The character, played by Jane Hazlegrove, hatches a much more colourful plan.

A ‘memorial rave’ is hastily assembled in the street with glow-sticks and bunting – with Todd asked to bring the ashes along so Paul can have the “best position on the dance floor”. And that’s just the start of the out-there send off.

Bernie – dressed in a lurid pink shell suit – also has plans to blast her son’s ashes into space.

**Billy has a stern warning for drunken Denny at the funeral**

Viewers will have to wait to see exactly how badly that goes down with Billy, especially when he turns up at the undertakers to collect them, only to find she’s already swiped them.

Paul, who was played by Peter Ash, spoke before his exit at his feelings on leaving the ITV soap. He said: “I’ll be sad to leave the show, it’s been an amazing job, I’ve met fantastic people. But also at the same time, happy to be involved in such a powerful storyline that hopefully will bring awareness.”

The actor added that he originally knew about the disease only through Professor Stephen Hawking and the ice bucket challenge which went viral a few years ago, but has since read former rugby player Rob Burrow’s book and watched his documentary to help understand the illness.