Joel isn’t the squeaky-clean solicitor he was once made out to be and Ellie has returned to help bring him down

Coronation Street fans have been left fearing for Ellie as they predicted what will happen next following her return to help nail Joel Deering for her crimes once and for all.

As viewers of the ITV soap know, Joel isn’t the squeaky-clean solicitor he was once made out to be. Behind his smart suit and clever façade is an evil and calculated groomer responsible for the disappearance of Lauren Bolton, and the abuse of other teenage girls just like her.

Lauren was presumed dead following her sudden disappearance back in February but three months later, a flashback clip revealed the solicitor was Lauren’s secret ‘boyfriend’, and saw him brutally attack her with a chair leg.

Then, when she returned to visit an ill Roy in July, Joel accosted her in the hospital where an intense confrontation ensued and the truth about their relationship was exposed.

Now, Joel is currently doing everything he can to evade being nailed by DS Swain for grooming Lauren and later giving her a drug that saw her go into early labour with their son, Frankie.

However, he may not have expected the return of Ellie, who was once spoken to by Bethany Platt as she thought her former groomer Nathan Curtis was behind Lauren’s disappearance.

During Monday night’s (September 16) Corrie, Ellie confessed all to DS Lisa Swain and Dee-Dee Bailey about what Joel did to her. But refused to give an official statement over fears Joel would kill her for speaking up.

After rushing out of Dee-Dee’s flat panicked, Ellie went to visit Lauren who was with her son in the hospital. Learning about Lauren’s experience, Ellie later returned to speak to Swain and Dee-Dee and heartbreakingly admitted she been groomed, assaulted and coerced into a sexual relationship by Joel, with him offering her money and gifts.

She confirmed she had been one of his clients when she got arrested for shop lifting, and the story that followed was similar to that faced by Lauren. But, in a twist, Ellie was forced to be quiet after signing a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) after Joel’s former boss caught them in his office before offering her £200 to kee shtum.

Dee-Dee later visited the solicitors and managed to quash the non-disclosure agreement (NDA) Ellie had signed and got the owner for the solicitors to agree to give a formal statement. As she confidently returned to Weatherfield, Dee-Dee bumped into Joel and hinted that his days of freedom are numbered.

Later, Dee-Dee and Swain headed to speak to Lauren with Swain revealing permission had been granted to re-open the case into Joel. And before the credits rolled on the latest episode, Dee-Dee exclaimed: “This is the beginning of the end for Joel Deering.”

Corrie fans were joint in cheering for Ellie’s honesty and plan to help the women bring Joel down. @anna_pi____ said: “Go Ellie!!!!!! You’ve got this.” @karatelover2578 commented: “Go on Ellie! Go gurl.” @pjv_theoutcast wrote: “Let’s go, Ellie, girls stick together.” @sophielucas1918 typed: “Go Ellie You’ve got this tell the truth so joel deering can go to prison.”

Others, however, don’t think Ellie will be around for too much longer. @ifeelflames posted: “Ellie is likely to disappear any time now #Corrie.” @1stLadyHooligan shared: “Lauren won Ellie over & hopefully she won’t disappear or backtrack about Joel. #Corrie.” @spartacus2963 added: “If they’re going to bring Joel down, I’m thinking it might be RIP Ellie, a much loved character…. #Corrie.”