This comes before his MND diagnosis.

By Helen Daly

Published: Monday, 24 April 2023 at 12:00 am

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Paul Foreman is staring down the wrong end of a prison sentence on Coronation Street.

In the episode that aired tonight (24th April), the builder was pulled over by the police when he was driving Rufus’s stolen car and he swerved around the road because of his MND symptoms.

However, that car he pinched belongs to a dead man – and Paul even possessing it doesn’t look good for him.

While in the police station without a solicitor, the inspector tried to get a confession out of Paul for killing Rufus – but Paul had a card up his sleeve to clear his name.

Admitting he just stole the car and nothing else, the police officer seemed happy with what she’d gleaned – but in a twist, Dee Dee (Channique Sterling-Brown) arrived just too late to stop him from saying something he may regret.

When Dee Dee found out what he’d done, its safe to say she was disappointed, especially with Paul seemingly throwing his life away without actually having his MND diagnosis yet.

It was announced earlier in the year that Paul will have motor neurone disease, which will turn out to be fatal for the builder.

Corrie producer Iain Macleod said at the time of the announcement: “Motor Neurone Disease is something that many people might have heard of but perhaps don’t know a lot about, even given the recent cases of public figures talking about their experiences of living with the condition.

“A show like Coronation Street is uniquely placed to show the day-to-day reality of dealing with an illness that gradually and progressively erodes the physical attributes that you perhaps take for granted, changing forever the way you interact with the world around you.

“At first, Paul – who as a builder, relies entirely on his physicality for his livelihood – will massively go off the rails in a misplaced bid to ensure he isn’t a burden on his loved ones. But in the end, they will be the ones to put him back together emotionally.

“We are committed to portraying in a long-term, sensitive way the effects of this condition on Paul and his family and friends, not shying away from the sometimes painful reality of what his life will be like.

“We have been privileged to work with the Motor Neurone Disease Association – including talking to people who have the condition and their families – to ensure we do justice to people’s real-life experiences.”

This latest development will no doubt cause more strain on Paul ahead of finding out the results from his doctors.

For information and support on all aspects of motor neurone disease, visit the MND Association’s website or call the charity on 0808 802 6262.