Coronation Street couple Michelle Connor and Steve McDonald set to split after she finds out he fathered Leanne Battersby’s baby
AS far as soap couples go, few have had it tougher than Coronation Street’s Michelle Connor and Steve McDonald.
KYM MARSH and SIMON GREGSON’s characters have recently suffered a sad miscarriage, their relationship has been blighted by affairs on both of their parts and he has suffered from depression.
But the marriage of the golden pair finally comes crashing down — as the inevitable happens and Michelle discovers that Steve is the father of Leanne Battersby’s baby.
I can reveal that Michelle will file for a divorce from the pub landlord as she finally finds out Steve has got Leanne (played by JANE DANSON) pregnant after a drunken one-night stand.
And the barmaid’s fury sparks a full-on battle on the cobbles over The Rovers, as she brings in the lawyers to take control of the pub — while Peter Barlow also decides he’d like to get his hands on the local landmark.
A Corrie source revealed: “Michelle finally discovers the extent of Steve’s betrayal and, as expected, she doesn’t deal with it lightly.
“She goes totally berserk and declares war on Steve.
“She brings in the lawyers and tells the love rat she’s going to divorce him.“She vows she will never forgive him and then she drops the big bombshell.
“She tells him she’s going to be taking half of everything the couple own, including the pub.
“It sparks a huge row on the Street. Steve is in for several weeks from hell.”
The fight for The Rovers also includes the ever-expanding Barlow family, as Peter, played by CHRIS GASCOYNE, starts sniffing around to see what he can get his hands on too.
An insider added: “It’s going to be a long-running storyline as Michelle goes after The Rovers and other Weatherfield residents also eye up the property.
“As soon as Peter finds out that Michelle might get half, he starts looking around to see if he can buy her share off her when she gets it.”
Hell hath no fury like Michelle scorned.
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Gimme 5! Adam's kids wish
EMMERDALE hunk ADAM THOMAS is after a massive brood of five children with fiancée Caroline Daly.
The actor, Adam Barton in the ITV soap, already has two-year-old son Teddy with dance teacher Caroline.
But since returning from his stint on I’m A Celebrity, in which he came third, Adam has wasted no time in making plans to increase the population of his family.
He said: “It’s amazing being a dad. It’s hard work but I think I’ve got a good one. I’m ready for another one.
“Let’s go, bring them on, I’d like five. We’re only here once so why not create life?
“It’s always nice to be loved – and to love.”
He is set to tie the knot with Caroline this year after proposing to her in Dubai with Teddy watching on.
But plans for the proposal were almost thwarted when Adam thought she had seen the ring before the day.
He said: “On the day I was going to propose, Caroline described her perfect engagement ring and it was exactly the same as the one I had bought.
“I thought she’d seen the ring. I was absolutely gutted.”
Now he has the unenviable task of deciding which of his brothers – RYAN THOMAS, Coronation Street’s Jason Grimshaw, or Love Island’s SCOTT THOMAS – will be best man.
Might just be safer to avoid the arguments and go for both.
Bruno is still on his Todd
A STARRING role in a soap doesn’t mean you’ll be inundated with dating offers.
Coronation Street’s BRUNO LANGLEY has never had a harder job of finding a partner.
While his character Todd Grimshaw is gay, Bruno isn’t and since his split from long-term girlfriend Victoria Roscoe in 2013 his acting job has caused with potential suitors who identify with his character, not Bruno.
He said: “I’ve let my guard down in the past and I shouldn’t have done.
“Sometimes I think it’s hard to meet someone when you’re looking for a relationship.
“It’s tough for everyone but this just makes it tougher.
“You have to use your initiative when it comes to knowing who to trust.
“I went on this date, she was a pretty girl, she sat down and the first thing she said was, ‘I’m such a big fan of Corrie.’
“I couldn’t believe it, that was it, it was finished because she thought I was someone else, she thought she was dating Todd.”
Last year he confirmed his single status and admitted that he was keen to take the bull by the horns when it comes to love.
He said: “There’s been a few times when I’ve seen a really nice girl and I’ve not gone up to them and not said anything, and I’ve always regretted it.
“These days, if I ever see anyone, I always go up and try to be a gentleman.”
He might need to buy a disguise first.
Take That! Gary sets bar higher
I CAN reveal a cruel twist in store for the Let It Shine hopefuls.
After being scored 15 stars or more from the judges and thinking they were safely through to the next round, four of the contestants are set to be axed following a secret dance challenge.
GARY BARLOW gets an instructor to put the boys including AJ Bentley and Jason Brock through their paces at the end of Saturday night’s show to see who has the moves for his TAKE THAT musical.
He and fellow judges MARTIN KEMP and DANNII MINOGUE then review the footage and vote four of them off the competition.
An insider said: “The judges put through too many people so this was a good way of quickly eliminating those who didn’t have any natural rhythm.
“This isn’t just a singing contest, it’s for a musical and will require people to dance.
“It also sets the show apart from X Factor and The Voice because the boyband needs strong dancers and singers.”
The final 40 contestants will be taking part in celeb collaborations before the live shows with OLLY MURS, MEL C, BEVERLEY KNIGHT, KAISER CHIEFS and BUSTED.
And Gary’s old pal LULU, who sang with Take That on the hit Relight My Fire, will be helping out as a guest judge.
She’s seen some dodgy dance moves first-hand.
SOAPBOX
EXPECTING a baby with a priest isn’t exactly ideal.
And in today’s NEIGHBOURS Paige decides to take David up on his offer to become her unborn tot’s “fake father”.
In a bid to conceal the fact that she’s carrying Father Jack’s child, Paige decides to tell the whopper of a lie to the entire Willis clan at an Australia Day barbeque.
Meanwhile, in EMMERDALE, Cain warns Ross to stay away from Debbie now that she is back in the Dales.
Wanting to make sure Debbie’s ex Ross steers well clear of his daughter, Cain gives him an added incentive by threatening him and handing over some money.
I’ll be amazed if Ross takes any notice.