There’s been something shifty going on with Tyrone Dobbs (Alan Halsall) in Coronation Street for a while, starting when Summer Spellman (Harriet Bibby) swore blind he could provide her an alibi for the night of Theo Silverton’s (James Cartwright) murder…yet he didn’t.
That’s because, just before seeing Summer, Tyrone accidentally fell onto the jack holding Kevin Webster’s (Michael Le Vell) car above Carl Webster (Jonathan Howard). Carl was attempting to sabotage the breaks after a final showdown with his brother and the theft of his escape fund.
The car collapsed onto Carl, grievously injuring him. Panicked, Tyrone fled the scene – crossed paths and nervous glances with Summer – and bumped into Ronnie Bailey (Vinta Morgan), who calmly took over the situation, placing Carl in the back of his car and depositing him outside the hospital, later cleaning it thoroughly to ensure all traces of his loathed step-son had been removed.
The reason Tyrone can’t provide Summer with the alibi she so desperately needs is because doing so would place him near the garage at the time that Carl suffered his incredibly grim injury, and would also lead to the revelation that Ronnie transported him to the hospital and knew all about the violent act.
Tyrone, though, as we know, is a genuinely decent guy, and the knowledge that he’s the reason that Summer is languishing in a prison cell is eating him alive.
Despite Ronnie’s abject pleas to hold his nerve and that the situation will right itself, our Ty can hardly bear it.
When Carl happened across a clash between Tyrone and Todd Grimshaw (Gareth Pierce), who’d visit a bereft Summer who couldn’t fathom why Tyrone was lying, his eyes gleamed at the potential to stir the pot and as Ronnie hurried Tyrone out, Carl swiftly followed, listening in as Tyrone lamented his all-consuming guilt and fear at having lied to the police.
Though Ronnie, as ever, tried to placate Tyrone, it wasn’t to be, and as they re-entered the pub, Todd’s furious questioning forced Tyrone back onto his heels, and though Ronnie did his best to stave off Carl’s interference, it was far too late.
Next week sees Carl make it abundantly clear to Tyrone that he’s not off the hook.
Swanning into the Rovers as Fiz Dobbs (Jennie McAlpine) declares she’s off to powder her nose, Carl clocks Tyrone’s discomfort, and like a shark that smells blood, decides to toy with his prey a little.
Tyrone attempts to remain strong, demanding that Carl ‘do one’, but the worst Webster isn’t so easily dispatched, and he comes a little closer, hoping to see some beads of sweat form on our Ty’s forehead.
Challenging Tyrone to do something, Carl feels victorious when he doesn’t. Straddling a stool, Carl correctly guesses that the look in his eyes is a mixture of guilt and fear.
As Tyrone tries to keep his mask in place, Carl lays it out for him. He will find out what Tyrone’s hiding. After all, he’s ‘good like that’.
Having delivered his threat and satisfied that he’s terrorised Tyrone enough, Carl gets up and heads to the bar, leaving Tyrone swallowing hard with his eyes darting, the tension temporarily leaving his body.
Now, we all know the rules of soap. Nothing – and no one – stays buried forever, and it’s but a matter of time before Carl discovers what Tyrone did to him.
But what’s next? Carl is a deadly enemy, but with Ronnie firmly on his side, will Carl think twice about exacting revenge? And how long will Summer be stuck in a cell?
