Gary, Theo and Todd on Coronation Street on March 10, 2026 / ITV
Coronation Street star James Cartwright has previewed more awful scenes to come between his character Theo and fiancé Todd (Gareth Pierce) in next week’s episodes.
For months viewers have seen Theo both physically and mentally abuse Todd – and now Todd is a shell of his former self, with Theo having confiscated all of his bank cards to make him financially isolated and dependent.
Next week, Todd shows up late for Theo’s birthday meal with Gary (Mikey North) and Maria (Samia Longchambon) in The Bistro due to work commitments, prompting an irate Theo to embarrass Todd by saying that he will pay the bill.
“Theo is controlling Todd’s money at this point, so he knows he’s got no money, and he’s being really manipulative,” explained Cartwright. “He sits everybody down, he says, ‘Come on, order what you want, don’t worry, Todd will get it,’ knowing full well that Todd doesn’t have any money and he’s trying to make a public display in his way of, ‘You need me, Todd, you’ve got no money; you can’t control your money.’ And outwardly, he’s trying to make it look like Todd’s useless, and without Theo, he’d be no good whatsoever.
“When Todd’s card then bounces, Theo comes over as if he’s the knight in shining armour, and he goes, ‘Oh, what are you like, ey? You can’t manage your money. Here, I’ll get it, don’t worry.’ So again, it’s a public show of trying to besmirch him as he feels the saviour, and without him he would be nothing. Then in private, he berates him. It’s all carefully orchestrated at this point. There’s been a lot of stuff that’s been opportunistic, but now, he’s actively trying to narrow Todd’s circle of friends and his opportunities for pleasure that don’t involve Theo. He’s trying to make him completely dependent.”
Once the pair return home, Theo loses his rag with Todd and they end up in one of their most vicious fights to date.
“It’s like any violence; you become conditioned to it,” Cartwright continued. “It takes on a life of its own and becomes more extreme every time it goes unchallenged.
“Violence is an awful, awful thing; in a relationship, it’s just unthinkable. And it becomes another tool of control for Theo. Theo’s just trying to absolutely give him the consequences of not doing his will. It’s just abhorrent.
“And the more Todd bites back, the more Theo is trying to knock that out of him and impose himself physically. There’s a big size difference there. Theo’s this larger, bigger muscular scaffolder; and to impose his physicality on him is a tool that he’s now using. It’s something that he’s using to his advantage to make sure he gets what he wants.”
Coronation Street continues weekdays from 7am on ITVX and at 8.30pm on ITV1.
