Coronation Street is set to air disturbing violent scenes at the end of this month on the ITV soap, when Daisy Midgeley is targeted by Justin Rutherford in an acid attack on her wedding day.
Daisy’s frightening stalker is set to return to Weatherfield on her big day to cruelly attack her in a sinister act of revenge on Monday, March 27.
Working alongside The Katie Piper Foundation and Acid Survivors Trust International (ASTI), Coronation Street decided to tell this story to highlight the devastating impact and long lasting effects of such heinous attacks.
New ITV spoilers have confirmed that the horror occurs after Daisy has successfully pushed aside fears the wedding is cursed and is poised to leave The Rovers for a final time as Miss Midgeley.
Ryan Connor (Ryan Prescott), who has stepped in as wedding chauffeur, goes behind the bar to get Daisy, but they are both horrified to find Justin lurking in the shadows in the pub.
Justin, holding a glass full of clear liquid, advances on Daisy as he throws acid at her.
Charlotte Jordan, who plays Daisy Midgely, said she did not see the shocking twist in the stalking storyline of her character coming.
“It’s not something you see a lot on television so I was really surprised,” she said. “There is a fear lurking in the back of Daisy’s mind since Justin was released on bail. She has always been thinking, ‘Will Justin retaliate in some way?’
“Seeing him again after he has been warned multiple times by officials to stay away from her, she is certainly scared of how he is going to react. I don’t think Daisy really thought about how obsessed Justin was going to become.”
Coronation Street Producer Iain MacLeod said the ITV soap was keen to show the long-term reality for those subjected to this kind of attack.
He said: “It is something we might often read about in the papers but perhaps don’t fully understand, in terms of the depth and variety of effects it can have.
“As well as the medical impacts, we explore the social fallout of having your appearance profoundly changed, both in terms of your own ability to process that and how the wider world reacts to you. The story will at times be heartbreaking but we felt it was an important one to tell.”
The soap worked with The Katie Piper Foundation, which helps victims of burns and other disfigurement injuries and was founded by TV presenter and former model Piper, who suffered life-changing burns in an acid attack in March 2008 when she was 24.
Coronation Street will air the storyline on Monday March 27 on ITV1 and ITVX.
