Next week on Coronation Street – Peter and Carla’s breakup story begins

Next week on Coronation Street, Peter and Carla come to terms with the idea of breaking up, as we head towards Chris Gasgoyne’s departure from the show.

It’s the beginning of the end for beloved Corrie couple Peter (Chris Gascoyne) and Carla (Alison King) next week, as the pair realise they’re starting to drift in different directions.

It’s no secret that the past couple of months have all been leading up to a departure for Peter in a heartbreaking Boxing Day episode, and with little more than a week to go, the final nails in the coffin are now being hammered into place.

Peter has been struggling since he knocked down and killed Stephen Reid (Todd Boyce), in an attempt to save Jenny (Sally Ann Matthews) from the serial killer’s clutches. Even though he had just cause to believe Jenny was in danger, when he later learnt that Stephen had promised not to hurt her it only made him further question whether his actions were justified.

“It was a massive, massive turning point,” Alison King tells us. “Because although he acted on a whim, I think she doubted his motive and why he didn’t stop the car and what he actually did in that moment. I don’t think they talked about it properly or enough. They weren’t truthful enough with each other.“

“And, actually, he believed he did save Jenny’s life,” Ali continues. “But then there was everything the witnesses said. Carla knew how angry he was with Stephen and when he sensed that she maybe was slightly doubting him that hit him hard. He didn’t think she was truly on his side.”

In the meantime, Carla has had her own Stephen issues to deal with. With her former employee having cleared out Underworld’s accounts on the day of his death, Carla has been doing all she can to keep the business afloat, including having to fly off to Spain to try and save a deal just as Peter was facing scrutiny from the police over the incident.

On Carla’s return she worried that recovering alcoholic Peter may have relapsed, much to his frustration, but he assured her that he has so far kept it under control.

“They’re a little off kilter,” Ali admits. “She is worried about him. Obviously, after the accident, he’s been struggling with his mental health and at the same time Carla has been busy and concentrating a lot on the factory. But she has noticed a kind of sadness in him that she can’t quite buffer for once. They are arguing a little bit.”

“When he is going through something he can be quite irrational and he’s telling her, quite irrationally sometimes, that she doesn’t pay him attention, doesn’t give heed to what he wants.

“He says it’s all about what she wants, which is kind of dumbfounding to her at that point, because she’s trying to juggle so many balls and put her life back together after the money’s gone. So it’s a case of them not communicating properly.“

Last month Peter heard from his friend Mickey in Mallorca, who was looking for crew members as he expanded his boat tour business. Whilst the idea of sailing around the Balearic island appealed to Peter, Carla scoffed at the idea when Peter put it to her that they could head away for a year.

When she realised that Peter was entirely serious, and that they would be required to set sail next week, it was a firm no from Carla, who thought it’d just be running away from their problems.

As we move into next week, the idea is brought back into Peter’s mind.

“He starts getting the postcards and the messages from his mate on the boat asking him to go and join him,” Ali explains. “Carla starts to notice that he’s really excited. It is the first time in a while that anything has taken his mind off what has been going on.

“Obviously, he asks her to go with him and she flat out says no, because she’s trying to get the factory back up and running. And I think the realisation comes from him that she’s fighting for the business and they want different things.“

“She’s realising that she can’t. She’s quite happy to carry on on her own and starts to feel sad. And it’s a slow sinking feeling that she realises that maybe it is time for them to do their own things, we had that and it was wonderful but maybe that is over. She isn’t aware that he is talking to Tim (Joe Duttine) and is starting to think he should stay with her.“

Opening up to Tim, Peter admits that he can’t stop thinking about the day that Stephen died. Tim surmises that Peter needs a distraction, and invites him over to No.4 for a session in the hot tub.

Tim tells Peter that he should try and focus on all the good things in his life, but Peter finds that to be easier said than done at the moment. He admits that he feels he and Carla are drifting apart, citing her preoccupation in the factory, and wonders whether their relationship has finally run its course.

Tim urges Peter not to give up on Carla, and Peter sees a light at the end of the tunnel when she later returns home with dinner for both of them, suggesting they cosy up to watch a film together.

However his hopes are soon dashed, as Ali explains…

“They know they have to talk and she has brought the food in for the date night, but then the alarm goes off at the factory and it is something she has to sort,” she sighs. “He feels let down again but in a more resigned way this time. Carla feels she is getting pulled in two ways, she can’t be in two places at once and she thinks he should be able to see that this is just for now whilst she sorts everything out, in the past he has accepted it but he has his own issues now.“

Later in the week, Carla is suspicious when Peter tells her that he’s too busy to have lunch with her. Returning to the flat, she’s surprised to find Peter giving it a spring clean. Peter admits that he is expecting a visitor—Valerie (Jackie Morrison), the mother of the donor who provided Peter’s new liver.

“I think she’s amazed,” Ali explains on Carla’s reaction to the news. “She’s really pleased that he’s taken this step forward and got in touch with her because she knows it’s such a big thing for him to do. She’s shocked at the timing, I think, but also gets that it is something that he’s doing to keep on the wagon. She’s proud and supportive and pleased when she finds out, and really glad to be there with him for the meeting.“

Peter admits to Valerie that as is a recovering alcoholic, and that her son’s liver had saved his life two years ago, but how will she react?

Peter continues his self-help when he reveals to Carla that he’ll be attending another AA meeting. Carla offers to go with him, and she’s surprised when Peter takes her up on her offer. However she soon realises that her presence there is causing Peter to hold back.

“I think, because she was there, he didn’t know how to be truthful because he didn’t want her to see all his vulnerability,” Ali tells us. “At first he starts saying everything is fine and Christmas will be okay, trying to protect her a little bit in front of everyone. But because she had noticed the sadness and the change in him she knows he is not being truthful and she calls him out on that.“

When Peter relents and admits to the group that he’s lost all interest in life, with every day becoming a chore, Carla is heartbroken to realise the depth of her husband’s despair.

“It is gut wrenching when he opens up and says he feels like he is not living a life. It really brings home what she has been thinking that even with her by his side he is not living a full life, he doesn’t feel like it’s enough for him.

“She is so sad about that, but then starts to think outside the box and puts him completely first and starts to think about what she should do. She needs him to want to own it. [To] tell her the truth. And think about what’s best for him alone.“

When Sarah (Tina O’Brien) later finds Carla busy on her laptop at her factory, she’s stunned when Carla shows her what she’s buying Peter for Christmas… is Carla about to make the ultimate sacrifice for the sake of Peter’s mental wellbeing?

“Going and living on a boat sounds wonderful and free but that’s not for her,” Ali acknowledges. “That’s not how she sees her life but it is what he wants to do. She knows that there could well be a chance that he could do that for a year like he has in the past.“

“But she has to look at the bigger picture, it would mean potentially throwing everything away for her to go and do that. If she went and came back what would be left for her here? He has his family and roots here, but her business would be gone and she would have nothing left.

“She will obviously be thinking she has to kind of make the decision and carry on with her life as normal. It’s that old saying isn’t it—if you love someone, you should let them go.“