Coronation Street viewers were left heartbroken as Paul Foreman tragically passed away without his

husband Billy Mayhew by his side.

Fans of the ITV soap know that Paul, played by Peter Ash, was diagnosed with motor neurone disease

(MND) last year and his health has been deteriorating rapidly in recent months.

In a previous episode, Paul convinced Billy, portrayed by Daniel Brocklebank, to take a rare night off from caring for him. During this time, Paul’s brother Kit Green, played by Jacob Roberts, was looking after him when Paul had a severe coughing fit and struggled to breathe.

Despite his condition, Paul asked Kit not to tell anyone about his health scare so as not to ruin Billy’s night out. However, during Monday’s episode on September 9, a hungover Billy was racing against time to be by Paul’s side after losing his phone the previous night.

Coronation Street viewers were left heartbroken as Paul Foreman tragically passed away without his husband Billy Mayhew by his side (Image: (Image: ITV))

As he retraced his steps to find his phone, which contained all his photos of Paul, Summer Spellman (Harriet Bibby) and Bernie Winter (Jane Hazlegrove) found Paul struggling to breathe and called an ambulance. While Billy was away, Paul’s mother Bernie, twin sister Gemma Winter-Brown (Dolly-Rose Campbell), and step-daughter Summer did their best to keep him alive.

In a heartbreaking turn of events, Paul tragically died before Billy could reach the hospital after becoming ensnared in a Frescho car park. Paul’s family frantically beckoned Billy over the phone to confer final words as Paul’s health deteriorated, reports the Express.

As Billy declared his love to his spouse, Paul’s life ebbed away. Gemma was poised to inform Billy of Paul’s passing during the poignant call, but Bernie interceded, preventing her daughter from conveying the devastating news over the phone.

Paul’s health took a turn for the worse during this Monday’s Coronation Street instalment

Despite his desperate dash to the hospital, Billy missed Paul’s passing, unbeknownst to him, uttering his last adieu to his soulmate via telephone.

Yet, as Corrie aficionados mourned the melancholic episode, they expressed regret that the instalment hadn’t been solely devoted to Paul’s narrative like another recent special had been, instead running like an ordinary episode with other plots woven in.

Social media saw a flurry of comments from viewers, with one stating: “THIS EPISODE SHOULD BE ABOUT PAUL #Corrie.” Another said: “Paul’s last episode really doesn’t need Leanne and Rowan #corrie.”

Fans have said Paul deserved a special episode about his death (Image: (Image: ITV))

A different viewer lamented: “I don’t know, I think this episode should have entirely been focused on Paul instead of all of the Rowan stuff as usual #Corrie.”

One fan expressed their sentiment online, stating: “Feel like tonight’s episode should have been all about Paul, not Leanne or Cassie. touching and devastating scenes, but it still should have only focused on Paul, like when Sinead passed away #corrie.”

Another viewer chimed in, saying: “I’ll have to watch the episode again, but my initial reaction is they should’ve let Paul pass away during the dedicated episode a few weeks ago. #corrie.”

In upcoming Corrie episodes, the atmosphere is fraught with emotion as Paul’s family wrestles with their grief. The big question on everyone’s lips can the bereaved relatives put aside their differences to arrange Paul’s send-off?