Coronation Street airs sad scenes for the Platt family next week as their beloved pet dog is targeted by criminals.

David Platt’s canine sidekick – also called David – is found injured in an apparent warning from Harvey Gaskell’s cronies.

Before Christmas, David started receiving threats over the secret stash of money that he’d stolen from Harvey and Damon Hay.

Matty and Logan Radcliffe repeatedly confronted David on Harvey’s behalf. Matty has since been arrested over the death of his younger brother Mason, but Logan remains on the run.

Next week, David receives a shock when his daughter Lily hands over a piece of paper, which was given to her by a strange man in the precinct.

The message is directed to David from Harvey, warning that he now expects an extra £10,000 in interest due to the delay in paying him back. David is unsettled to realise that Harvey’s cronies knew who Lily was.

The Platts realise that they’ll have to keep a close eye on the kids until this situation is resolved.

Later in the week, Michael Bailey visits the Platt house and reveals that he found David the dog at the side of the road.

The four-legged favourite has seemingly been hit by a car – and David and Shona quickly realise that Harvey may have arranged this nasty incident from jail.

Determined to protect his family, David brings home a hammer and a baseball bat, but Shona is deeply concerned by the implications of this.

Coronation Street‘s new producer Kate Brooks previously teased: “David has stolen a big old bag of cash from Harvey, which was the wrong move. He’s done it for the house and the family, but this escalates massively.

“The story we’re telling is one of a very desperate David, trying to protect his family and keep Harvey and his goons at bay. He is struggling to navigate that and struggling to pay back this big debt he has. He’s struggling to protect his family.

“It all comes to a massive head in early February, when we play a massive stunt that has huge consequences for David. So in trying to protect everyone and do the right thing, he ends up losing quite a few things that he holds dear.”

She added: “What I’m keen to show is that this is Corrie. David’s a hairdresser and he’s not used to being embroiled with drug barons and gangsters. That’s not his world.

“But what happens if you take a guy who’s very ordinary and put him in a world where people are acting and reacting without any thought or consequence?

“They don’t care about David or that he’s got a dog – which might be a bit of a spoiler! Don’t worry, the dog doesn’t die! But they don’t care because they don’t know David like we do. It’s really important to show how a normal fella reacts to all of this.”

Coronation Street airs these scenes on Wednesday, January 22 and Friday, January 24 on ITV1 and ITVX.