There’s heartbreak in store in Coronation Street as Cassie Plummer’s (Claire Sweeney) romantic proposal to Steve McDonald (Simon Gregson) is derailed by some tragic news. Will Cassie pop the question?
With the amount of villains, scheming and chaos on the Cobbles right now, it’s nice to have a little bit of comic relief now and then – and that’s certainly what Steve and Cassie offer Corrie fans. The feisty mother of Tyrone Dobbs (Alan Halsall) and wayward daughter of Evelyn Plummer (Maureen Lipman) has turned her life around since arriving on the street, overcoming drug addiction, reconciling with her estranged son and mother, landing herself a job at Street Cars, and of course, a relationship with a Corrie legend.
What started as a revenge fling to punish Steve’s ex Tracy Barlow (Kate Ford) for cheating soon blossomed into one of the most spicy, mismatched and delightful pairings in Weatherfield.
However, that pairing is tragically set to part. Claire Sweeney’s departure from the Street was announced earlier this year, as the actress is leaving to play the iconic role of Miss Hannigan in a UK and Ireland tour of the classic musical Annie.
This means Corrie lovers up and down the nation have been preparing themselves to say goodbye to #Placdonald.
Upcoming episodes will see Cassie seize her opportunity to get down on one knee… just as Steve finds out that his dad Jim McDonald (Charles Lawson) has sadly passed away.
After Steve received a call from Jim’s landlord, he was staggered to discover that his dad had named him as a guarantor – which meant he’s on the hook for £1800 in unpaid rent. Furious, he did some digging and got in contact with one of his father’s old army buddies, only to discover that Jim was in hospital in a bad way.
Steve never had a traditional father/son dynamic with Jim. The hot-tempered Irishman violent temper and criminal instincts often bought the two into conflict.
Jim killed drug dealer Jez Quigley (Lee Boardman) to protect Steve and went to prison for the murder, only to end up paralysed after falling from a roof during a heated argument with his son.
Most controversially of all, the last time Steve crossed paths with Daddy McDonald was when he was pretending his new girlfriend was actually his daughter Katie who died in childbirth to con Steve’s mum Liz McDonald (Beverley Callard) out of cash.
Needless to say, Steve’s in two minds about whether or not to see his dad again. Ultimately, he decided not to visit his dad in hospital and attend a County event with Ben Driscoll (Aaron McCusker) and Tim Metcalfe (Joe Duttine) instead. But the decision weighed heavily on him.
Sensing her boyfriend’s dismay, Cassie decided that now was the perfect time to get engaged. But her plans for romance are about to be sabotaged when Steve gets a phone call that will change his life forever.
Preparing a surprise proposal, Cassie conspires with Tim to lead Steve towards Victoria Gardens. Suddenly, Steve’s phone rings… and he’s rocked to learn that Jim has passed away.
Will Cassie go through with her proposal?
