To the Coronation Street residents, Theo Silverton (James Cartwright) may seem like perfect boyfriend material. But behind closed doors, his increasingly possessive relationship with Todd Grimshaw (Gareth Pierce) has given viewers more red flags than Weatherfield Golf Course.

This week, there was a horrifying escalation in Theo’s aggressive behaviour when he let his mask slip… and one Corrie resident came close to seeing his true colours.

While continuing to rail-road Todd into training for a half-marathon, Theo delightedly accepted some work from former fling Pete, but was careful to hide it from Todd.

Ever the gaslighter, Theo turned the tables and accused Todd of flirting with both Pete and Billy! Despite being shocked at the allegation, Todd found himself apologising and promising it would never happen again! Gepetto’s got nothing on this puppet master…

Why does Theo treat our Todd this way? Actor James Cartwright shared his insights. ‘His love for Todd is verging on obsession.’ James explained. ‘His wife doesn’t speak to him, his kids still won’t speak to him, work isn’t busy, so Todd is literally all he’s got. The idea of losing Todd is shattering, so he clings on like fire and that’s where the coercive control starts.’

But Theo had some explaining to do when Sarah Platt (Tina O’Brien) caught him and Pete looking cosy in the van. Loyal, Sarah demanded to know if Theo was cheating on her bestie, so the smooth-talking scaffolder revealed that he’s signed a lucrative contract with Pete and was planning to surprise Todd. But when Pete likened her to an attack dog, Sarah squared up to him and Theo… just as Todd arrived. Uh-oh!

Horrified Todd ushered her away and Sarah apologised profusely for interfering. But Theo played peacemaker and suggested he take Sarah out for a drink to celebrate his new contract while Todd stayed at home and applied for jobs.

After schmoozing Sarah, Theo returned home and told Todd to cut Sarah off for being a toxic friend. Todd was left all the more baffled when Sarah messaged to say how much she enjoyed Theo’s company.

What twisted game is Theo playing?  ‘I don’t think it’s premeditated,’ James confided. ‘I think it’s more a case of “you’re spending a lot of time with Sarah, I need to get rid of her.” I think it just occurs to him in the moment, and then he tries to navigate it the way that best suits him as all narcissists do.’

Playing the supportive boyfriend, Theo presented Todd with a full-length mirror to keep track of his daily physique.  But later, after an exhausted Todd returned from his run, James Bailey (Jason Callendar) couldn’t resist a cheeky flirt… which left Theo seething with rage.

Back home, after James popped round with some fitness gear for Todd, Theo finally snapped and accused Todd of fancying James.

Though Todd protested that it wasn’t true, Theo’s rage boiled over in a horrifying moment of abuse as he turned on a terrified Todd, smashing his head into the mirror.

James reflected on filming the unsettling scenes. ‘They’re never easy.  It’s a very serious vibe because one, someone could get hurt, two, we all realise it’s pretty horrible and three, while we’re doing it as actors we’re aware that this is some people’s lives. Domestic violence is real for a lot of people, it often escalates around Christmas, so there’s a real level of respect on the set’

So where do we go from here? Is there any way back for Todd and Theo? James thinks it’s doubtful. ‘I’m a big believer in rehabilitation, in second chances’ the actor explains.

‘But I think that what we’re seeing now is a pattern of behaviour from Theo which he seems incapable of learning from. It’s been this gradual escalation where the pressure has just been upped and upped, like boiling the toad.

‘Theo has just upped the temperature one degree at a time. The further you get down a road with a relationship like this, you start to feel a bit embarrassed, and so you start to make excuses for their behaviour. This is where Theo is sitting at the moment which is a very dangerous position for Todd.’

Unfortunately, Theo’s controlling behaviour is set to continue in upcoming scenes when he orders Todd to lie low in the flat for a while, before gifting him a fitness watch and exercise bike to continue pushing him into exercise.

With Todd reaching the limit of how much more of Theo’s behaviour he can take, will he find the courage to leave?