Coronation Street's Johnny Connor has sacrificed himself to save his wife Jenny in the aftermath of Liz McDonald's hit and run.
The ITV soap's Boxing Day episode ended with Johnny lying to the police by telling them that he'd been driving Jenny's car on Christmas night, knowing this would mean he'd be blamed for knocking over Liz (Beverley Callard).
Johnny knows that Jenny (Sally Ann Matthews) was responsible for Liz's horror accident while drink-driving, but he's now taking the blame to keep her out of trouble. Could his bold move land him in prison?
Here, Richard Hawley – who plays Johnny – gives his reaction to the latest Connor family twist.
Why does Johnny risk everything by lying to the police?
"Well because he's a hero, I think! He's got to – that's how he feels, because Jenny doesn't stand a chance since there's a lot of drink issues with her. I just think Johnny is honourable, actually. I'm trying a little bit to think if I'd do the same and I would. He's protective of Jenny.
What to Read Next
"It’s a no-brainer for Johnny to step up and take the blame. The consequences for Jenny, because she was drink-driving, would be worse. I know it’s perverting the course of justice, but for him, it’s about love and protection of the people closest to him. Jenny didn’t do it deliberately.
"Taking the blame is a split second decision. It’s not thought through. But I can’t imagine him letting Jenny take the rap in the condition she’s in. He's being honourable."
Could Johnny use his MS as a mitigating factor in his defence?
"It would be outrageous for Johnny to use his MS to get out of it. If it occurs to him you’ll be the first to have guessed it!"
What does this drama mean for the pub?
"It absolutely puts the pub at risk. There’s a lot going on here, so Johnny and Jenny could both be taken out of the frame. Johnny has got some good strong women who could run that pub though, including Liz! (Laughs.) No, the Connors will pull a pint for me."
How would Johnny cope in prison?
"Johnny wouldn't cope well in prison, not from what he says. He’s not designed for prison. It would be really difficult. You’d sit there with all that stuff in your head. He says he couldn't cope and says he ‘would do what happened to Aidan’."
Could Liz help by dropping the charges?
"If Liz dropped the charges, that would certainly help. But she’s been in a hit and run and is also a woman scorned. She’s got a lot of reasons to hate Johnny."
Does Johnny still feel a lot of guilt over his affair with Liz?
"Honestly? Not really – not any more. I think that's been the problem. That came out of a particular situation and I think Johnny's gone through it now. The problem is that Jenny can't leave it alone and she can't get rid of it.
"Johnny hasn't known what's going on. To be honest, he spends most of his time trying to keep the family together. It's a big family and he's trying to keep it going. Johnny doesn't really know what's going on with Jenny, but he's apologised a million times. He just wants it all to be good and tight and start again."
Does part of Johnny blame himself for this hit and run?
"I think there's an element of that. He takes responsibility for it, for sure. He knows Jenny is in this state because of what he did. But he can't help what he did – that's gone. They've all tried to move on from it."
Johnny has wrongly come under suspicion of hitting Jenny. Could that come back to haunt him after his arrest?
"I don't know actually. That came out of the blue and it was completely Gemma misreading everything. But they could easily twist the facts, particularly if Gemma got in there and made some statements."
Can Johnny forgive Jenny for her extreme behaviour?
"Oh yeah, they are growing stronger through all of that. I think it was bound to come up. I don't think you can go through those kind of traumas and expect someone to just draw a line and it's all nice and clean. Jenny is human and she's been incredibly hurt.
"What do you do, apart from start again? Really this is just a healing that will get stronger. I hope Johnny can understand and forgive."
Does Johnny's heart belong to Jenny rather than Liz?
"Yeah, although I think the story produces really interesting ideas about love – how many people you can love and in what way we love. There's a really great moment where Jenny asks: 'Oh so it was meaningless?' And Johnny goes: 'No it wasn't. Actually, it really wasn't'.
"It's actually quite deep. The whole thing was full of depth and love and friendship and complex, so Johnny is not going to say it meant nothing because it didn't. Jenny has got that to face, but Johnny chose her.
"It would have been a lot better if either Jenny had sacked her or Liz had chosen to go. There would have been a clarity about that and Johnny wouldn't have been left in the middle of a tense stand-off between them.
"It’s quite fun being a ping pong ball between those two, because they’re both amazing actresses. It’s been enormous fun."
Can Johnny and Jenny save their marriage?
"I think they can save their marriage. They’ll save it because they want to work hard on it. What’s happening is it’s all coming out now and they know where they are with it, so they're saving something that’s less burdened than before."
Coronation Street continues on Friday (December 28) at 7.30pm and 8.30pm on ITV.
Read more news, spoilers and gossip on our Coronation Street homepage
Digital Spy Soap Scoop video – hit play below for all the latest Coronation Street spoilers, as Tim makes a huge confession to Sally on Christmas Day and Lewis's secret plotting comes to a head.
Want up-to-the-minute soaps news, spoilers and gossip on your social feeds? Just hit 'Like' on our Digital Spy Soaps Facebook page and 'Follow' on our @soapscoop Twitter account.
