Coronation Street spoilers follow.
Coronation Street fans will see Todd Grimshaw at his most ruthless this Christmas as he steps up his sly scheme to destroy his love rival Paul Foreman and reunite with Billy Mayhew.
New cast member Gareth Pierce, who has only recently taken over the role of Todd, has been given one of the ITV soap's big festive storylines as his sneaky character hatches a new plan.
Ever since returning to the cobbles, Todd has known that he has to deal with the main obstacle standing in the way of his reunion plans – Billy's current partner Paul Foreman (Peter Ash).
In an exclusive interview with Digital Spy, Gareth has now shared new details of what to expect over the holidays as Todd's manipulation of Paul intensifies.
Gareth told us: "I think viewers will have seen that, for all Todd's bravado, there's some real hurt, love and vulnerability when it comes to his relationship with Billy. I don't think viewers should be in any doubt that those feelings are real and genuine.
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"Obviously there are obstacles at the moment, which are standing in his way. It's partly of Todd's own making, because he has let down Billy and Summer in the past.
"But there's also the fact that Billy is in a relationship with Paul now. Paul has become a good father figure for Summer as well. Despite that, Todd wants Billy back and he's prepared to be a little bit patient in how that comes about. It's an active plan, but it's quite a long game at this stage."
Recent Coronation Street episodes have seen Todd take steps to befriend Paul now that they're working together at Underworld. In scenes that would make Othello's Iago proud, Todd is seizing this opportunity to manipulate Paul and subtly cause problems for his relationship with Billy (Daniel Brocklebank).
Over the Christmas period, Todd takes things even further by signing up to work on the helpline for teenagers that Paul currently volunteers for. As always, his intentions are far from charitable, as this gives Todd yet another chance to keep a close eye on Paul and play puppet-master.
Todd's efforts start to pay off when he discovers that Paul has broken the rules of the helpline by becoming overly invested in a distressed caller named Will.
After repeated calls from Will, who wants them to meet up, Paul caves by confronting him in person to explain why he can't get personally involved like this.
Todd is aware of Paul's rule-breaking and is sure to find a way to use this mistake to his advantage. Could Paul's latest mishap drive a wedge between him and Billy, with Todd's meddling pushing things along?
Whatever happens, Paul certainly isn't doing himself any favours – by the time Christmas is over, he has crossed the line yet again by assaulting a man he believes to be Will's father. The incident leads to Paul being arrested.
Gareth explained: "This is a long game, but it can't be that Todd is engineering the whole thing. There's a sense of opportunism too. Todd is already in Paul's orbit once he gets the job at Underworld, then he becomes intrigued over the helpline.
"When Todd joins the helpline too, he's getting in another of Paul's orbits and tries to get Paul to trust him. It gives Todd more opportunities to suss out Paul and figure out plans to get him out of the way.
"Todd could get closer to Billy, or even just mess things up for Paul and Billy's relationship. Maybe at this stage it's not even about Todd stepping into the picture, it's just about creating trouble between the two of them.
"Once Todd is in the helpline, he starts to notice that Paul is taking a lot of calls from this same lad, Will, who is confiding in him and keeps asking specifically to speak to Paul.
"I think Todd can sense that there's a line which may be crossed. He can see the potential for an opportunity to present itself."
Gareth insisted that Todd's feelings in this situation are complex, as he does also sympathise with Paul's traumatic history. Paul was sexually abused by his mum's partner Kel Hinchley as a teenager, which has inspired him to get involved in the helpline and advise other vulnerable children.
Discussing the various emotions in play, Gareth said: "Todd is not a sociopath. It's not that he doesn't have any empathy for other people. It's just that he's able to switch it on and off – and inevitably he does put his own needs at the centre of what he's doing.
"I think there'll definitely be some guilt and shame mixed up in there too, in the same way Todd feels regrets over the way that he has let down Billy and Summer. There is a sense of loss, guilt and shame over the consequences of some of his actions, even if that won't stop him from carrying them out!
"There are scenes where Paul confides in Todd about his history with Kel. Todd definitely senses the responsibility of being confided in by Paul. But he also cannot ignore the value that has for him in terms of getting what he wants as well.
"Todd is able to show some empathy, but it doesn't stop him from finding a game in what he finds out."
This storyline will play out over the festive season, and while we can't give the full details away, Todd's plotting is sure to have a major impact on Paul and Billy's relationship.
So, does Gareth want Todd to ultimately triumph and win back Billy? He told us: "Certainly I'm really, really enjoying working with Dan. We're getting on brilliantly and having lots of laughs. I'd love that to continue from an acting perspective.
"I do think there's some really good stuff that can be played in this period, where Todd and Billy aren't together but are obviously very much in each other's orbits again.
"Equally, I think there's some great stuff that can be played if the eventual situation comes that they're back together.
"In these Christmas episodes, Paul is still very much in the picture, so I don't want to tease too much of where it might be heading. But certainly Todd wants Billy back, and we know that Billy still has feelings for Todd too, even though they're complex ones."
Gareth was cast in Coronation Street in August and made his first appearance in the role of Todd in October. After a whirlwind introduction, the star told us that he couldn't be happier to now be playing a big role in Corrie's Christmas.
He enthused: "It's my first Christmas in Weatherfield and it was really exciting to see the decorations going up on set so early. It was the last week of October that the Christmas decorations were going up. That does give a bit of a festive lift to your day!
"I'm really honoured to be part of the Christmas episodes. Corrie is a big part of British culture and you feel that even more keenly at Christmas time. It's exciting."
Another main story featuring over the festive period will focus on David and Shona Platt's touching attempts to rebuild their relationship and move on from their difficult year.
These scenes will provide a happier contrast to many of Soapland's more sombre storylines.
Gareth continued: "We've got a mix of heartwarming stories and drama in the Christmas episodes this year and it's really essential to have that balance. 2020 has been a long year. A lot of people have got used to not seeing a lot of members of their family, but Christmas is a time when traditionally we all come together.
"There is a sense of 'warmth and a hug' to Corrie for a lot of its viewers. It's really important that there is that sense of lightness, escapism and warmth to those Christmas episodes as well."
Gareth also reflected on his Corrie journey so far. The role of Todd was previously played by Bruno Langley, who was dropped from the show in 2017 due to his off-screen behaviour.
Discussing the audience reaction to the new-look Todd, Gareth added: "It's been great, actually. I've wanted to show that I did my homework on Todd prior to taking over. I've had elements of that depiction in my performance, but I've also wanted to take it forward and put my own spin on the character.
"I think the viewers have increasingly noticed that balance now. Todd has been established over a number of years, so you can't arrive and show all of those facets to the character in the first episode.
"Within two or three weeks, because I was in a lot of episodes, the viewers were able to see that there was a balance to the character. I think Todd arrived very much in that one predicament of getting away from Mick, the gangster who wanted revenge against him.
"That meant that maybe you didn't see Todd in his element, because he wasn't properly back home yet. I think the writers paced it really well, because we had time to revisit his relationship with Eileen in that situation.
"Afterwards there was some quite sweet stuff with Sean. Todd also rekindled a friendship with Sarah, which is really nice actually, because there's so much water under the bridge with those two. They're past that now and in quite a nice place, where Sarah can really confide in Todd and he can be quite open with her.
"Then Todd seeing Billy again was the reunion that everyone was waiting for, I suppose. I think the writers helped me and really got the pacing of all that fantastically well. By now, I'm getting some lovely feedback from viewers, so I'm really pleased."
Coronation Street airs its festive special on Christmas Day at 7pm on ITV.
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