Coronation Street's Joel slips up in Lauren storyline

Coronation Street's Joel Deering fears that his sinister secrets are under threat next week.

The Weatherfield villain panics when he discovers that his fiancée Dee-Dee Bailey has uncovered a clue to his ongoing deception.

Recent flashback scenes showed how Joel groomed and sexually abused Lauren Bolton earlier in the year.

With Lauren back after her disappearance, Joel has tried to secure her silence by giving her a place to stay at his old flat.

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Next week, Joel struggles with the ongoing cost of paying to take care of Lauren, who's pregnant with his baby.

Joel asks Dee-Dee to be stricter with their wedding budget, using the cover story that his divorce is eating into his finances.

Later, Joel brings his baby daughter Maeve to spend time with Dee-Dee, who praises his parenting skills.

dee dee bailey, joel, maeve, coronation street

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Lauren then texts Joel to let him know about a worrying leak at the flat. Joel is forced to take Maeve with him, as Dee-Dee is due to represent a client in court.

Later in the week, Dee-Dee receives a parcel at home, and she assumes it's a gift from Joel.

Dee-Dee's excitement turns to confusion when she sees that the parcel is addressed to "E. Smith".

Joel worries about how he'll explain himself when Dee-Dee sends him a voice note about the parcel, which is part of his sinister plan. What does the package contain, and will Joel finally be caught out?

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Calum Lill, who plays Joel, recently commented: "The longer he hides, the more chance there is of him making a mistake. He's been good so far in that he's been engaging in this behaviour as long as we have seen him. Lauren was attacked in February and no one's caught him out.

"I think the longer it goes on for, the more chance he's got of slipping up, and I think he knows that. You can see that he's getting more and more anxious and that the slightest thing could bring his world crumbling down around him – even just the fact that he slept with Lauren.

"That's a breach of trust alone and will be enough to end his career and relationship, plus murder on top of that – his life would be over. Everything that he values in his life – his job, his fiancée, his freedom – would be gone. So the stakes couldn't be higher. But when he panics, the more chance there is of something going wrong."

Coronation Street airs these scenes on Monday, July 29, and Wednesday, July 31.

Coronation Street airs on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 8pm on ITV1 and streams on ITVX.