Coronation Street – has Mason Radcliffe left after his arrest?
Here's the lowdown on the villain's future.
Coronation Street aired an important update on Mason Radcliffe this week as his punishment over Liam Connor’s ordeal was finally revealed.
Viewers have learned that Mason is likely to face a custodial sentence after he threatened Liam with a knife in upsetting scenes late last year.
Liam’s mum Maria and stepdad Gary were quick to assure the worried schoolboy that his problems are all over – but was it really the last we’ve seen of Mason?
Coronation Street – has Mason Radcliffe left for good?
Some Coronation Street fans feared that they’d missed Mason’s long-awaited downfall this week as news of his fate was shared by the police.
Regular viewers have been desperate to see Mason get his comeuppance after so many episodes revolving around his cruel treatment of Liam in recent months.
In Monday’s episode (March 11), two police officers visited Maria and Gary to confirm that Mason’s fingerprints had been found on the knife that was used to threaten Liam.
This verified the account that Liam and Dylan Wilson had both given to the police, despite Mason’s ruthless attempts to frame Dylan as the only culprit.
The police explained that Mason had been charged with threatening with a bladed article in a public space.
Mason already has previous offences, so the officer added: “If the courts find him guilty, he’ll be looking at a custodial sentence [in] Young Offenders.”
For now, Mason has escaped punishment for the hit and run involving Eliza Woodrow, as none of his fingerprints were found on the car.
Some Corrie fans were disappointed that Mason’s arrest had taken place off-screen, robbing us of the chance to see the smug smile wiped from his face.
Fortunately, Digital Spy can confirm that viewers haven’t seen the last of Mason and his storyline will continue – especially with the all-important court case still to come. Fingers crossed for a dramatic “justice is served” moment…
Coronation Street spoilers – what’s next for the Liam and Dylan story?
In the short-term, the on-screen aftermath of Liam’s ordeal is expected to focus more on Dylan.
Dylan is determined to redeem himself after the role he played in Liam’s bullying, especially after learning how severely his friend’s mental health was affected by what happened.
In next week’s scenes, Dylan appears in court and pleads guilty to carrying a knife in a public place. He’s handed a community service order and promises his dad Sean Tully that he’ll get his life back on track.
Dylan is then unexpectedly reunited with his mum Violet, who returns to Weatherfield following a call from Eileen Grimshaw.
Violet is annoyed to discover that Sean and Dylan have both kept her in the dark about all the recent events involving Liam, Mason and the knife.
Jenny Platt is reprising the role of Violet for the first time since 2011 and will appear as a guest star for a small handful of episodes.
Antony Cotton, who plays Sean, has said that he expected Dylan’s follow-on story to last for the rest of the year.
He recently explained: “We film [with Jenny] for four weeks, she’s probably in a dozen episodes and then, who knows? This storyline is going to go on, so as long as it goes well and she enjoys it, then I’m hoping we might see her again.
“If there’s more of this stuff and it gets more serious, one would imagine that we would perhaps see Violet again.”