ITV Coronation Street spoiler video: Leanne Battersby lured in by sinister cult leader
Leanne Battersby’s (Jane Danson) trip to a fayre at a local hotel in Coronation Street is set to take a dark turn as she’s drawn into a cult.
Leanne has had her hands full recently with step-son Simon Barlow (Alex Bain), whose behaviour went off the rails when his dad Peter (Chris Gascoyne) departed Weatherfield to work on a ship.
Feeling hurt and rejected, Simon took solace in drinking but this was soon out of control. When Simon crashed Leanne’s car while over the limit – and with Nick’s son Sam (Jude Riordan) in the car – it was the final straw.
Following the appearance in court, Leanne has a plan to set him back on the straight and narrow and tells Debbie (Sue Devaney) she’s taking Simon to a seminar at the Chariot Square Hotel run by a group called The Institute.
Handily there’s also a wedding fayre on at the same venue, so Leanne suggests that Nick (Ben Price) should come too and they can check that out at the same time.
Wedding prep appears to be a stressful ordeal for Leanne in this new video. She’s busy chatting to Debbie about venues but as soon as she rushes off, a new face interrupts the conversation.
Rowan, played by Emryhs Cooper, is charming and tries to help Leanne, but she tells him to mind his own business.
When she looks at his name badge, Leanne feels guilty when she realises Rowan is from the seminar Simon attended.
The chat lasts no more than a few minutes, but it’s enough for Rowan to observe and establish that Leanne cares a great deal about what others think of her.
It’s a small moment, but it marks the beginning of a dark new storyline for this character.
Actor Ben Price told us that as Rowan’s influence over Leanne grows, Nick becomes uneasy about how she’s being drawn in by him.
‘Leanne is normally like, “I think that’s a load of s***” at first, and it’s probably Nick going “No, no, give it a chance, give it a chance.” But she’s not in this,’ he explained.
‘She’s fully invested. Nick is a bit like, “You’re more cynical, Leanne, than me. You’re not being very cynical about this man.” And I don’t get to see him. It almost becomes this man I’m not seeing and he’s taking her away to do the course and he’s taking her to Zooms in another room.’
