Coronation Street’s Will Driscoll star speaks for first time as grooming plot turns ‘dangerous’

Lucas Hodgson-Wale has said Will is ‘just a kid’ as he spoke for the first time about the character’s relationship with Megan Walsh

Coronation Street star Lucas Hodgson-Wale has said Will Driscoll is ‘just a kid’ as he spoke for the first time about being involved in the long-running show’s grooming plot.

The actor joined the ITV soap in the role of the teen back in October when Catherine Tyldesley made her return to the cobbles as Eva Price with her new family after seven years away.

Eva was surprised by her partner, Will’s dad Ben Driscoll, as he revealed he had purchased the Rovers Return from Carla Connor and that she would be the new landlady. However, as fans saw, Ben’s mother, Maggie Driscoll, later arrived and revealed she was actually the landlady, as her son had to borrow money.

But Will’s arrival on the cobbles came slightly later than the rest of his family, as he kicked off about having to leave his athletics training behind. However, the truth was that he was having a secret fling with his coach, Megan Walsh, and following her move to the cobbles as part of the Driscolls plan to keep Will happy, the pair have gone on to sleep together just as he turned 16.

After Sam Blakeman came close to uncovering Megan’s predatory behaviour once and for all, the teacher, who has been trying to cover her tracks by entering a relationship with Daniel Osbourne, silenced him by making sinister threats towards the teen.

Speaking for the first time about the storyline, Lucas said of approaching the relationship between Will and Megan: “I spent a lot of time thinking about the power dynamic. Megan is older, she’s his coach and his teacher. To play that, I had to create two versions of Will – the ‘natural’ Will he is with Megan, and the ‘front’ he puts on for his family.

“As the story progresses and they start to distance themselves, those two versions are going to have to merge, which is going to be a real challenge to play. Will is putting on a massive front, but underneath it all, he’s still just a kid.”

But, Megan and Will’s secret looked set to come spilling out and while it looks like it takes Sam being hospitalised for the truth to out, it’s been revealed that the Driscolls will be out for the truth in a dramatic trailer for what’s ahead on the cobbles for the rest of this month.

The promo shows Leanne Battersby launching an investigation after seeing how terrified Sam is of her lodger while laying in his hospital bed, and it’s not long before she discovers the horrifying truth. And once Megan’s secret us exposed, Ben and Eva are desperate to protect Will from predatory Megan and end up in a race against time to get what they need to bring Megan to justice.

On Leanne’s upcoming involvement, Lucas said: “It’s getting dangerous. Leanne is essentially family, so he has to be on the ball, but Will isn’t always the most cautious – he’s taken risks with PDA and kissing in cars. He doesn’t comprehend the full gravity of the situation.”

Of what he hopes the storyline achieves, Lucas added: “Awareness. This kind of inappropriate, underage relationship – especially the dynamic of an older woman and a younger guy – isn’t talked about as often as it should be. These issues are happening in the real world. We want to show that no matter the gender or the dynamic, it is never acceptable. Bringing light to that is the most important part of this job.”