Coronation Street legend disowns own brother after discovering huge deceit

Coronation Street's Kevin Webster disowned his brother Carl as various truths began to come out on Friday's episode.

The legendary character, who has been played by Michael Le Vell on ITV's flagship soap since 1983, was dealt a surprise earlier this year when his long-lost brother Carl (Jonathan Howard ) arrived in Weatherfield, and has since employed him in his garage. The mechanic was diagnosed with testicular cancer some months ago and managed to beat the disease but amid suspicions that Carl is growing more and more attracted to his wife Abi (Sally Carman), he had decided to let everyone think he was still suffering.

Amongst all of this, Carl has been using the garage to do some dodgy deals with Fiona Morley (Sara Poyzer), and the pair were discussing their plot to steal a £30,000 car whilst they tried to stand away from prying eyes in the ginnel. He warned her that the chance to take it was 'now or never' and she soon snuck into the unlocked garage, took the car and sped off. But unfortunately for them, Kevin had overheard the entire conversation when he came out of number 13, and watched on as the con woman drove off. Kevin chased after the her, but struggled to catch his breath and had to stop. He was seen by Glenda Shuttleworth (Jodie Prenger) and the Rovers barmaid insisted on taking him off to hospital, unaware that he is lying about his cancer diagnosis.

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Carl rushed to see Kevin in the hospital, where the pair ended up having a confrontation as various truths began to come out. Kevin began to tell Carl that he felt 'like an idiot' and told his brother to 'drop the act' when he pretended to be exasperated at the news that a car had been stolen. When Kevin accused Carl of lying to him, Carl knew exactly how to hit back. Just before entering Kevin's room, Carl had asked the doctor if his sudden deterioration had anything to do with his chemotherapy, to which the doctor had informed him that such treatment had finished 'weeks ago'. Having worked out that Kevin had lied to him and everyone else, Carl asked Kevin how he could possibly lie about having cancer, he tried to insist that he did it to save his marriage.

Viewers will remember that Tyrone Dobbs (Alan Halsall) previously rumbled Kevin's secret, having been familiar with how treatment works thanks to his daughter Hope's own battle several years ago. Abi believes that Kevin 'isn't responding' to the treatment, and when she tried to discuss the idea that Jack (Kyran Bowes) needed to be told more about his dad's condition, he tried to throw her off the subject.

And in one final scene, Carl arrived at Kevin's house to try to have it out with him but was warned to 'make it quick'. Carl protested that Abi deserved to know about Kevin's condition, but the mechanic insisted that his brother will become part of the lie and go along with it because he has the power to 'shop' him at any time.

In making things absolutely clear, Kevin told Carl: "I felt like I should've done more, being the older one, made you feel like you belonged. I could've done something about it, but I was too wrapped up in my own world. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for freeing me from all that guilt. Part of me started to believe that you didn't exist. Now I can go back to that. You are dead to me. Never had a brother, never will."

Fans of ITV's flagship soap opera will know that Kevin was right to have his suspicions when it came to Carl and Abi, and that the pair are set to give into temptation and embark on an affair. In the days before Kevin's brother arrived on the cobbles, he was famously married to Sally Metcalfe (Sally Dynevor) and they had daughters Rosie (Helen Flanagan) and Sophie (Brooke Vincent) together. They initially split up when Kevin had an an affair with Natalie Barnes (Denise Welch) but they remarried in 2002. Their marriage survived numerous infidelities on both sides, but ultimately crumbled when Kevin fathered Jack with Molly Dobbs (Vicky Binns) before she died in the 2010 tram crash as part of the programme's 50th anniversary.

Carl is the son of Kevin's dad Bill Webster (Peter Armitage) and his second wife Elaine (Judy Gridley) and spent most of his life in Germany with his parents until he arrived on the Manchester backstreet earlier this year. In real life, Jonathan spent 10 years in LA and working alongside big-name stars including Brad Pitt and Anthony Hopkins, but the 38-year-old actor ranks landing a part in Corrie among his greatest achievements.

He told The Mirror: "Being in Coronation Street is just as big a thrill as being in a Hollywood film or an American TV series. It’s all the same, everyone’s telling stories, whether it’s a big $200m movie or a soap like Corrie. As a Lancashire lad born and raised, the dream was to be in Coronation Street – that was the ceiling, so it feels wonderfully surreal to now be acting with people like Kevin Webster that I watched religiously as a kid. My friends ask me, ‘what you have been up to today?’ and I reply ‘I took Tracy Barlow for a drink in the Rovers Return!’ It’s just incredible to say these things."

Coronation Street airs Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 8pm on ITV1 and ITV X. * Follow Mirror Celebs and TV on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , and Threads.