If you were shocked by Coronation Street’s double-murder last week, then prepare to be even more shook in the coming weeks as there are rumours doing the rounds that Pat Phelan’s killing spree has only just begun.
The terrifying scenes which saw the unhinged builder force his hostage Poor Andy Carver (for that is now his full title) to shoot his other hostage, Vinny Ashford before Phelan dumped both their bodies in the lake, sparked 390 complaints to Ofcom.
Read more: Ofcom receives 390 complaints about disturbing Corrie storyline
But Corrie bosses aren’t bothered about that as they plan to plough on with Phelan’s storyline – and it looks like things could get even darker.
Although we’re not quite sure where you can go after warehouse executions and secret prisoners.
It’s thought that Phelan’s story will get even grittier in the run up to Christmas and beyond – with a report on Mirror Online suggesting he could murder four more people and his final body count could even top notorious cobbles killer Richard Hillman.
It’s no secret that Phelan has made a lot of enemies during his time on the cobbles so far.
He’s currently waging a war with Anna Windass after she told his long-lost daughter, Nicola Rubinstein, that he had offered her a financial deal in exchange for sex.
Nicola then went on to discover that Phelan had raped her mother, through family friend Lydia. Phelan had told Nicola that he and her mum had an affair, but this doesn’t seem to be the case.
Could he kill his own daughter to protect his secret?
There’s also Daniel Osbourne on Pat’s hit-list. The wannabe reporter has already been snooping into Pat’s life. Could he be the one to uncover the builder’s murderous tendencies?
Gary Windass is another potential victim. He’s already angered Phelan by sleeping with Nicola and getting her pregnant, plus he and Gary have a past after Gaz left him for dead on a building site when he worked for him.
It’s very possible that all four could end up in soap heaven – don’t forget, Phelan’s already got a grave ready. He dug it for Poor Andy, but didn’t use it.
According to a report in the Daily Star, show bosses think Phelan’s murderous ways – and the promise of his eventual comeuppance – will draw in the viewers.
A huge seven million people tuned in to Corrie’s first episode on Monday, which was the aftermath of Phelan’s killing.
Actor Connor McIntyre, who plays the villain, said: “The culmination of that will make lots of people very unhappy, but that is what great drama is for. Pat is a bad man.”
Read more: Corrie bosses respond to backlash over dark murder scenes
“This is the beginning, soap lore demands there must be retribution.”
Could this really just be the beginning of what could turn into soap’s most prolific serial killer story?