The question on everybody’s lips: who pushed Ken?
AS HE REGAINS CONSCIOUSNESS, SHATTERED KEN LIVES IN FEAR. SOMEONE WANTS HIM DEAD…
Battered Ken wakes up in a living nightmare this week, as he discovers from the police that he’s been the victim of a would-be murderer – and that the culprit is most likely one of his nearest and dearest!
After being found at the bottom of the stairs at No 1, Ken comes to in hospital with no memory of what happened. He’s shocked when the detectives fill him in on their investigation and reveal that they’re convinced someone intended to kill him. The news leaves the Barlow patriarch
sick to the stomach as he wonders which of his family could have committed such a heinous crime…
“My first question to producers when I found out about this storyline was,
‘Are you writing me out?’” laughs William Roache, who plays the Weatherfield legend. “But as soon as I found out that Ken would recover, I was thrilled! I’m back at the centre of it all. Having the Barlow boys around Ken has given him a whole new dynamic and means I’m getting amazing storylines like this.”
Ken is also the focus of attention for the police, as they explain what happened the night of the attack. He is initially furious when Detective Mackinnon suggests he could have been attacked by one of his family – but then he begins to consider the events leading up to that fateful night.
“Now it’s been put into his mind that it must be somebody close, he’s paranoid,” shares Bill. “But he can’t remember. All he knows is that he got everyone’s back up before it happened. There’s no single person he suspects straight away.”
Worse still, the family arrive to visit Ken and the atmosphere is tense, leading to squabbling between them. That’s when Ken hits the panic button and orders the staff to get them all out.
“Ken is horrified, and there is a moment where he looks at them all and is terrified that any one of his family could have done the deed,” explains Bill. “When the doctors discharge him a few days later, he doesn’t want to go home. He’s upset, paranoid and very frail when Roy arrives to collect him. So when Roy offers to put him up, he’s grateful.”
UNDER SUSPICION
While the police launch their manhunt, the suspects are trying to get their stories straight – but Bill reckons that it’ll be a while before viewers discover the identity of Ken’s assailant.
“We didn’t know ourselves at the start,” shares the actor. “It’s only now, as we get closer to finding out in scripts, that we actors have been made aware. It was great to play it like that, and all of the suspects have been told to behave as though they are guilty. It was fun to act out the story not knowing the truth. I hope viewers enjoy trying to work out who it could be in the same way we did.
It’s very cleverly done, and
I’m thrilled to bits with it!”
“Ken is upset and paranoid when Roy collects him”