Coronation Street will be tackling issues surrounding air pollution in a tough new storyline involving hairdresser Maria Connor (Samia Longchambon) and her 12-year-old son Liam Connor (Charlie Wrenshal).
Next week in the ITV soap, Maria is left fuming when her son has an asthma attack caused by air pollution.
Sally has started a campaign to sort out the Street's traffic chaos, but Maria initially isn't that interested in joining her crusade. But she completely changes her mind when her young son is rushed to hospital. Even the sheer volume of traffic on the Street causes issues as the ambulance crew try to get the schoolboy treatment.
"The ambulance can't get down the Street because of all the cars parked there, which makes it even scarier for Maria," says Samia, who plays her.
"At the hospital, the doctor says that Liam's asthma could have been caused by pollution, and because there's been an increase in traffic and pollution on the Street, Maria sees red."
Maria is left distraught by the whole situation and extremely angry. She believes that the van at Underworld is causing a lot of pollution and demands that Sarah ditches it. But Sarah isn't having any of it — it's then that viewers will see shocking scenes as Maria takes out her fury on the van.
"She just completely loses it," explains Samia.
Not surprisingly, Sarah calls the police. And Maria is forced to backtrack and pay for the repairs. But what lengths will she now go to clean up the Street's air? Will she turn violent again?
Maria will also be seen telling Gary that she's selling their car. She also tells him that he needs to get rid of his van. How will he react to that?
Coronation Street continues on ITV — see our TV Guide for full listings.
