Coronation Street's David Platt risks his life provoking gangs - but it's not the first time he's gone off the rails
This is not the first time Gail's troubled middle son has pushed his life to the limit
When David Platt (Jack P Shepherd) gave a gang of local drug dealers' bonnet a good stomping with his Timberlands in Coronation Street this week RadioTimes.com was reminded of just how many times the most volatile and tortured Platt has deliberately tempted fate when the pain in his own life has appeared insurmountable.
Right now he's hurting because his wife Shona Ramsey (Julia Goulding) who is recovering at a neurological rehabilitation centre in Leeds has demanded a divorce. That's just the latest in a catalogue of blows that life has dealt him: from attempted murder by his stepdad Richard Hillman to the murder of his wife Kylie and being raped by Josh Tucker.
Canal crash suicide attempt, 2007
If there is one incident that first set David Platt on a destructive path in life it's the day that stepfather Richard Hillman (Brian Capron) drove a screaming David, Sarah and Gail into the canal to the tune of The Wannadies You and Me. The youngster was so scarred by this that when his family disowned him for accidentally leaving an ecstasy tablet out that Bethany swallowed he decided to take a leaf out of his stepdad's book and do it again.
Smashing up the whole street, 2008
"It'll be hoodies," was Rita's verdict when she heard windows being smashed on the cobbles whilst she had her hair done. In fact it was one man wrecking ball David. Catatonic with rage after he discovered Gail encouraged his girlfriend Tina McIntyre (Michelle Keegan) to have an abortion, David first pushed his mother down the stairs then smashed pretty much every window and car windscreen in the street before assaulting Ken Barlow and one of the arresting police officers.
Brain damage for brother Nick, 2013
David is not someone who deals well with betrayal. An overheard conversation at no.8 between Gail (Helen Worth) and his wife Kylie (Paula Lane) was how he discovered that she had slept with his half-brother Nick (Ben Miles) on Christmas night. David being David planned a lengthy and elaborate hate campaign which reached its climax when he unbuckled Nick's seat belt, grabbed the steering wheel and left them both in the path of an unforgiving lorry.
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Kamikaze revenge mission on killer Clayton, 2016
The murder of Kylie, the one true love of David's life, by Clayton Hibbs (Callum Harrison) drove him mad for revenge. David decided that the only way to dispose of his wife's killer was to douse a car in petrol and drive it into the side of the police van taking Clayton to court. When the car failed to start a deranged David crashed it on the street nearly killing his daughter Lily and Gary Windass (Mikey North).
Rapist Josh goads David, 2018
"I think you'd rather go round two with me." When serial rapist Josh Tucker (Ryan Clayton) mocked David as he refereed a charity boxing match with old adversary Gary Windass, David saw red and almost killed Gary. Really he was beating himself up as he desperately tried to come to terms with what Josh had done to him.
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