Things may seem to be going smoothly for Max Turner right now, but it is Coronation Street and things don't look set to be staying calm for much longer. The character, played by Paddy Bever, has been causing trouble on the cobbles ever since making an on-screen comeback back in September.
Fans of the ITV soap were left baffled when he returned as they were greeted with a brand new face. Paddy took over the role from Harry McDermott, from Bury, played the son of David Platt's late wife Kylie from 2010. The 11-year-old, from Bury, left to continue with his acting studies and explore other opportunities leading to Paddy being cast in the role.
And it has been a very busy nine months for the actor. Since his comeback, David's had his hands full with his step-son, whose dad, Callum Logan, was also killed. It even led to viewers complaining late last year about the character's 'vile' transformation.
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For the majority of his time back so far, Max was at loggerheads with Daniel Osbourne who he accused of grooming Summer Spellman while drunk at the school's winter ball. Then, in February, Max suffered a horror fall after Daniel found him trashing his flat. The pair were then left keeping each other's secrets after the teenage tearaway spiked a drink that was meant for Daniel but ended up being drunk by his niece Amy Barlow.
Blackmailing Daniel, it wasn't until a couple of months ago that the truth came tumbling out leading to Daniel almost being disowned by his own family. And as Max faced another talking to from David, and the prospect of going to prison, he decided to do a runner but needed his phone from the barbers, Trim Up North, first. He was seen smashing the glass of the barber's door and climbing in. Getting what he needed, Max climbed back out of where he came from but ended up lacerating his leg on the broken glass in the door and collapsed onto the street until reformed bad boy Jacob Hay came to his rescue.
Max has since been expelled from school and set to a Pupil Referral Unit for a year. Earlier this month Corrie viewers saw Max take a liking to newcomer Sonya, one of the girls he and his new friends from the PFU have been hanging round with. The smitten teen soon chatted to his potential love interest and they soon appeared to be arranging to go out.
However, the teen will soon face a horrific ordeal as someone pretending to be Sonya tricks him into sending a naked picture of himself. It then leads to Max being blackmailed as the mysterious account tells him to hand over cash and if not, the picture will go viral.
Speaking to the Mirror about his latest storyline, Paddy said: "I think it was very important to me to be very focused and to get it very right because this genuinely affects so many people. I even know tens of people this has happened to at a very young age and it really does happen. What could make someone more vulnerable than a photo of that? I don't know. I think it's a turning point, I really do."
He then explained that the storyline will focus on the element of toxic masculinity and shame, making it different to a previous storyline in which Asha Alahan had a private video of herself circulated online. Paddy said: "With Max's, you're going to see it from more of a male perspective and you're going to see a lot of toxic masculinity, a lot of bravado and a lot of fear that I think Max feels quite ashamed of because this kind of thing itself - he's 15 - but because he's a boy, his mates are boys, it's a very different situation.
"I did a lot of research into the new laws that have come about more recently and sort of where Max's head would be at. Because he's a 15 year old with a laptop. I think when I spoke to lots of people that have been affected by this, it's genuinely horrifying to see this epidemic. It really is an epidemic."
And it's another big storyline for the young actor to get his teeth stuck into with Corrie being his first major job. He is a former member of the Cheadle Hulme Players Youth Theatre, having left Cheadle Hulme School, in Stockport, in 2021.
Speaking last year, a couple of months into his time on the cobbles, Paddy said: "This is my first acting job which is crazy but I have been into acting for literally as long as I can remember.
"I used to do little shows for my family, when I started school I did school plays, I started at a local drama class when I was 7, I went on to join a local theatre, then when I was 14 I joined Manchester School of Acting which is one of the best things I’ve ever done. They’re so good and I still go there now."
Explaining how he then got the role on the long-running soap, the 19-year-old, who is a few years older than his character, said: "It was there where I got picked up by my agent in March of this year and started doing auditions and self tapes. I got asked to tape for Coronation Street.
"I had an A-level the next day so I made the decision not to revise for the A-level and focus on the tape. I then didn’t hear anything for a month so I presumed I hadn’t got it and then I got called for a screen test which was so exciting. I was so nervous but when I got there it just struck me that everyone was so lovely. I did my screen test with Jack Shepherd [David] then a week later I found out I’d got the role which was amazing. I also somehow got an A in the A-level I didn’t revise for so it all worked out ok in the end!"
Speaking again in February about how he is finding his work life on the famous soap, Paddy commented: "I absolutely do feel settled, it’s such a friendly place to work and everyone is so genuine. I don’t feel there’s anyone I can’t go to if I have a question, I feel really at home there now."
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