David Platt (''Coronation Street'')

David Platt
Coronation Street character
Portrayed by	Thomas Ormson (1990–2000) Jack P. Shepherd (2000–)
Duration	1990–
First appearance	Episode 3165 25 December 1990
Introduced by	Mervyn Watson
Classification	Present; regular
Profile
Occupation	Hairdresser (2010–) Businessman (2012–)
Home	8 Coronation Street
Family Father Martin Platt Mother Gail Rodwell Stepfather Richard Hillman (2002–2003) Joe McIntyre (2010) Michael Rodwell (2015–2016) Half-brothers Nick Tilsley Half-sisters Sarah Platt Charlotte Platt Wife Kylie Platt (2011–2016) Daughters Lily Platt Adoptive sons Max Turner Grandfathers Barry Platt Ted Page Grandmothers Barbara Platt Audrey Roberts Uncles Stephen Reid Nephews Billy Platt Harry Platt Nieces Bethany Platt

David Platt (also Tilsley) is a fictional character from the British soap opera, Coronation Street. He was born on-screen during the episode broadcast on 25 December 1990. He was played by Thomas Ormson from his first appearance until 15 March 2000 when Ormson left. Jack P. Shepherd took over the role and made his first on screen appearance on 26 April 2000.

Storylines

David is the son of Martin (Sean Wilson) and Gail Platt (Helen Worth). David was born on Christmas Day 1990. Martin's friend Carmel Finnan (Catherine Cusack) tried to kidnap David when he was a toddler. She also posed as his mother to other characters. Carmel then tries to frame Gail for pushing her down the stairs and is revealed to be mentally ill. In 2000, a nine-year-old David becomes jealous of the attention being paid to his newborn niece Bethany Platt (Amy and Emily Walton). He decides to gain attention by getting arrested for shoplifting. In 2001, Gail and Martin divorce after Martin has an affair with Rebecca Hopkins (Jill Halfpenny). David is unhappy and begins misbehaving in the hope that they will get back together. David becomes the target of a school bully and, despite Gail's advice to ignore the bully, he becomes violent and gets into fights. His behaviour worsens when Gail marries Richard Hillman (Brian Capron) in July 2002, but he comes to accept Richard. In March 2003, Richard is revealed to be a serial killer, and tries to kill himself, Gail, David, Bethany, and her mother - David's sister - Sarah Platt (Tina O'Brien) by driving them into the local canal. Gail, Sarah, David and Bethany are all rescued, while Richard drowns. In the years following, David develops a penchant for lying and scheming at home and at school.

He is unhappy with Gail's relationship with Phil Nail (Clive Russell) and begins a hate campaign against Phil. David does not trust Phil, as a result of Richard's behaviour. Phil reaches breaking point with David and throws him up against a wall, threatening to beat him up. David tells Gail, but Phil lies to her, and Gail believes him and slaps David, unaware that he is telling the truth. Gail receives a card addressed from Richard. She suspects Phil of sending the cards. Realising David is behind the scam, Phil throws David across the table in front of Gail. An angry Gail ends their relationship. The Platt family still receive cards from Richard, and Gail realises David is the culprit. Gail blames herself for David's behaviour. In December 2006, David discovers Sarah's grandmother Ivy Tilsley's (Lynne Perrie) diary and reads it, and is shocked that Gail had wanted to abort him, but he understands this after Gail told him that Ivy had been having a rough time since the death of her son and Gail's husband, Brian Tilsley (Christopher Quinten). He develops romantic feelings for Maria Sutherland (Samia Smith), but is annoyed she is enjoying an affair with Charlie Stubbs (Bill Ward). Charlie threatens David into silence. David tries to blackmail Charlie, who tries drowning David in a bath to rid of him, but Maria walks in and saves him. In January 2007, Tracy Barlow (Kate Ford) murders Charlie, staging it to look like self-defence. David offers to testify for Tracy that he saw Charlie attack her, on the condition that she sleeps with him. Tracy agrees, but the prosecution proves David's testimony to be lies.

In January 2008, David begins a relationship with Tina McIntyre (Michelle Keegan) and she becomes pregnant. In March 2008, Gail pays for an abortion and they decide not to tell David. He finds out and, in an argument, he pushes Gail down the stairs. He persuades Tina to give him an alibi, but she ends their romance. David smashes various vehicles and windows on the Street, attacks Ken Barlow (William Roache) and hits a policewoman. He is sentenced to four months in a Young Offenders Institution. When he is released Tina reconciles with him, but faces more issues when a jealous David reads her emails. He dates Amber Kalirai (Nikki Patel) in an attempt to make Tina jealous, which has the desired effect and they get back together.

In November 2008, David feuds with the Windass family when they refuse to pay for work Tina's father Joe McIntyre (Reece Dinsdale) has carried out. David threatens Eddie (Steve Huison) and Anna Windass (Debbie Rush) with a crowbar. Len (Conor Ryan) and Gary Windass (Mikey North) steal Joe's work tools in retaliation. David then destroys their kitchen, so the Windass family remove the kitchen from the house. Gail and Anna are forced to call a truce to avoid more problems. David spends time away from Weatherfield when Tina wants nothing more to do with him. Upon his return he becomes jealous of Tina and Gary's friendship. David frames Gary for theft and also tricks him into buying stolen goods. He then enlists Gary to commit robbery, which goes wrong when Gail's father Ted Page (Michael Byrne), interrupts them, calls the police and has a heart attack. Gary decides to confess to the police, which leads to David being arrested. David becomes jealous when Tina begins a relationship with Jason Grimshaw (Ryan Thomas). David discovers that Joe is addicted to prescription medication and agrees to supply him with drugs as long as he tries to break Tina and Jason up. In February 2010, Joe commits suicide, but the police presume he has been murdered and arrest Gail. David has to scheme in order to prove Gail's innocence. In late 2010, Tina begins a relationship with Graeme Proctor (Craig Gazey). This upsets David and he feels betrayed. David suffers a black-out while driving and knocks Graeme over. No one believes David's versions of events and the police arrest him for attempted murder. Before the court case is about to begin David passes out again and everyone begins to realise he was telling the truth. He is found to be suffering from epilepsy.

David returns from a holiday engaged to Kylie Turner (Paula Lane). Gail is angry and tries to convince David to change his mind. David and Kylie then get married in April 2011. David fights to take custody of Kylie's son Max Turner (Harry McDermott), but ends up feuding with her half-sister Becky McDonald (Katherine Kelly), with Kylie trying to avoid it. David insists that Steve and Becky aren't fit to look after Max, proving this when he saves Max from being run over. David has to deal with Gail and Kylie feuding. But when he learns that Gail has tried to bribe Kylie to leave, he threatens to leave home. Kylie gets a job at the salon with David. He is upset when Max is put up for adoption and she does not want to prevent this. He convinces her they must change their ways and convince social services to allow Max to live with them.

In August 2013, David discovers that Kylie has slept with Nick but does not confront them. He vandalises Nick's flat and writes poison pen letters to his wife Leanne. Nick tells David he knows he is behind the trouble and suggests they discuss it with Kylie. To prevent Kylie from finding out David causes a car accident. Nick is left in a coma which results in permanent brain damage. David learns he is Lily's biological father, but when Kylie discovers his acts of revenge she throws him out. Following their reconciliation, Max is diagnosed with ADHD in August 2014 and Kylie becomes addicted to his medication. David restricts Kylie's access to the medication, but she compensates with an amphetamine addiction. He throws Kylie out and she leaves Weatherfield on Christmas Day 2014.

In January 2015, Max's father Callum Logan (Sean Ward) arrives and wants access to Max. When David refuses Callum starts a custody battle, which begins a violent feud. Kylie returns in May 2015 and helps strengthen David's claim to Max. Their feud escalates, and he manipulates Sarah and Bethany (now played by Lucy Fallon). When they try to frame Callum for a crime in September 2015, he attacks Sarah and Kylie kills Callum to protect her. David decides to help cover the murder up and buries the body down a man hole in their home. When a car crash occurs in May 2016, rescue workers find Callum's body.^[1] David is initially the main suspect, but they frame Tony Stewart, Jason Grimshaw's dad, another of Callum's enemies, who happens to be dead. In July 2016, Kylie decides she cannot live in the house Callum died in any longer. David agrees to relocate their family to Barbados. Their plans are ruined when Clayton Hibbs (Callum Harrison) stabs Kylie in the street and she dies in David's arms. David then attacks Clayton who is then charged with Kylie's murder. Gail is concerned about David and his calm attitude towards planning Kylie's funeral.

In October 2016, David wants revenge for Kylie's murder, believing their will be no justice for Kylie. He publicly names Clayton, despite Clayton being aged under 18, as Kylie's killer and attempts to kill Cormac "Macca" Hibbs, Clayton's step-brother, whilst he's in hospital. David plans his final act of revenge on Clayton by crashing his new car into the police van Clayton is in whilst igniting a large amount of petrol to blow them both up. After he makes a suicide video, Gail, Nick and Sarah see it and lock David in the Bistro cellar until the trial is over. After tricking Gail into thinking that he has committed suicide, David escapes the Bistro, gets into his car that is covered in petrol and drives off. However, as he speeds along, David spots Lily on the road and swerves to avoid her, but ends up flipping the car, which lands on Lily and Gary (who had attempted to get Lily to safety). Some of the residents are able to get Gary and Lily out as David manages to get out of the car. However, a spark causes the car to catch fire and cause an explosion, setting Anna on fire and badly injuring her, whilst David looks on in horror. Sarah admits to Gary, who she is in a relationship with, what David did, but Sarah persuades him not to tell anyone for the sake of Max and Lily. David inherits £20,000 from a client who dies, as well as a dog. Gary finds out from Sarah about the money, so David gives Anna and Kevin £19,000. In 2017, he begins a relationship with an older woman called Shona Ramsey (Julia Goulding), not knowing that she is Clayton's estranged mother.

In March 2018, David is drugged and raped by his new friend Josh Tucker (Ryan Clayton) following a night out. He is left ashamed and embarrassed. He then goes to visit Martin, who is moving to New Zealand, in Liverpool with Max and Lily. Martin, sensing something is wrong with David, goes back to Weatherfield to speak to him. Following the rape David starts lashing out at everyone, worrying Shona, Gail, Martin, Sarah, Gary, Bethany and Audrey as well as many other residents. He takes Tyrone's place in the charity boxing event, his opponent is Gary when they fight, David has flashbacks and he brutally attacks Gary while everyone watches in horror. This leaves Gary fighting for his life, Sarah doesn't believe her own brother would do such a thing. But what no one knows but David himself is he's still suffering mentally and emotionally from when Josh drugged and raped him, this leads to him breaking up with Shona, saying he doesn't love her anymore. This leads to her moving out and moving in with Roy Cropper (David Neilson) at Roy's rolls. He later starts a relationship with Emma Brooker (Alexandra Mardell) who is a year older than Bethany. On the day of his trial for attacking Gary, he runs off while his solicitor Imran Habeeb (Charlie De Melo) is distracted. Shona finds him and he reveals his rape to her after finding out about Aidan Connor’s suicide. They get back together and Shona promises to stay by his side. David later tells Gail and Audrey about the rape while Gail tells Sarah. While doing community service for beating up Gary, he and another man make homophobic jokes towards gay vicar Billy Mayhew (Daniel Brocklebabk). When Billy later asks him to apologize, David refuses and Billy locks the door. David breaks down and admits to Billy that he was raped. Billy later follows David when he follows Josh and a potential victim. Billy tells him to go home and to do nothing. Billy later contridicts himself and warns the man of Josh. Josh gets beaten up by this man and ends up in hospital. He becomes blind and Billy regularly visits him out of guilt. Billy then let’s Josh live with him. David and Shona find out and are disgusted with Billy. He is also furious when he finds out that Bethany knew about Billy visiting Josh in hospital. After Josh re evaluates his behaviour, he visits David in the salon, however he still won't admit to raping him. David kidnaps him and tricks him into thinking they are outside a police station. When Josh breaks down and pleads that his life would be hell in prison, David gets closure and tells Josh that they are in an alleyway, before leaving him stranded.

Reception

Fearing real-life imitation of the scene in which David was tortured by Charlie Stubbs, many formal complaints were filed by viewers with the Government’s Office of Communications. In the end, "Coronation Street was cleared by TV watchdogs after 31 complaints about scenes of 'bullying and torture'". Investigators eventually ruled that the torture scenes "were editorially justified by plot development, characters involved and the manner of editing."^[2]

Tony Stewart of the Daily Mirror refers to the character as "David Pratt" when writing reviews of any storyline he features in, due to the character's way of seemingly always getting away with outlandish things. In magazine articles he is often referred to as "Demon David", "Teen Tormenter" or "Psycho Platt".^[3][4] In August 2017, Shepherd was longlisted for "Best Actor" and "Funniest Male" at the Inside Soap Awards.^[5] He did not progress to the viewer-voted shortlist.^[6] On 2 June 2018, Shepherd was awarded his first "Best Actor" accolade at The British Soap Awards 2018, following his performances during the rape storyline.^[7] In July 2018, Shepherd was longlisted for "Best Actor" and "Best Partnership", alongside Julia Goulding who plays Shona Ramsey, at the Inside Soap Awards.^[8]

References

External links

• David Platt at itv.com