History repeated itself in tonight's Coronation Street (17th July) with another sad split for teenage sweethearts Toyah Battersby (Georgia Taylor) and Spider Nugent (Martin Hancock).

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The day began with Spider, and Toyah's stepsister Leanne Battersby (Jane Danson), frantic with worry after Toyah was kidnapped by a face from Spider's past. The woman, Maggie (Catrin Aaron), had posed as a journalist to extract Toyah's address from Lauren Bolton (Cait Fitton).

Spider revealed Maggie was the wife of a criminal who blamed him for her husband's murder after Spider had convinced him to testify against his associates.

Probed by Leanne when he suddenly rushed away, Spider admitted that he had heard from Maggie, who warned him to meet her without police or she would kill Toyah. Meanwhile, Toyah remained tied up in the back of a van, and before long, Spider arrived on the scene to find Maggie with a gun.

Toyah and Spider are held at gunpoint in Coronation Street
Toyah and Spider are held at gunpoint in Coronation Street. ITV

As she pointed the weapon at them, Maggie shouted about how Spider's actions had affected her, explaining that she didn't want him dead – she wanted him to suffer by losing the person he loved most. Preparing for death, Toyah declared her love for him – but Spider tried to convince Maggie that he didn't love Toyah enough to be broken by her murder.

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As he shouted Maggie down, Spider urged Toyah to run; and she soon heard a gunshot and saw Spider laying lifeless on the ground. Shaken, Toyah tried to persuade Maggie to let her check on Spider, but when it became clear that Maggie wanted rid of her, Toyah made to run again – only for another gunshot to ring out.

Thankfully, Spider was actually alive and well, and had used a police baton to disarm and injure Maggie. Toyah was relieved to find that Spider had been wearing bulletproof clothing, and the pair were taken to hospital as Maggie was arrested.

Leanne blamed Spider for her sister's ordeal, and Spider agreed with this analysis. His words led Toyah to believe that he may be about to quit the police. Later, Leanne and partner Nick Tilsley (Ben Price) explained that they needed to put Nick's son Sam Blakeman's (Jude Riordan) safety first, so Spider could no longer visit.

When Toyah pointed out that Spider might be leaving the police anyway, he shut down her claim, and the couple reached a crossroads as Spider felt compelled to keep fighting injustice as a detective, even when Toyah asked him to put her first.

So, Toyah declared their relationship over. Although equally heartbroken, Spider fought back tears and walked away. Is it all over for good between the pair?

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Coronation Street airs weeknights on ITV. Check out more of our Soaps coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on.

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