Yahoo Sports Coronation Street star Rob Mallard teases Daisy and Ryan's shock kiss aftermath
Coronation Street spoilers follow.
Coronation Street's Daniel Osbourne supports his partner Daisy Midgeley on the day of Justin Rutherford's trial verdict this week, unaware that their relationship may be under serious threat.
Last week, Daisy secretly shared a kiss with Ryan Connor after they'd endured the ordeal of watching Justin give false evidence over the day of the acid attack.
As the ITV soap prepares to reveal Justin's fate, there's a sense that the repercussions are only just beginning as Daisy and Ryan continue to grow closer, bonding over their shared trauma.
Here, Rob Mallard – who plays Daniel – chats about the ongoing storyline.
How is Daniel feeling about Justin's trial?
"Daniel is apprehensive about whether Justin will be found guilty, because if it doesn't go the way that they want, it will have a really bad impact on Daisy."
How much of a strain has the past few months caused for Daniel and Daisy's relationship?
"In a weird way, all the events have made Daniel love Daisy even more because it has had the unintended consequence of allowing Daisy to be more vulnerable with him, which has made him fall even more in love with her."
Does Daniel feel he has failed to protect Daisy?
"Yes. Firstly, because he was slow off the mark realising how much of a threat Justin actually was.
"Secondly, Daniel really wishes he was there to protect Daisy from the acid attack. She is Daniel's and he is hers – they have given themselves to each other and they were going to get married, so he feels like it's his job to protect her. So he feels like, deep down, he should have been the one to save her from the acid attack."
Daniel is now aware of Daisy texting Ryan as 'Crystal'. Does he think Daisy has developed an unhealthy attachment to Ryan?
"Daniel understands that Daisy and Ryan have a connection to each other that he will never be a part of, because they both survived something horrific together and that bonds people.
"But because Daisy and Ryan used to date each other very briefly, there is something in the back of Daniel's mind that makes him think there's always a chance this may rekindle something between them."
Has Daniel been tempted to tell Ryan the truth about Daisy's deception?
"No. Although Daniel thinks what Daisy is doing is completely out of order, he can see her logic in it. He thinks that Daisy should be the one to reveal her secret to Ryan, because of the effect that it will have on both of them.
"If Daniel does it, it will cause Daisy more pain and cause Ryan pain. If Daisy does it, it fixes her own mistake, which is what Daniel thinks she should do."
On the day of the trial verdict, Daniel notices a look between Daisy and Ryan. What does he think is going on?
"It's a pure paranoia moment where his insecurity gets the better of him and he can't help but assume the worst. In Roy's Rolls, when Daniel challenges Daisy about the tension between her and Ryan, she rationalises it away as just the connection that they have with each other.
"But Daniel thinks that there is something going on between them. He wouldn't have brought it up to Daisy on the day of the verdict if his paranoia and his suspicions weren't strong. He has a niggling feeling in the back of his mind that he is being lied to."
How would Daniel react if he knew about Daisy and Ryan's kiss, which happened after Justin gave evidence?
"Daniel would be devastated. He would be angry with Daisy but probably less so with Ryan. Daisy's betrayal would devastate him and it would change things between them.
"If Daisy has demonstrated that she can be unfaithful, even if Daniel were to forgive her, he would never forget it. I think it would make them more volatile as a couple and more susceptible to not trusting each other."
How will the outcome of the trial impact Daniel and Daisy going forward?
"Daisy and Daniel hope for a guilty verdict and that would be a relief and a victory. It would signal the end of a chapter in their lives that they would rather forget.
"But as the trial ends, it's the start of this triangle that now exists between Ryan, Daisy and Daniel. As much as Daniel should be the one that's on Daisy's arm, he can't also say 'Right Ryan, can you go away now?'
"Daniel has to be sensitive to the severity of what happened between Daisy and Ryan. Daniel now has this awkward role of understanding why Daisy and Ryan are keeping each other around, while also wishing Ryan would just go away.
"We will see Daniel start to measure up aspects of himself to Ryan and there may be some butting of male egos."
How would Daniel be affected if his relationship with Daisy were to break down?
"Daniel has grown a lot as a person over the last five years. He used to be a lot more volatile. He has had a lot of maturing experiences happen to him, like reconnecting with his family after years of being isolated and living by himself, which has made him trust people more.
"He's been married, he's had a kid, his wife's died and he's had to keep it together for his son. I think all these maturing experiences have taken the edge off the character, but a storyline based in jealousy would certainly bring those aspects of his character back out."
Who do you think is better suited for Daisy – Daniel or Ryan?
"I think Daniel. Ryan is a DJ and probably on paper, he looks a better fit because he's into social media and entertainment, but I think the differences between Daisy and Daniel really complement each other.
"Daisy has made Daniel a lot more confident and outgoing, and Daniel has made Daisy care less about superficial things because she now has a connection to Bertie and she understands the importance of being a caregiver and deeper things than getting likes on social media."
The audience knows about the kiss, but Daniel doesn't. Is it exciting to play that dynamic, where Daniel is in the dark about something that the viewers know?
"Yes, I recently did a scene where Daniel buys Daisy flowers and chocolates just randomly, out of the blue. Playing that side of Daniel whilst the audience know that he is being deceived means that I can have fun with it a lot more.
"I want the audience to think, 'Oh no, he's showering her with affection and he doesn't have any clue that she is playing away!' I hope there is a fraction of people that are on Daniel's side!"
Coronation Street airs on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 8pm on ITV1 and streams on ITVX.
Read more Coronation Street spoilers on our dedicated homepage
Coronation Street has been working on Ryan's storyline with guidance from The Katie Piper Foundation and Acid Survivors Trust International (ASTI), which both offer help and support to real-life survivors.
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