Fake news hits Coronation Street when Maggie Driscoll (Pauline McLynn) lashes out after falling for a damaging lie about a beloved Weatherfield resident.

The acid-tongued landlady of the Rovers’ Return doesn’t suffer fools and is fiercely protective when it comes to her loved ones and livelihood. So when a nasty rumour about George Shuttleworth (Tony Maudsley) reaches her ears, she doesn’t stop to question whether or not it might be true.

Manchester’s jolliest undertaker has taken a hammering recently after he found himself the victim of a smear campaign to slander his professional reputation. The daughter of a former client, Annie is convinced that George manipulated her mother into leaving him £10,000 in her will, resulting in police investigations, and threats of legal action.

Following a flurry of one-star reviews online, Shuttleworth’s is in dire peril. Even his partner Christina Boyd (Amy Robbins) is implicated by Annie as a co-conspirator.

With the business drowning in false allegations, the last thing George needs is another scandal. For instance, like an elderly client collapsing in his funeral parlour – which is what happens to poor Mrs Ripley. It couldn’t come at a worse time for George.

Annie is so hellbent on her mission to ruin Shuttleworth’s good name that George considered turning down the ten grand her mother left him just to draw a line under the whole sorry business for good. However, Christina argued that would make George look guiltier still and encouraged him to keep the cash for the business’ sake.

This decision comes back to bite the Shuttleworths’ bigtime in upcoming episodes when a certain villainous Cobbles character pours poison into Annie’s ear about George.

Who? You’ll have to tune in to find out. Whoever the culprit, their vicious slander makes it way through the rumour mill to Maggie, with serious consequences.

Gloomy George listens as Todd Grimshaw (Gareth Pierce) and Christina read out the latest fake news articles tearing Shuttleworth’s to shreds.

In the Rovers, Maggie reads the same and worries that the pub will be tainted by association… which is a bit rich coming from a woman who secretly murdered her husband by pushing him down the stars.

Spotting George in the bar, Maggie labels him the local conman and tells him he’s no longer welcome – he’s barred. When Todd and Christina leap to his defence, Maggie bars them too.