Mal Roper (Tim Treloar) was rushed to hospital in tonight’s Coronation Street after being brutally attacked and left

for dead.

The newcomer has already caused quite a stir on the cobbles, with his infatuation with Bernie Winter (Jane Hazlegrove) turning

sinister earlier this week.

Mal arrived in Weatherfield on the hunt for Roy Cropper (David Neilson) to confront him about his letters to wife Alice.

After hearing Roy’s side of the story, Mal headed out to drown his sorrows and bumped into Bernie, with the pair soon embarking on a drug-fuelled night of partying.

Bernie was quick to regret the night in the cold light of the following day, but it had the opposite effect on Mal, who felt drawn to Bernie.

His obsession with her reached a worrying crescendo earlier this week when he held her hostage in the café as he professed his love.

When Bernie made it clear that she didn’t reciprocate his feelings, Mal turned nasty. Fortunately, Kit Green (Jacob Roberts) arrived before things went any further, but the whole experience left Bernie shaken.

Tonight, Kit was put on the case of investigating an attack on Mal, and he got a big shock when he arrived at the hospital and found out that he was in intensive care.

The doctor explained that Mal had hit his head on the pavement and suffered a cardiac arrest, and was now in critical condition. She also pointed out that bruising to his upper arms indicated an altercation.

Later, when Kit found out that new colleague DC Browning had made a breakthrough on the case, he was less than impressed at having to share the workload.

However, he would soon have much more to worry about when DC Browning arrested Bernie for the assault.

Things aren’t exactly looking good for Bernie, considering her last run-in with Mal in yesterday’s episode.