Before 2024 ended, an episode of the ITV soap aired that saw confirmation Anthony sexually abused his daughter Ruby (Beth Cordingly) when she was a child.

Because Ruby is the only person in the village who knows Anthony’s secret, it has allowed him to create a façade for the other residents, who believe he’s a charming old man who wants to help out.

In tonight’s instalment, Nicola got talking to Anthony, who had previously spent time with Arthur (Alfie Clarke) to help him with studying.

Nicola asked Anthony if he could tutor Angelica (Rebecca Bakes), and he said yes.

That evening, as Nicola closed the café, Anthony finished his lesson with Angel. Outside, they both commented on how well the session went, and what they’d be doing next time.

It was a positive development where Nicola is concerned, but her view will of course change if she discovers Anthony’s past secret.

But what will happen in the mean time between him, Angelica and Arthur?

Discussing this historic child sex abuse storyline, star Beth Cordingly said: ‘I felt really privileged to be given this storyline. When you feel like people are prepared to give you something as big as this you feel like they are trusting you with it. As a story it’s a subject that I feel, as many people do, very passionately about.

‘And I’ve worked in the past with Childline and the NSPCC, so it’s a subject that I wasn’t nervous about taking on in terms of being scared by the storyline, it was more that you just really want to make sure that if you’re telling something like that, you’re telling it right.

She added: ‘So it’s been a relief to get some of the reactions I’ve had from people who have been saying they feel like we’re telling the story in a sensitive way, because that’s what we wanted to do.

‘And we all felt, as a programme, if it helps one person, or it can help one person feel validated, or one person turns and says “this happened to me”, then that would be a really amazing thing.’