Coronation Street has revealed details of a sinister cover-up which has seen Gary Windass be hospitalised.

The figure mysteriously vanished earlier this month after storming out of his home following an argument with his wife Maria Connor, with the pair slowly being torn apart by the scheming Lou Michaelis.

Despite sharing that he was leaving Weatherfield to stay with his mother, Gary hadn’t been heard from since his impromptu departure. After he fails to return to the cobbled streets for Liam’s birthday, Maria begins to panic.

Unbeknownst to her, Gary is actually fighting for his life after being brutally beaten by an unknown assailant, with Friday’s (27 June) episode showing him lying unconscious in a hospital bed.

With her worries growing, Maria officially reports Gary as a missing person, with police officer Kit Green sharing that an unidentified patient had been placed into a coma. Despite her suspicions, he assures her that the victim isn’t Gary.

It eventually becomes apparent that the attacker has gone to great lengths to hide Gary’s condition, even going as far to change his name and fraudulently claim to be the character’s next of kin.

As Gary remains in a critical condition while the investigation of his disappearance continues, upcoming scenes on the ITV soap will gradually peel away the events that led to his hospitalisation, uncovering several secrets along the way.

“Maria and Gary are going through a rough patch at the minute,” said Samia Longchambon, who portrays Maria. “Initially she’s upset that he’s left, but [she] doesn’t think too much [of] it. As soon as Gary misses Liam’s birthday, she has a gut feeling that something isn’t right.

“[She] fears something awful might have happened to him. Maria’s mind is spiralling, but she doesn’t stop for a second to think who actually attacked Gary – she’s aware he has a lot of enemies from over the years who could have potentially wanted to take revenge on him.”