In a dramatic end to last night’s explosive episode of Corriedale on ITV, David Platt (Jack P Shepherd) had a tonic-clonic seizure in hospital, where survivors of the minibus crash were being treated, with wife Shona (Julia Goulding) visibly distressed to see him unwell.
The hotly anticipated crossover between two of the nation’s favourite soaps, Coronation Street and Emmerdale, was action packed with injuries, explosions, arrests and pursuits in the dark forest, as well as a big health reveal.
Shona and David were part of the vehicle pile-up as passengers on the minibus. After the crash Shona, who is expecting a baby girl with David, said she couldn’t feel the baby move.
Later, in the hospital, her waters break and she goes into premature labour in the waiting room, leaving David running to look for help.
As he returns, he drops to the floor and has a tonic-clonic seizure, with medical staff coming to his aid and protecting his head. Shona is horrified by the events and is comforted by Charity Dingle (Emma Atkins).
David’s seizure following an evening of dramatic events is not unexpected. Stress is a known seizure trigger for some people with epilepsy. Epilepsy Action adds that seizures are especially likely to be triggered if a person has been stressed for a long time.
Seizures on screen
Chantal Spittles, PR and media manager at Epilepsy Action said: “It’s great to see epilepsy back on screen, particularly in one of soap’s most anticipated episodes. David Platt has lived with epilepsy for many years, and following the traumatic events of last night, it’s sadly unsurprising that he has experienced a breakthrough seizure.
“In 2025, we worked closely with the ITV team, to help them navigate epilepsy on screen through the character of Brody. This was a great experience, and an important step forward in achieving the representation that people with epilepsy deserve. We’re pleased to see this commitment continue through David’s character.
“As we wait to see the outcome of David’s seizure tonight, we hope the show will continue to explore his epilepsy in greater depth. Tonic-clonic seizures are most commonly depicted on television, and are the most widely recognised type of seizure. It’ll be interesting to see if the show explores any other avenues, including absence or focal seizures, as this is something we’ve been pushing for over the last few years.”
David’s epilepsy was diagnosed in 2010, after having a blackout while driving and knocking down his friend Graeme Proctor (Craig Gazey). Since then, his epilepsy has had a handful of mentions, and viewers have seen an on-screen seizure in 2015 while feeding the ducks in the park with his stepson Max.
Last year, a new character entered the soap, Brody Michaelis (Ryan Mulvey), who also has epilepsy and has had two seizures on screen.
Corriedale was called a “celebration of the soap genre” by ITV and aired ahead of the channel’s new soap schedule for 2026. There will now be a “soap power hour” between 8pm and 9pm with back-to-back 30-minute episodes of Emmerdale and Coronation Street, Monday-Friday.
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