Joe McIntyre (Coronation Street)
Encyclopedia
Joseph "Joe" McIntyre was a fictional character
in the UK television ITV
soap opera
, Coronation Street
. The character was portrayed by actor Reece Dinsdale
. Joe was introduced as the father of Tina McIntyre
, and made his first appearing onscreen during the episode that aired in the UK on May 26, 2008. After Dinsdale quit the show in 2009, the character was killed off in February 2010, when Joe tried to fake his own death in order to claim insurance money, but died in a boating accident when he was knocked overboard by the sail, and drowned in a lake.
and has co-starred in other comedy series such as Haggard
, the short series Bliss
, and more recently Born and Bred
, The Chase
, and Dalziel and Pascoe
.
It was revealed on July 5, 2009 that although the producers offered him a pay rise to keep his character with the show, Dinsdale has quit to avoid being a typecast actor.
Joe is introduced as the father of Tina McIntyre
in May 2008. He later reappears on 13 June 2008 where he meets Tina's boyfriend David Platt
. In August 2008, he begins a secret romance with Gail, David's mother. Joe also arranges a date for Tina and David in an attempt to reunite them after they split up, but fails. Once David and Tina have been reunited, he offers David a job fitting kitchens, much to the delight of Tina. Tina and David are less than happy when they discover that their parents are seeing each other, as they walk into No.8 only to discover Gail and Joe kissing.
and his uncle Len steal Joe's tools. Tina, David and Graeme Proctor
then destroy the Windasses kitchen and set it alight, though their plan backfires and Gary and Len tear out Gail's kitchen. Joe then goes to great expense to build her a new one, not telling her that the failure of his business has left him in ever-increasing debt. His plan for a perfect Christmas is ruined when Gail invites the Windasses over for Christmas Day. They give him a tool belt as a Christmas present, which reminds Joe of the tools that have been stolen from him. When Gary repeatedly makes moves on Tina, and Gary and David get into a brawl, Joe has enough. He begins screaming at the Windasses, telling them they are pathetic, and throws food at them. They leave the house humiliated. Joe then walks out. The next day, Gail and Joe make up, but Gail is shaken, as he has reminded her of some of the bad men from her past.
Joe is also having severe financial problems at this time due to a severe lack of work but hides the true extent of his woes from Gail. In January 2009, he accepts a job as a labourer with builder Bill Webster
but asks him to say that he is fitting kitchens for him. He soon moves in with Gail, not telling her the true extent of his financial problems or that he has been evicted from his flat. Gary begins to persistently pester and flirt with Tina, resulting in Joe warning him off, after he pushes his luck and asks Tina out on a date. After Joe has warned Gary off for a second time, Gary calls Len to help him break into the builders yard and steal copper piping. The following day, Joe is suspected of the theft by Bill and Jason Grimshaw
. Gary mocks Joe because of this, resulting in him lashing out at Gary, with Bill and Jason holding him back. David, who has witnessed Gary and Len driving away from the builders yard, reports them to the police.
Gary then begins to pester David, continuing to flirt with Tina, and mocking David about his past, this results in David throwing a punch at Gary, and Gary takes this as an opportunity to fight David, resulting in David suffering a broken nose and concussion. David is rushed to hospital whilst Gary is arrested. David then convinces Tina, who has witnessed the fight, to lie to the police and state that Gary threw the first punch. Len then locks himself and Tina in the kebab shop and threatens Tina to change her statement to avoid Gary being sent to prison for assault. Joe then warns Len not to intimidate Tina, stating that she is all he has left.
On 23 February 2009, Joe receives a phone call from someone in need of nineteen new kitchens for a new building development. Overjoyed at the news, he goes to the site where he is dismayed to find that the person is Len. He tells Joe that he will give him the lucrative job on the condition that he will persuade Tina to retract her statement about the fight. Joe is later stunned when Tina admits that she was lying about the incident but he vows to support her nonetheless. Later, under the mounting pressure of debts, Joe secretly agrees to the deal with Len.
In March 2009, after Gary is cleared of the assault charge, David stumbles upon Joe shaking hands with Len over a contract agreement. Tina is furious when she finds out and tells Gail that Joe has only moved in with her as he has been evicted from his flat. On the same night Tina reveals that he has suffered from depression in the past and Joe is horrified to discover that Tina had an abortion a year previously which Gail paid for. Gail ends their relationship and throws him out warning him never to return. When Joe comes to collect his belongings from Gail's she tells him that he can stay in Sarah's old room. When David comes back he is furious and throws Joe's things down the stairs. After Gail chooses Joe over David, he moves out and stays with his father Martin
.
Joe and Tina decide to rent a flat together, but as Joe is moving his things out of Gail's, he slips a disk in his back meaning that he cannot work or move out of Gail's much to her secret delight; the couple then reconcile. However, Joe continues to push himself too far trying to go back to work before he is ready and because of this, he collapses.
Following his back injury it becomes increasingly clear that Joe is becoming dependant on prescription drugs. After David deviously hides his pills Joe panics only for David to later 'discover' them in the pocket of Gail's dressing gown. By June 2009, Joe is becoming increasingly more dependent and trashes the kitchen when he cannot find the medication. In July 2009, Graeme Proctor
spots Joe's painkillers and Joe is interested to hear how there was a black market for them when Graeme was in the young offenders' institute. Later, a desperate Joe asks Graeme if he could obtain some painkillers for him until his back is better. Graeme agrees to speak to his contact, and as promised gets Joe the painkillers, but tells him it is a one-off favour. David later finds out about Joe's addiction and persuades Graeme to stop Joe's supply. David then tells Joe he will supply him drugs in exchange for a 'favour'. Much later David reveals this to be a deviously underhand attempt to force Joe to split up Jason and Tina.
Joe steals from Gail so he can pay Graeme to get him more painkillers. He steals £30 from her purse, but later makes it up with her. In a later episode he steals keys from Gail's bag to get into the medical centre in order to obtain painkillers but sets the alarm off and is arrested on suspicion of burglary. Joe is soon cured of his addiction, and he goes back to helping Tina and Jason with the flat and working with Jason.
Joe surprises Gail with a meal and champagne on the back of the boat, which is still parked on the drive of No.8. He then proposes to her, which she delightfully accepts and in the background fireworks are set off, however, David and Gail's mother Audrey
aren't happy. Gail asks her father Ted Page if he would give her away, which he delightedly accepts.
Joe is revealed to be in debt when a loan shark called Rick Neelan comes round to the house. Joe has to give up his van to pay up most of the debt. He then confesses to Gail about his problem, and Gail later suggests they sell up the house, pay his debts and use the rest of the money for a flat and the wedding. David doesn't like this and tells Audrey about it, who is angry at Gail. When Audrey can't get through to Gail, she later contacts her grandson Nick Tilsley
to speak some sense to Gail. However, when Nick meets Joe, he thinks Joe is an 'alright man' and they get along as Nick tells Gail he is pleased for them both. On 7 January 2010, Joe borrows money from Ted, telling him it is for a deposit for a flat. He then uses it to pay back Rick, the loan shark, and they both agree that they end their acquaintances.
On 8 January 2010, Joe marries Gail. She is given away by Ted, and the best man is Gail's son Nick. At the reception in the Rovers, Joe goes to the bathroom and bumps into Rick again. Rick tells Joe that he would now have to pay interest, £500 pounds for the next ten weeks, leading to at least £5,000 pounds. He also threatens Joe again and Joe becomes scared of what will happen to his daughter. Before Joe and Gail leave to go on their honeymoon, Joe tells Jason to look after Tina and watch her.
Soon after their wedding, Joe decides that the only way to escape his problems is to fake his own death, deciding to disappear in the Lake District, where they spent their honeymoon. Joe explains his plans to a horrified Gail, who tries to stop him by getting into the boat with him, knowing that he won't set sail with her in the boat, but he pushes her away and sets sail. Unfortunately, his plan goes wrong, and soon after, he comes into difficulties, losing his lifeboat in the process. At the last minute, Joe attempts to get the lifeboat back, but he slips into the water. In his final moments, he tries to swim back to the boat but cannot survive the freezing cold waters and drowns.
Joe stated earlier in the episode that he planned to emulate "that canoe bloke who faked his own death". This is a reference to John Darwin
, a British man who was famously jailed for trying to fake his own death for the insurance money by disappearing in a canoe out at sea.
Almost 2 weeks after his death, Joe's body is seen floating in the lake. A local woman, who is out walking her dog, discovers Joe's body at the edge of the lake, when her dog sniffs out his corpse.
On 22 February 2010, the police inform Gail that they have found a body at the lakes, and they believe that it is Joe's. David tells Tina that Joe is dead and she attacks him because she believes he is lying. Tina later apologises for accusing David of lying. Later, Tina and Gail identify Joe's body in the morgue. Tina is devastated to realise that it is the body of her father.
In a further twist of events Gail comes under suspicion for Joe's death as her forged signature is found on a life insurance policy that Joe had taken out prior to his death. She is later arrested and charged with Joe's murder. She is held on remand for a number of months until she is finally acquitted of murder in June 2010.
Dr Ash Kahn told The Sun newspaper: "Medication abuse can be very dangerous. Misuse of over-the-counter or prescription drugs can lead to dependence that is physical and mental."
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
in the UK television ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
, Coronation Street
Coronation Street
Coronation Street is a British soap opera set in Weatherfield, a fictional town in Greater Manchester based on Salford. Created by Tony Warren, Coronation Street was first broadcast on 9 December 1960...
. The character was portrayed by actor Reece Dinsdale
Reece Dinsdale
Reece Dinsdale is an English actor of stage, screen and television.-Acting career:He trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama from 1977 until 1980...
. Joe was introduced as the father of Tina McIntyre
Tina McIntyre
Tina McIntyre is a fictional character in the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street. Portrayed by actress Michelle Keegan, the character first appeared on screen during the episode airing on 7 January 2008...
, and made his first appearing onscreen during the episode that aired in the UK on May 26, 2008. After Dinsdale quit the show in 2009, the character was killed off in February 2010, when Joe tried to fake his own death in order to claim insurance money, but died in a boating accident when he was knocked overboard by the sail, and drowned in a lake.
Creation and development
Dinsdale was hired for the role following auditions. He is also known for playing Matthew Willows in Home to RoostHome to Roost
Home to Roost is a British television sitcom produced by Yorkshire Television in the 1980s. Written by Eric Chappell, it starred John Thaw as Henry Willows and Reece Dinsdale as his 18-year-old son Matthew....
and has co-starred in other comedy series such as Haggard
Haggard (TV series)
Haggard a 1990—1992 British comedy television series. "Haggard" is about the exploits of Squire Haggard, the Squire's 21-year-old son Roderick, and their servant Grunge...
, the short series Bliss
Bliss (TV series)
Bliss is a Canadian produced, half hour dramatic television series, produced by Montreal-based Galafilm and Toronto-based Back Alley Films, an anthology of women's erotica...
, and more recently Born and Bred
Born and Bred
Born and Bred is a light-hearted British drama series that aired on BBC One from 2002 to 2005. Created by Chris Chibnall and Nigel McCrery, Born and Breds cast was led by James Bolam and Michael French, who play a father and son who run a cottage hospital in Ormston, a fictional Lancashire village...
, The Chase
The Chase (TV series)
The Chase is a BBC drama series that first aired on 16 July 2006. The Chase centered around a family run veterinary practice.It was co-written by Gaynor Faye , the daughter of the show's creator, Kay Mellor...
, and Dalziel and Pascoe
Dalziel and Pascoe (BBC TV series)
Dalziel and Pascoe is a popular British television crime drama based on the Dalziel and Pascoe books by Reginald Hill, which was first broadcast in March 1996. It is set in Yorkshire, and is about two detectives...
.
It was revealed on July 5, 2009 that although the producers offered him a pay rise to keep his character with the show, Dinsdale has quit to avoid being a typecast actor.
Joe is introduced as the father of Tina McIntyre
Tina McIntyre
Tina McIntyre is a fictional character in the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street. Portrayed by actress Michelle Keegan, the character first appeared on screen during the episode airing on 7 January 2008...
in May 2008. He later reappears on 13 June 2008 where he meets Tina's boyfriend David Platt
David Platt (Coronation Street)
David Daniel Platt is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. The character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 26 December 1990 and is portrayed by actor Jack P...
. In August 2008, he begins a secret romance with Gail, David's mother. Joe also arranges a date for Tina and David in an attempt to reunite them after they split up, but fails. Once David and Tina have been reunited, he offers David a job fitting kitchens, much to the delight of Tina. Tina and David are less than happy when they discover that their parents are seeing each other, as they walk into No.8 only to discover Gail and Joe kissing.
2008–2010
Shortly afterwards, David steals money from the Windass family, who have refused to pay for a kitchen, which Joe has fitted. In revenge, the family's son GaryGary Windass
Gary Windass is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. Portrayed by actor Mikey North, the character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 14 November 2008.-Background:...
and his uncle Len steal Joe's tools. Tina, David and Graeme Proctor
Graeme Proctor
Graeme Proctor is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. Portrayed by actor Craig Gazey, the character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 18 April 2008....
then destroy the Windasses kitchen and set it alight, though their plan backfires and Gary and Len tear out Gail's kitchen. Joe then goes to great expense to build her a new one, not telling her that the failure of his business has left him in ever-increasing debt. His plan for a perfect Christmas is ruined when Gail invites the Windasses over for Christmas Day. They give him a tool belt as a Christmas present, which reminds Joe of the tools that have been stolen from him. When Gary repeatedly makes moves on Tina, and Gary and David get into a brawl, Joe has enough. He begins screaming at the Windasses, telling them they are pathetic, and throws food at them. They leave the house humiliated. Joe then walks out. The next day, Gail and Joe make up, but Gail is shaken, as he has reminded her of some of the bad men from her past.
Joe is also having severe financial problems at this time due to a severe lack of work but hides the true extent of his woes from Gail. In January 2009, he accepts a job as a labourer with builder Bill Webster
Bill Webster
William Geoffrey "Bill" Webster is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. Portrayed by actor Peter Armitage, the character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 6 February 1984. He remained in the show until 1985 when Armitage decided to leave,...
but asks him to say that he is fitting kitchens for him. He soon moves in with Gail, not telling her the true extent of his financial problems or that he has been evicted from his flat. Gary begins to persistently pester and flirt with Tina, resulting in Joe warning him off, after he pushes his luck and asks Tina out on a date. After Joe has warned Gary off for a second time, Gary calls Len to help him break into the builders yard and steal copper piping. The following day, Joe is suspected of the theft by Bill and Jason Grimshaw
Jason Grimshaw
Jason Grimshaw, is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. Portrayed by actor Ryan Thomas, the character first appeared during the episode airing on 25 December 2000, when he comes looking for mother Eileen at the Battersbys' home.Jason is very much the...
. Gary mocks Joe because of this, resulting in him lashing out at Gary, with Bill and Jason holding him back. David, who has witnessed Gary and Len driving away from the builders yard, reports them to the police.
Gary then begins to pester David, continuing to flirt with Tina, and mocking David about his past, this results in David throwing a punch at Gary, and Gary takes this as an opportunity to fight David, resulting in David suffering a broken nose and concussion. David is rushed to hospital whilst Gary is arrested. David then convinces Tina, who has witnessed the fight, to lie to the police and state that Gary threw the first punch. Len then locks himself and Tina in the kebab shop and threatens Tina to change her statement to avoid Gary being sent to prison for assault. Joe then warns Len not to intimidate Tina, stating that she is all he has left.
On 23 February 2009, Joe receives a phone call from someone in need of nineteen new kitchens for a new building development. Overjoyed at the news, he goes to the site where he is dismayed to find that the person is Len. He tells Joe that he will give him the lucrative job on the condition that he will persuade Tina to retract her statement about the fight. Joe is later stunned when Tina admits that she was lying about the incident but he vows to support her nonetheless. Later, under the mounting pressure of debts, Joe secretly agrees to the deal with Len.
In March 2009, after Gary is cleared of the assault charge, David stumbles upon Joe shaking hands with Len over a contract agreement. Tina is furious when she finds out and tells Gail that Joe has only moved in with her as he has been evicted from his flat. On the same night Tina reveals that he has suffered from depression in the past and Joe is horrified to discover that Tina had an abortion a year previously which Gail paid for. Gail ends their relationship and throws him out warning him never to return. When Joe comes to collect his belongings from Gail's she tells him that he can stay in Sarah's old room. When David comes back he is furious and throws Joe's things down the stairs. After Gail chooses Joe over David, he moves out and stays with his father Martin
Martin Platt
Martin Platt is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera, Coronation Street, portrayed by Sean Wilson.-Departure:Actor Sean Wilson was axed from Coronation Street when a major storyline conference decided the character of Martin had been "played out". At the time, it was said that...
.
Joe and Tina decide to rent a flat together, but as Joe is moving his things out of Gail's, he slips a disk in his back meaning that he cannot work or move out of Gail's much to her secret delight; the couple then reconcile. However, Joe continues to push himself too far trying to go back to work before he is ready and because of this, he collapses.
Following his back injury it becomes increasingly clear that Joe is becoming dependant on prescription drugs. After David deviously hides his pills Joe panics only for David to later 'discover' them in the pocket of Gail's dressing gown. By June 2009, Joe is becoming increasingly more dependent and trashes the kitchen when he cannot find the medication. In July 2009, Graeme Proctor
Graeme Proctor
Graeme Proctor is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. Portrayed by actor Craig Gazey, the character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 18 April 2008....
spots Joe's painkillers and Joe is interested to hear how there was a black market for them when Graeme was in the young offenders' institute. Later, a desperate Joe asks Graeme if he could obtain some painkillers for him until his back is better. Graeme agrees to speak to his contact, and as promised gets Joe the painkillers, but tells him it is a one-off favour. David later finds out about Joe's addiction and persuades Graeme to stop Joe's supply. David then tells Joe he will supply him drugs in exchange for a 'favour'. Much later David reveals this to be a deviously underhand attempt to force Joe to split up Jason and Tina.
Joe steals from Gail so he can pay Graeme to get him more painkillers. He steals £30 from her purse, but later makes it up with her. In a later episode he steals keys from Gail's bag to get into the medical centre in order to obtain painkillers but sets the alarm off and is arrested on suspicion of burglary. Joe is soon cured of his addiction, and he goes back to helping Tina and Jason with the flat and working with Jason.
Joe surprises Gail with a meal and champagne on the back of the boat, which is still parked on the drive of No.8. He then proposes to her, which she delightfully accepts and in the background fireworks are set off, however, David and Gail's mother Audrey
Audrey Roberts
Audrey Roberts is a long-standing fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. Portrayed by actress Sue Nicholls, the character first appeared during the episode aired on 16 April 1979....
aren't happy. Gail asks her father Ted Page if he would give her away, which he delightedly accepts.
Joe is revealed to be in debt when a loan shark called Rick Neelan comes round to the house. Joe has to give up his van to pay up most of the debt. He then confesses to Gail about his problem, and Gail later suggests they sell up the house, pay his debts and use the rest of the money for a flat and the wedding. David doesn't like this and tells Audrey about it, who is angry at Gail. When Audrey can't get through to Gail, she later contacts her grandson Nick Tilsley
Nick Tilsley
Nicholas Paul "Nick" Tilsley is a fictional character in the British soap opera Coronation Street. Originally known as "Nicky", he was the first-born child of Brian Tilsley and Gail Platt , and has been portrayed by three different actors. Warren Jackson from 1981 to 1996, then by Adam Rickitt...
to speak some sense to Gail. However, when Nick meets Joe, he thinks Joe is an 'alright man' and they get along as Nick tells Gail he is pleased for them both. On 7 January 2010, Joe borrows money from Ted, telling him it is for a deposit for a flat. He then uses it to pay back Rick, the loan shark, and they both agree that they end their acquaintances.
On 8 January 2010, Joe marries Gail. She is given away by Ted, and the best man is Gail's son Nick. At the reception in the Rovers, Joe goes to the bathroom and bumps into Rick again. Rick tells Joe that he would now have to pay interest, £500 pounds for the next ten weeks, leading to at least £5,000 pounds. He also threatens Joe again and Joe becomes scared of what will happen to his daughter. Before Joe and Gail leave to go on their honeymoon, Joe tells Jason to look after Tina and watch her.
Soon after their wedding, Joe decides that the only way to escape his problems is to fake his own death, deciding to disappear in the Lake District, where they spent their honeymoon. Joe explains his plans to a horrified Gail, who tries to stop him by getting into the boat with him, knowing that he won't set sail with her in the boat, but he pushes her away and sets sail. Unfortunately, his plan goes wrong, and soon after, he comes into difficulties, losing his lifeboat in the process. At the last minute, Joe attempts to get the lifeboat back, but he slips into the water. In his final moments, he tries to swim back to the boat but cannot survive the freezing cold waters and drowns.
Joe stated earlier in the episode that he planned to emulate "that canoe bloke who faked his own death". This is a reference to John Darwin
John Darwin disappearance case
The John Darwin disappearance case was an investigation into the faked death of British former teacher and prison officer John Darwin, who turned up alive in December 2007, five years after he was thought to have died in a canoeing accident....
, a British man who was famously jailed for trying to fake his own death for the insurance money by disappearing in a canoe out at sea.
Almost 2 weeks after his death, Joe's body is seen floating in the lake. A local woman, who is out walking her dog, discovers Joe's body at the edge of the lake, when her dog sniffs out his corpse.
On 22 February 2010, the police inform Gail that they have found a body at the lakes, and they believe that it is Joe's. David tells Tina that Joe is dead and she attacks him because she believes he is lying. Tina later apologises for accusing David of lying. Later, Tina and Gail identify Joe's body in the morgue. Tina is devastated to realise that it is the body of her father.
In a further twist of events Gail comes under suspicion for Joe's death as her forged signature is found on a life insurance policy that Joe had taken out prior to his death. She is later arrested and charged with Joe's murder. She is held on remand for a number of months until she is finally acquitted of murder in June 2010.
Reception
In August 2009, praise was given to Coronation Street producers by doctors for the soap's painkiller storyline when Joe became addicted. Experts at The Priory Group, which operates drug and alcohol treatment centres across the country, backed the programme's decision to tackle the issue on screen.Dr Ash Kahn told The Sun newspaper: "Medication abuse can be very dangerous. Misuse of over-the-counter or prescription drugs can lead to dependence that is physical and mental."