Former Coronation Street legend Charles Lawson has stunned fans by revealing a worrying health scare, having been rushed to hospital after suffering two unexplained falls. Best known for portraying Jim McDonald on the ITV soap, Lawson shared his alarming update directly from A&E, sparking concern across the soap community.
Lawson, who captivated audiences for over a decade with his portrayal of the volatile and deeply complex Jim, opened up to fans via a candid video posted on social media platform X (formerly Twitter). The 64-year-old actor explained that what started as a routine physiotherapy session quickly turned serious, with his physiotherapist insisting he be sent straight to the emergency department for further evaluation.
“Hi folks,” Charles began in the video, his expression a mix of frustration and unease. “Went to physio this morning and she sent me straight to A&E, which I did. They examined me. I have an MRI scan and I’m sitting waiting for the results.”
He went on to explain that medical staff had decided to keep him in for additional tests, suggesting that something deeper may be at play: “They’ve whisked me back in for more examinations so it’s not going awfully well at the moment.” Displaying his signature dark humour, he added, “They put a wristband on me and all sorts of craic. I’ve fallen over twice, so something going wrong down there.”
Fans instantly flooded his comments with messages of support and well-wishes, hoping for a swift diagnosis and a speedy recovery. Many long-time Corrie viewers still remember Lawson’s powerhouse performances as Jim – a character known for his intense family drama, troubled past, and explosive relationships, particularly with wife Liz, played by Beverley Callard.
Lawson first joined Coronation Street in 1989 and became a central figure in Weatherfield for over a decade. During his time on the cobbles, he portrayed Jim McDonald through numerous dramatic storylines, from prison stints to family betrayals. He last appeared on the soap in 2018, in a controversial and disturbing twist where Jim returned claiming that he and Liz’s daughter Katie – believed to have died as a baby – was in fact alive. However, it was later revealed that the young woman was actually Jim’s much younger girlfriend and the two had concocted the cruel deception as part of an elaborate scam to con Liz out of money.
Away from his soap persona, Lawson has transitioned into commentary and punditry, often appearing on GB News to share his no-holds-barred opinions. Never one to shy away from controversy, Charles has voiced criticism over how his former show has evolved in recent years, lamenting the shift from “character-driven” plots to what he describes as “issue-driven” storytelling.
In a particularly pointed interview earlier this year, Lawson predicted a bleak future for Britain’s most beloved soaps, stating that he doesn’t believe Coronation Street – or EastEnders and Emmerdale – will survive the next decade. “I don’t think it’s going to have a 94th birthday because television is fundamentally different,” he said, suggesting the era of soaps commanding tens of millions of viewers is firmly in the past. “It is nothing like the 15 to 21 million we were getting. People dip in and out now. If the income is falling from advertising revenue, they are not going to hang around, are they? I don’t watch it.”
Lawson further elaborated on his view of the show’s direction, saying: “It’s a different animal now. It’s issue driven now as opposed to when I was there in the 90s, it was character driven. There’s a degree of wokery involved, there’s a degree of political correctness involved. And also, there are subjects that need to be touched upon. Whereas in my day, it was character driven.”
