Tim Metcalfe

Timothy Osmond "Tim" Metcalfe is the biological father of Faye Windass and husband of Sally.

Tim abandoned Faye to her heroin-addicted mother Jenny Butler when Faye was two years old, later coming to regret the decision. He was given a second chance when Faye found him on the internet and arranged a meeting. His return caused problems between Faye and her adoptive mother Anna Windass, particularly when he moved into Coronation Street, but once the novelty wore off for Faye a healthy relationship emerged which worked for all parties concerned.

In 2013, Tim started dating Sally Webster, and they were married two years later. Despite vastly different attitudes to life, they have one of the happiest marriages in the street, with Tim even being best friends with Sally's ex-husband Kevin. Tim lives at 4 Coronation Street with Sally and runs his own window cleaning business, with Craig Tinker as apprentice.

1972-2012: Absent father
Timothy Metcalfe was born on 28th January 1972, the son of Geoff and Tess Metcalfe. Though brought up in England, Tim had strong ties to Wales, as his father lived there when Tim was an adult and his future partner Jenny Butler, mother to his daughter Faye, was from Newport, Gwent.

Tim didn't enjoy school and left with a poor grasp of reading and writing. His skills deteriorated further in the years he spent labouring on building sites, content to earn enough to get by with enough left over for a few pints with the lads. Before settling in the north, Tim spent a while living in London. In 1990, while pursuing a goth girl, he agreed to go out with her to Trafalgar Square for what he assumed was a date only to find himself participating in a march against the poll tax. He spent a night in a cell for his troubles.

In 2002, Tim was going steady with Jenny Butler and became a father to a baby girl, Faye, on 13th March of that year. By the time their daughter was two years old, Jenny had changed: once gorgeous, funny and a devoted mother, she had developed a drugs habit which Tim was powerless to stop, and became increasingly temperamental. When living with her became unbearable, Tim walked out on his partner and daughter, and lost all contact with them.

After Tim's departure, Jenny's behaviour worsened and Faye suffered years of neglect and abuse. In January 2011, Faye was taken into care and fostered by Anna and Eddie Windass of 6 Coronation Street, Weatherfield. The Windass' adopted Faye after Jenny died from a heroin overdose. By this point, Tim regretted abandoning Faye and was actively trying to trace her but, without her new surname, he had no luck.

2013: Reunion with Faye
In January 2013, Tim was contacted by ten-year-old Faye through the internet. Faye was curious about the father she'd never known, bearing no malice towards him for walking out on her, and arranged to meet up with him behind her adoptive parents' back. Upon seeing Faye in person, Tim hugged her and took her for a hot chocolate in a nearby cafe. Tim was instantly at ease with his daughter, which allowed them to make a connection despite Faye's shyness in his company.

When Anna saw Faye and Tim's e-mail exchange on Faye's laptop, she forced Faye to admit that she'd gone to see her biological father. At this point, Anna asked social services to intervene and block further meetings, but was informed by social worker Joanne Riggs that they could only do so if Faye was a risk from Tim. Social services carried out a risk assessment on Tim, and in the meantime, Faye continued to meet up with Tim in secret. Tim had no idea that Anna and her partner Owen Armstrong were against Faye seeing him until he was dropping Faye off at home and she admitted the truth when they were about to walk through the door. Facing Anna and Owen, Tim explained how he regretted giving up Faye, but worried about losing Faye to him, Anna was cold to him, and Owen openly hostile.

Determined to remain in Faye's life, Tim let social services investigate him and the risk assessment soon came back clean. After another clandestine meeting with Faye, Tim appealed to Anna's better nature, explaining that he didn't want to take her daughter away from her but that he was prepared to fight for visitation rights. When this failed, and after Owen smashed Faye's laptop, Tim contacted Joanne Riggs to warn social services that Faye may be at risk from Owen. Anna realised she'd have to compromise with Tim and offered him weekly visits with Faye.

In February, Tim was laid off from the building site where he worked and went after a labouring job in Kent, to Faye's dismay. At her recommendation, he applied for a labouring job with Jason Grimshaw instead and was taken on right away. Two months later, Dev Alahan let him the Corner Shop flat, despite Anna asking Dev not to rent it to him.

Thus far, Tim had stayed true to his word that he wouldn't go for custody but Faye continued to stir up a hornet's nest by hero worshipping her dad and being stroppy with Anna and Owen. When Tim told Faye why he and her mother had split up, Faye decided to move in with him. Almost as horrified as Anna by the idea, Tim explained to Faye that her home was with Anna. Faye thought that Anna had put Tim up to it, and when Anna dragged her home and barred her from seeing Tim, she had a tantrum and smashed the stereo. To get back at Anna, Faye told her headmaster Brian Packham that she was being abused at home. She came clean after one day but, tired of fighting Faye, Anna decided to let her live with Tim for a while to get it out of her system.

Tim was completely unprepared for the challenges of parenthood. Carrying on with his life as normal, Tim didn't cook regular meals, took Faye to the cinema on a school night, and left her in the flat with a DVD while he went out drinking with Jason. Faye's illusions about her dad were soon shattered but she was too scared to ask Anna to come home, even when Tim went to Newcastle to work for a few days and told her to square it up with Anna to stay at No.6. Unbeknown to Tim, Faye remained in the flat while he was away, pretending to everyone that he was still there. Meanwhile, Tim met a woman in Newcastle and considered moving there; his mind was made up when he returned to Weatherfield to harsh words from Anna and Owen, who had found out about Faye being "abandoned". After a heart-to-heart with Faye, Tim convinced his dejected daughter to move back to No.6, but he chickened out of telling her that he was also giving up the flat and relocating to Newcastle.

2013-2014: Enter Sally
While working his notice, Tim did some odd jobs for Sally Webster at 4 Coronation Street. She lent him a sympathetic ear regarding his recent problems, giving him the strength to tell Faye he was leaving. As expected, Faye took the news badly and started ignoring Tim.

Tim fancied Sally but assumed she wouldn't consider him a potential romantic partner due to her highly-strung nature. In fact, his feelings were reciprocated, with Tim bringing out a happier, more playful side to Sally. After a disastrous date with Neil, who she met on an internet chatroom, Sally was cheered up by Tim and a four-pack of lager, and they finally kissed. As Tim was due to leave for Newcastle, Sally suggested that they make the most of what time they had, and led him up to the bedroom. Guessing that Tim wanted to stay and just needed a nudge, Sally was miffed when he treated their night together as a one-night stand and carried on with his plans. Over farewell drinks at the Rovers, Sally talked Tim into remaining and they became a proper couple, while Faye forgave Tim when she heard the news.

Sally and Tim's relationship got off to a bumpy start; Tim often felt suffocated by Sally and stood her up on Stella Price and Karl Munro's wedding day. When Sally planned a weekend away in Paris with him, Tim pretended to be working away in Birmingham and enlisted Jason's help to corroborate the lie and deliver food to the flat while he was ensconced there. Tim nearly gave the game away when Sally saw his curtains twitching, but on his "return" he managed to explain this by saying he'd given Dev a key. After letting Sally down again by standing her up to meet a mate, he decided to do the right thing by her - by dumping her. However, when he went to do the deed, he found Sally apologetic over her clingyness and they agreed to give it another go.

In December, Tim started looking for another job as Jason wasn't giving him enough work. He found his calling when Sally got him to clean No.4's windows and Steve McDonald and Emily Bishop, upon seeing him hard at work, paid him to do the Rovers and No.3 as well. When Tim suggested that Jason expand his joinery business, only for Jason to baulk at the idea, Tim tended his resignation and became a window cleaner. For his new business, Tim bought a beaten up van, which on its first outing broke down near Peter Barlow and Carla Connor's wedding venue, blocking the road. At the wedding, Tim and Sally took over the bridal suite and, after knocking back a few drinks, Tim suggested that he move in with Sally. After sobering up, Tim reaffirmed the offer to Sally and she accepted.

Tim had won over Sally but the rest of the Webster clan proved tougher nuts to crack. Sophie thought Sally was wasting her time with Tim, but his support of her relationship with Maddie Heath changed her mind. Kevin's return from Germany in March 2014 caused Tim to worry, as Kevin and Sally had been married twice and were still close. They met when Kevin entered No.4 only to see Tim crouching by the TV and making a grab for him, mistaking him for a burglar. Kevin returned to Germany without giving his approval of Tim and Sally, but, regretting his standoffish behaviour, immediately offered it when he returned to Weatherfield permanently in September that year.

In June, Tim bought Faye a watch from a jewellers and asked Sally for her opinion on it over lunch at Nick's Bistro. Having been expecting him to propose due to him being seen coming out of the jewellers by Maddie, Sally was relieved when he showed her the watch, but when he asked what her answer would have been, they ended up getting engaged anyway, each thinking that the other wanted it. As the unhappy couple announced their engagement, Tim was railroaded by Julie Carp into planning a party at the Rovers where he could surprise Sally with a more romantic proposal. Having realised the misunderstanding, Tim surprised the neighbours by getting down on one knee and asked Sally not to marry him - an invitation she happily accepted.

2014 to present: Illiteracy, Miley and marriage
In September, Maddie cottoned onto the fact that Tim couldn't read and offered to help him. Spurning her offer, Tim tried to prove his literacy skills by making up flyers for his window cleaning business, only for an unfortunate typo to go uncorrected: “Dirty widows? Ring this number – satisfaction guaranteed”. Maddie managed to retrieve most of the flyers already distributed but he rejected her suggestion of going to an adult reading class.

A couple of months later, Tim agreed to help out at a school Christmas auction, only to find out he would be expected to read out from a script. When Anna caught him being ratty with Faye, he confessed to being illiterate. Feeling less patronised than with Maddie, Tim took up Anna's offer of teaching him. However, as he was too embarrassed to tell Sally the truth, he had to invent cover stories when he went over to No.6 for lessons. In their first session, to Anna's anger, Tim made minimal effort, joking around and giving up almost straight-away. His tutelage was barely underway when Sally realised he was secretly visiting Anna and assumed they were having an affair - suspicions which seemed to be confirmed when she saw Tim giving Anna flowers. Bursting in on them mid-lesson, Sally accused Tim of infidelity before fleeing the house in tears, giving neither of them a chance to explain. She then started lobbing Tim's things out of their bedroom window, shouting abuse at him and Anna. In desperation, Tim shouted the innocent truth up to Sally. After apologising for the spectacle, Sally offered to take over the lessons, but Tim found her even more patronising than Maddie and ultimately, in February 2015, joined an adult literacy class.

In January 2015, Tim was trapped inside No.5 when Craig Tinker double locked the doors, forgetting that he was cleaning the interior windows. Craig returned and let him out, but not before Tim had been scared out of his wits due to Darryl the rat being out of his cage. After making it up to Tim by helping him catch up with his round, Craig persuaded him to take him on as an apprentice window cleaner.

Two months later, Faye gave birth to a baby daughter, who she named Miley. Faye had been impregnated at twelve years old by a fellow classmate, Jackson Hodge, and kept her pregnancy secret from her family until she went into labour. Although Faye felt no bond with Miley, Tim was thrilled to be a grandfather and swore to do everything he could by her. Over time, Faye's feelings didn't change and at Miley's christening in June, she walked out of the service and told Tim that she didn't want to be a mother. Respecting her choice, Tim called off the christening, and agreed to put Greig and Josie Hodge's offer to take over responsibility for Miley to Faye. When Faye accepted the offer, Tim carried out her wishes, making no attempt to talk her round despite his personal feelings on the matter. In August, the Hodges emigrated to Canada with Miley. Tim blamed himself for giving in to the family so easily but he dropped the subject when Faye stated that Miley would have a better life there.

In July, spurred on by feelings of insecurity when Sally started gushing about "ambitious" Kevin buying a new garage, Tim decided to propose to Sally for real. Awaiting Sally with a bouquet of flowers outside Underworld, Tim had Faye and Craig play music - Greatest Day by Take That - to lure the workforce outside, whereupon he asked Sally to marry him. Because of the loud music, Sally couldn't hear him, so Faye and Craig turned off the stereo just as Tim shouted out another proposal at the top of his lungs. This time, Sally was eager to marry and immediately said yes.

Tim's feelings of inadequacy remained, but he felt no animosity towards Kevin; by now, they had become firm friends and Kevin agreed to be Tim's best man at the wedding. The wedding was booked for 5th October at Nick's Bistro. Two weeks before the ceremony, Anna drunkenly revealed in the Rovers that Sally had kissed Kevin. After confirming the tale, Tim made it up with Kevin with a pint before bitterly announcing that the wedding was off. As Sally's act happened in a moment of madness, friends and family tried to convince Tim to forgive her, with Craig lending Sally a hand by painting a picture of her and a message to Tim on two sheets to hang across the Street. Underneath the banners, Sally begged Tim for forgiveness and went down on one knee, but Tim held firm. Undeterred, Sally told him that she would be waiting for him at the bistro. Making a final attempt to bring Tim to his senses on his wedding day, Kevin and Craig convinced him to get off his high horse and marry Sally. Aside from Tim's (extremely) late arrival, the ceremony went ahead without a hitch. As a wedding present, Sally gave Tim a new van for his business, with "Metcalfe and son" emblazoned on the side (the "and son" added to make it look more professional).

Personality
In 2013, after some trouble with Faye, Tim decided to move away from Weatherfield and start afresh in Newcastle, continuing a pattern of giving up at the first hurdle which had defined his life. He left school with poor reading and writing skills, and as he was too proud to admit to being illiterate, he could only go for unskilled labouring jobs. When his partner Jenny Butler became addicted to heroin, Tim walked out on her and two-year-old Faye to start afresh, only making the effort to get in touch with Faye once Jenny had passed away.

Even after deciding to stand by Faye, endure Sally Webster's bossiness and pretentiousness, and make a go of running his own window cleaning business (having had enough of being Jason Grimshaw's lackey), Tim would still normally choose the path of least resistance, applying the minimum amount of effort required to grant himself a quiet life free from bother.

Having been on his own for years, Tim was laid-back, independent and set in his ways. He continued to do as he pleased when Faye came to stay, providing his daughter with little stability. However, in his favour he was confident, trustworthy, open-minded, and this together with his pragmatic, common sense approach to life made him a good listener and friend.

Traits
Tim's favourite biscuits were lemon puffs.

Faye Windass
Tim was absent from daughter Faye's life for eight years, missing out on her early childhood. When Faye got in touch with him online, Tim proceeded at a pace she dictated, enjoying the moment and putting no pressure on her to see more of him. However, when she expressed a desire to move in with him, Tim supported Anna Windass in keeping her at 6 Coronation Street; despite wanting Faye in his life, Tim wasn't up to the challenge of being a full-time dad and he didn't make much effort to alter his lifestyle when Faye did come to stay.

Tim maintained a close relationship with his daughter, showing her compassion and understanding in times of difficulty instead of laying down the law. When Faye became friends with the bullying Grace Piper, Faye was convinced by her peer to drive a wedge between Tim and Sally Webster to show Tim that Faye was more important to him. Having invited themselves over to No.4 while Sally went to the shops, the girls rang Tim and pretended that there was someone trying to break in, causing Tim to rush back and argue with Sally for leaving them. Faye's friendship with Grace ended a few weeks later when Grace blamed Faye for bullying Simon Barlow.

In March 2015, Tim noticed that Faye was seeing a lot of his window cleaning apprentice Craig Tinker and, as Craig was three years older than Faye, immediately questioned the lad on what they'd been up to. Having been helping Faye cope with her pregnancy, Craig covered, telling Tim and Sally that she was giving him advice on asking out a girl at school. After granddaughter Miley was born, Tim swore to do everything he could by her, and built a chest of drawers for the baby things. He was deeply saddened when Faye rejected Miley and she was taken by the baby's father's parents, as it reminded him of losing Faye.

Anna Windass
As Faye's mother by adoption, Anna Windass feared losing Faye to Tim and tried to expel him from her daughter's life. Even when Tim made it clear that he didn't want Faye living with him, Anna resented the fact that he was Faye's hero and she and Owen Armstrong were seen as the bad guys. In March 2013, Faye tried to matchmake Tim and Anna, seeing it as the perfect solution to their problems; with her school play coming up, she pretended that tickets were rationed to two per family, knowing that Owen would be the one to miss out. After discovering from headmaster Brian Packham that Faye could have gotten more tickets, Anna made her apologise to Owen.

For Faye's sake, Anna learned to tolerate Tim, aiding him with his efforts to be a good dad despite being on opposing sides. When Anna saw that Tim was feeling the pinch after taking in Faye, she brought him leftover stew from Roy's Rolls and paid for Faye's school adventure weekend, against Owen's orders.

As Sally's next-door neighbour, Anna liked nothing better than winding up her highly-strung acquaintance. In November 2014, after discovering that Tim secretly couldn't read, Anna offered to give him lessons. The inaugural session was cancelled when, to get Sally to swallow his alibi for being out of the house, he turned up at Underworld with flowers. Sally then surprised him with a romantic meal and wore a sexy dress, and an evening of passion followed with Tim sneaking out to No.6 for a minute to tell Anna the lesson was off. Anna felt messed about but eventually got Tim to stick at it. When Sally saw Tim giving Anna flowers, she thought they were having an affair and confronted them. Anna also nearly caused Tim and Sally to split up when she got drunk and spilled the beans on an illicit kiss between Sally and Kevin Webster. Tim was also the first person to find out about Anna and Kevin's relationship when he spotted them kissing when coming out of the chip shop, and agreed to keep it a secret from Sally.

Sally Webster
Tim first exchanged more than pleasantries with Sally Webster in July 2013 when he did some work at 4 Coronation Street while working his notice before moving to Newcastle. Sally got to know Tim and convinced him not to run away from being a dad. Tim wasn't Sally's type but, her ego bruised after some bad online dating experiences, a vulnerable Sally got caught up in the moment and responded to a kiss from Tim by inviting him into her bed.

In the cold light of day, Sally had no regrets about sleeping with Tim, and they began a relationship. On the surface, they seemed an unlikely couple; unsophisticated Tim liked an easy life, which he would never get with pretentious and pushy Sally. However, Sally's snobbishness was mostly for the neighbours' benefit - she had always led with her heart when it came to men. Tim was the more hesitant of the two to commit; whenever he felt Sally encroach on his freedom, he would back off, such as when he stood her up rather than go to Stella Price and Karl Munro's wedding with her a few weeks into their relationship.

Aside from the odd occasion where Sally pushed him towards a new job or areas for his window cleaning round, Tim's fears about Sally's bossiness were unfounded, and theirs was a relationship where boundaries were respected. Besides, if necessary Sally could spin Tim's profession to sound more glamorous, with her once referring to him as a "window enhancement executive". As a genuine, plain-talking man, Tim didn't play ball with Sally's delusions of grandeur, and his complete lack of pretension often knocked her off her perch. In May 2014, Sally was horrified when Tim cooked for her but used instant potato mash, worried that the neighbours would see the packet. In August 2013, he helped Sally plan her "garden party", only to anger her by inviting people who would lower the tone such as Beth Tinker. In December 2015, he got Sally gardening tools as a Christmas present, after doing all of his shopping on Christmas Eve.

In January 2014, when Sophie Webster stole back Sally's watch which had been pinched by Maddie Heath, Maddie let herself into No.4 and took it back, catching Tim napping and thumping him to subdue him. To avoid being a laughing stock, Tim told the police that the attacker was a six-foot-tall man. After finding out the truth, Sophie teased Tim by suggesting to Sally that he told his story to the Gazette - an idea Sally loved. Fortunately, Tim managed to talk his way out of it. Tim soon realised that Sophie fancied Maddie, and supported their relationship despite Sally's hostility towards Maddie. Annoyed at the way Sally treated her, Tim decided that he and Sally weren't a good match and briefly left her over it.

Kevin Webster
Tim shared many traits with Sally's ex-husband of many years, Kevin Webster. Both were self-employed, uncomplicated men who enjoyed football and a quiet pint. With Kevin in Germany during Tim's first year in Weatherfield, Tim heard all about him from Sally, Sophie and Kevin's friends, and worried that he and Sally still held a candle for each other. He didn't, but he was still protective of Sally and when he returned to Weatherfield he asked the neighbours what they thought of Tim to make sure that Sally hadn't fallen for another wrong 'un. When he came back from Germany later in 2014, Kevin was less suspicious of Tim and told Sophie that he was genuinely happy for Tim and Sally.

A natural friendship soon arose. In December 2014, when Kevin bought a red leather, lip-shaped sofa from Robin Mellor for £100, only to discover that it wouldn't fit through his front door, Tim took it off his hands, swapping it with the one in No.4. Sally was appalled by it until she learned that it was by Lacourt and from their exclusive "Manhattan" range, worth £2,500. Shortly thereafter, Robin's ex-wife Diane Mellor turned up looking for the sofa, which had Robin had sold out of spite in a bitter divorce. As Tim wouldn't return the sofa, Kevin told Diane that it had been bought by a random punter in the Rovers called "Barney". She insisted on going to find Barney and Kevin, smitten with her, went along with it. On a date, they were joined by Tim and Sally, who was forced to join in the deception or lose the sofa. Owen Armstrong let the cat out of the bag about the Websters' new sofa, causing Diane to take the furniture back. Under orders from Sally to get the old sofa back before Christmas, Tim reached an agreement with Kevin - which Sally discovered on Boxing Day (with dinner guests due) was just a loan for Christmas Day.

Kevin had slightly more get-up-and-go than Tim and his years of experience running Websters' Auto Centre made him a better businessman - qualities which Sally admired. After hearing Sally heap praise on her ex-husband, Tim felt insecure and decided to sign up a whole new housing estate to his round, but his new sales pitch which Sally and Sophie thought was pervy only got him four houses out of forty. Trying to help out his mate, Kevin put in a good word for him with Redferns, a cat showroom in Manchester, and was annoyed when Tim didn't go to a meeting which was set up - instead he had poured his heart out to Anna Windass. When Sally dragged him home from the Rovers, he reminded her that Kevin ran off with another woman, which he would never do.

Later in 2015, Tim planned Kevin's surprise 50th birthday party. Kevin was thrilled with the surprise, but less so with the hideous bracelet which Tim bought him as a present. At the party, Tim overheard Kevin telling people he didn't like the bracelet, which hurt his feelings.

Hobbies and interests
Tim liked to enjoy his free time, and going out drinking with mates was his main past-time. Some of his pursuits suggested that he was a man-child at heart; in 2014, he and Kevin were two hours later for Christmas dinner after spending the day playing on Jack Webster's new Scalextric. They treated the matter very seriously and had a rematch six months later. In his one foray into the artistic world, he was cajoled into going to Cathy Matthews's art class at Jamila House community centre. Having no real interest in the subject, Tim ended up having a peanut catching contest with Craig Tinker in their tutor's absence.

Tim was a football fan, specifically of Weatherfield County FC. In 2014, he wore the strip to Hayley Cropper's funeral as she'd asked the mourners to wear bright colours.

At Kirk Sutherland and Beth Tinker's 1980s-themed wedding in January 2015, Sally and Tim dressed up as pop duo Dollar. They ended up missing the ceremony while they christened their new designer sofa.

Creation and casting
Producer Phil Collinson announced on 9th August 2012 that Faye Windass's then-unnamed father would be making an appearance. He was originally intended to create difficulties for Faye's adoptive mother Anna Windass. Collinson: "We know that Faye's mother is dead, but there's a father out there somewhere and he's going to come along and challenge things for Anna."

Joe Duttine's casting was announced on 13th January 2013, just eight days before he made his on-screen debut with Episode 8045 on 21st January. Tim was Duttine's second role in Coronation Street, after detective Max Carr in 2010. Following his introduction, The Sun published an article carrying complaints from viewers on Twitter who remembered Duttine from his previous role, despite the fact that it is not uncommon for guest actors to return as main characters, as illustrated here. A Coronation Street spokesman stated: "Joe is a talented actor who brings something completely different to the role of Tim Metcalfe than he did to his previous role." Duttine's initial contract was for three months.

Relationship with Sally Webster
Introduced as a shady character, Tim was quickly established as a deadbeat but well-meaning father to Faye, and his thorny relationship with Anna and Owen Armstrong softened.

In July 2013, Tim was paired romantically with Sally Webster and his storylines became more comedic, with much of the humour coming from Tim's fear of commitment. Duttine played Tim as a man guarding his independence: "Sally's really nice and he definitely does like her. I think he's hanging onto his eternal youth a little bit – he's still scared of growing up." . Duttine was pleased that Tim stayed the same character, believing that the clash of personalities made the pairing work: "I think if she does change him and make him into what she wants him to be, you kind of lose the story and you lose the conflict between the two characters. It's more interesting if there's a little bit of a clash." . However, he noted a move away from setting Tim up as a potential villain: "I was only here for three months and it felt like I was going to be the new bad guy and then they put Tim with Sally and his characteristics changed so they started writing for him differently."

Upon Michael Le Vell's return to the programme after a break in 2014, writers decided to avoid the obvious route of setting up a love triangle between Tim, Sally and Kevin Webster and instead made Tim and Kevin the best of friends. Producer Stuart Blackburn believed that, for Kevin and Sally, it was time to move on: "Kevin has figured out now that Tim and Sally are for real. If there is going to be any type of affair, it's more likely to be Tim and Kevin heading off for a pint behind Sally's back!" . Duttine supported the decision to make Tim and Kevin friends: "I think it would've been a bit obvious to make Tim and Kev enemies, 'cos they've got no history, why should they fall out? They've got something in common, they've dealt with it, and now they're friends."

Tim and Sally became engaged in July 2015 and were married two months later. In September's live episode made to celebrate ITV's 60th anniversary, which aired two weeks before the wedding, a drunken Anna Windass told Tim that Sally had recently kissed Kevin. Despite the subject matter, according to Michael Le Vell the storyline was intended to "inject a little bit of humour" into the live episode. Duttine approved of the decision not to have Tim and Kevin settle their differences with a punch-up: "I don't really want to see Tim become aggressive or become a player either. I just think that he's a decent bloke who likes his creature comforts and a simple life.

Abandoned storyline
In May 2014, the Manchester Evening News reported that producers were casting for a disabled actor in his 40s to play a "cheeky chappy". Stuart Blackburn revealed in an interview that the character would be called Howie and would be a cousin of Tim: "[Howie] will be providing much more fun for the Websters. In the past, Tim's relationship with Howie has been incredibly fragile. They never see eye to eye, and Howie loves winding up Tim." Blackburn stated in the interview that they were holding final auditions for Howie, with the expectation that he would appear in early 2015. However, the character was dropped soon afterwards.

Reception
Tim has proved a popular addition to cast since his arrival in 2013, with most acclaim aimed at his relationship with Sally. David Brown of the Radio Times praised the pairing, commenting: "Tim and Sally have been comedy gold since they got together", while Dan Martin of The Guardian went one further, saying: "If they can play the serious emotional stuff as well as they have done the comedy, they’ll surely seal their place in the Corrie Couples Hall of Fame".

Joe Duttine and Sally Dynevor won the Best On-Screen Partnership award at the 2015 British Soap Awards. They were nominated for the same award at the Inside Soap Wards of the same year, at which Duttine was awarded Funniest Male.

Tim's 2014 illiteracy storyline was also given kudos, with James Brinsford of the Metro praising the programme for highlighting the issue. Describing the storyline as "commendable", Brinsford cited a statement by The Literacy Trust to the effect that, while less than one percent of adults in England were completely illiterate, 16 percent (or 5.2 million adults) could be described as "functionally illiterate".

First and last lines
"Faye? Sorry I'm late." (First line)