Will Reade was a journalist working for the Weatherfield Gazette. In June 2013 fireman Paul Kershaw attended a major fire in Thornton Street. Paul’s girlfriend Eileen Grimshaw was having great difficulties reconciling herself to accepting Paul’s dangerous job and was worried sick every time he was out on a call, even going so far as to accept a prescription of sleeping pills to help her get through the night. Paul tried to diminish the dangers and lied to Eileen that he wasn’t on the call for Thornton Street but the next day Will called round at 11 Coronation Street with Megan Kinsey and her son Paddy to reunite them with Paul for the paper, as he had saved Paddy’s life.
The story came out in front of shocked Eileen of how the downstairs was in flames and Paddy was trapped upstairs. Paul, seeing a child’s bike out the back, thought there might be someone inside. He went in there and pulled Paddy out as his mother screamed in hysterics at the front. Just seconds after Paul emerged, the floor collapsed and the six houses in the row were gutted in the inferno. Megan told Paul that the loss of her house was nothing compared to the possibility of losing Paddy and, tearfully, she told Eileen that she had a very special man in her life. Eileen realised how selfish her attitude towards Paul had been.