This week’s Emmerdale revealed the plot twist we all suspected was coming – Aaron Dingle is innocent of murdering Anthony. The soap led us to believe that Aaron killed Anthony in a fit of rage. But it was really Ruby who suffocated the old man as he lay on the floor.
Caleb then helped cover up the crime. Together with Anthony and John, the foursome then agreed to keep silent for everyone’s sake.
From faked deaths to real ones, surprise returns and cover-ups, this is just the latest plot twist in a soap that’s had more than their fair share over the years. Join us as we look back at some of Emmerdale’s most memorable plot twists.
1. Kim Tate was alive in the ultimate Emmerdale plot twist
In one of the most infamous plot twists in soap history, Kim Tate was revealed to be alive after faking her death in 1997. Believed dead after apparently being found so at the wheel of her car, Kim led both husband Frank and the soap’s viewers to believe she’d died. Really, though, she’d jetted off on a jolly to the Caribbean.
The truth came out months later, when Kim returned to haunt Frank – revealing that it was a lookalike he’d wrongly identified as his dead wife. The shock proved too much for Frank, whose heart gave out while Kim looked on with satisfaction. Ours too.
2. The death of Viv and Terry
Few could have foreseen fan-favourites Terry Woods and Viv Hope dying in a brutal twist on their story, but that was how the infamous Post Office fire of 2011 played out.
After falling asleep with a bottle of wine inside her, Viv dozed off inside the Post Office, oblivious to the fire starting around her. Terry rushed inside to rescue Viv, only to die with her in the ensuing explosion. Talk about going out with a bang.
3. Charity’s return
In 2009, Debbie began dating an engaged man named Michael Conway. Hoping that he would leave his fianc̩e for her, Debbie decided to crash the wedding Рand was shocked to discover that the bride was none other than her own mum, Charity.
4. The death of Holly Barton was the most shocking ever Emmerdale plot twist
One of the best-kept secrets in soap history, the demise of Holly Barton truly came out of the blue. The day began like any other, and as Moira entered the bedroom to check up on her daughter, she was shocked to find Holly dead – having died of an overdose. Prior to this, the soap had given no indication that Holly had succumbed to her addiction again.
Holly surprised us again last year, returning in a dream sequence as Moira underwent life-saving brain surgery.
5. Cameron killed Carl King
Nasty piece of work Carl King was killed after making an enemy of half the village. Blackmailing Chas after learning she’d been having an affair with Cameron Murray, he grew obsessed with getting his ex back.
After being spurned yet again after she married Dan Spencer, Carl confessed that he killed his father for her – and then attempted to rape her. She fought him off with a brick, before fleeing.
However, Chas ultimately wasn’t the one who finished Carl off. No, that was Cameron, who found Carl in his state and, after arguing, hit him a second (and final) time with the same brick.
6. Rebecca’s not dead… oh, yes she is
Poor Rebecca didn’t have an easy time of it in her time on Emmerdale, first suffering a brain injury in a terrible car crash, and then being held hostage by Lachlan White and his accomplice, demented nurse Mrs. Sykes.
Rebecca was thought dead until she managed to escape – reuniting with her friends and son Seb at her own graveside. She and Ross left the village in 2018 – only for her to die off-screen during a routine operation. Poor Rebecca never could catch a break.
7. Meena was a serial killer
In 2021, nurse Meena Jutla shocked audiences by killing Doctor Liam’s daughter, Leanna Cavanagh. However, neither viewers nor the cast were prepared for the truth behind the situation. Innocent-faced Meena was a serial killer.
Having been brought on with the story in mind, star Paige Sandhu kept the storyline a secret from her fellow cast members – revealing how shocked they were when they discovered that Meena was a secret serial killer.
Paige prepared to play a psychopath by watching Taxi Driver, American Psycho and Killer Women with Piers Morgan (whether she took inspiration from the killer women or Piers Morgan to get inside the mind of a soulless monster is unclear).
8. Kyle shot Al Chapman
When someone shot resident love rat Al Chapman dead, Cain was facing a stretch behind bars. While it was true that Cain had brought the gun in the first place, he wasn’t the one who pulled the trigger.
Instead, the soap revealed that it had been little Kyle who killed Al. Thankfully, Cain managed to clear his name, and the whole thing was swept under the rug in the months which followed.
9. Rishi took a tumble in a tragic Emmerdale plot twist
After learning that his biological father – well, wasn’t – Jai took the frustration out on the man who’d brought him up. So bad was their feud, that he even forbade the old man from coming to his wedding, leaving Rishi heartbroken.
Jai relented, and as the big day beckoned, the family tried to reach Rishi. Ultimately, he never made it, which was when the soap shared the terrible news – Rishi was dead, having taken a fall (or as it happened, a push) down the stairs.
10. Joe Tate’s alive… for now
He was thought dead after seemingly being killed by Cain Dingle. However, Joe had survived – with father figure and mentor Graham helping him to fake his own death. A shock twist revealed, months later, that Joe had survived his run-in with Cain and was now living abroad.
Joe has since returned for good. But, if his poor health is anything to go by, who’s to say for how long.
11. Caleb the secret Tate
Caleb Miligan arrived in the village in a shroud of mystery, introduced as Cain Dingle’s long-lost brother. But it was another dales dynasty Caleb had it out for – and the soap revealed that he was none other than the illegitimate son of Kim’s ex, Frank Tate.
In a series of plot twists, viewers learned that Caleb had a son of his own – Nicky Miligan – and it was all part of Caleb’s grand scheme to bring Kim down.
12. It was the horse who done it
When Lydia Dingle’s rapist, Craig, was found dead in a field, there was no shortage of potential murderers. Husband Sam and brother-in-law Cain were the usual suspects, but any Dingle could (and would!) realistically have done it.
The truth was far stranger than that – and it was revealed that Craig died after being kicked in the head by Kim Tate’s horse.
13. Cain slept with Ruby in the worst ever Emmerdale plot twist
Not all plot twists are welcome ones. And, as Moira lay in hospital undergoing treatment for her brain tumour, Cain cheated on his wife – with his own sister-in-law.
Fans were left horrified by Cain and Ruby’s fling, and the soap has done little to convince us that it was a good idea in the months following.
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