Belle Dingle in Emmerdale: Killer, mental health crisis and domestic violence victim
Eden Taylor-Draper has starred as Belle since 2005
inkerbelle Lisa ‘Belle’ Dingle is a member of the iconic Dingle family in Emmerdale.
Poor Belle was a promising businesswoman and wedding planner at Take A Vow until her abusive marriage to Tom King derailed her plan.
Now she’s lost her beloved dad, Zak, is struggling to cope with the fallout of her marriage, and is generally finding it hard to get through every day.
So what’s Belle all about?
Who is Belle Dingle in Emmerdale?
Belle was the youngest daughter of Zak Dingle and the only child of his late wife, Lisa Dingle. She has six half-siblings – Nathan, the late Ben and Butch, Sam, Cain and Tina Dingle, who’s just shown up in the village for the first time in almost 30 years.
Belle was born and raised in Wishing Well Cottage and as the youngest of her brothers and sister was doted on by the rest of the Dingle family. She made her first appearance on Christmas Day 1998 and viewers have watched the character grow up on screen.
Belle is a smart and educated cookie, but very much a Dingle at heart.
The part was originally played by twins Emily and James Mather. James stopped appearing in 2000 and Emily in 2005 when Eden Taylor-Draper took over the role.
Belle’s journey has been nothing short of dramatic. Her storylines have included a surviving a near-fatal fall down a mineshaft, accidentally killing her best friend, an affair with a married man, faking a pregnancy and a battle with schizophrenia.
In February 2024, Belle married her ex-boyfriend and village vet, Thomas King. The pair originally dated as teenagers and reconnected when Tom returned to the village after several years living abroad.
Sadly, married life has not got off to a happy start for Belle, who has fallen victim to her husband’s coercive control.
Belle’s dramatic arrival
Belle’s arrival was nothing short of memorable. She was born in the pigsty of Wishing Well Cottage on December 25, 1998 – and her mum, Lisa Dingle had no idea she was pregnant.
Local vet Paddy Kirk delivered Belle into the world – and Zak fainted in shock to find out he was a dad again for the seventh time.
Keeping in the Dingle tradition for unusual monikers, Lisa and Zak named their little Christmas miracle Tinkerbelle, Belle for short.
Zak decided to become a stay at home dad, but the realities of looking after a baby quickly sunk in. Belle was always incredibly close to her mum, Lisa, who sadly passed away in May 2019 – just days after revealing she had been diagnosed with amyloidosis.
Dad Zak died earlier this month, leaving the Dingles devastated.
Belle’s brush with death
Belle was a strong-willed and adventurous child – something which often landed her in danger.
Tragedy almost struck in 2005 when Belle fell down a mine shaft after chasing after friend Daz Eden’s pet ferret Spike. Daz went to Belle’s aid and ended up falling into the shaft too.
The pair nearly drowned in the freezing water, but were rescued by the Dingles and fire brigade.
Belle Dingle turns killer in Emmerdale
Belle’s teenage years took a very dark turn when she accidentally killed her best friend, Gemma Andrews.
Back in 2014, the pals became love rivals when they both caught feelings for local lad Sean Spencer. Belle had been dating Sean’s mate, Tom King (who she’s now married to), but then she and Sean began growing closer.
They made plans to sleep together, which were scuppered when Belle discovered Gemma was pregnant with Sean’s baby. Belle and Gemma promptly fell out and engaged in a nasty classroom spat, which resulted in Belle being suspended.
The girls’ final verbal slanging match, which took place in the dark of night, turned physical. Gemma slapped Belle – who responded by pushing her friend to the ground, which caused her to hit her head on a rock.
The morning after the freak accident, Gemma was discovered unconscious and rushed to hospital where she succumbed to her injuries.
Unable to live with the guilt, Belle turned herself into the police on the day of Gemma’s funeral and was sentenced to three years in a youth facility on the grounds of manslaughter.
After appealing her sentence, Belle was released after a year, but the trauma of Gemma soon led her to spiral into despair.
Belle’s mental health crisis
Belle was left deeply traumatised by Gemma’s death and her subsequent imprisonment. She struggled to adapt back to life after her release from the young offenders’ centre.
She rebelled by dying her hair black and befriending local weirdo Lachlan White.
Belle also started to hear Gemma’s voice in her head, instructing her to do dark things – such as trash the local shop, attack her friends and try to overdose on painkillers.
Zak and Lisa soon realised their daughter was having a mental health crisis and referred her to a psychiatrist.
Belle made an attempt on her life, but was saved by her half-brother, Cain. She was then sectioned in a psychiatric hospital to recover.
Affair with Dr Bailey
The first big love in Belle’s life, was Jermaine Bailey – the married GP who she had a passionate affair with at just 17.
Her family strongly disapproved of the relationship and put pressure on the doctor to end it.
Belle eventually tired of all the sneaking about and told Jermaine’s wife Angie she’d been sleeping with her husband. Jermaine was fired from his job at the surgery. He made plans to leave, but Belle made him stay by claiming she was carrying his kid.
Belle, who was in the grips of schizophrenia, carried on the fake pregnancy until Angie realised what was happening and outed her to her family.
Shortly afterwards, Belle experienced a complete breakdown and spent time living rough on the streets.
She was eventually found, diagnosed with schizophrenia and sent to a specialist unit in Surrey to recover.
Belle Dingle and her bad luck with men in Emmerdale
Belle hasn’t had the best luck when it comes to members of the opposite sex.
After Jermaine, she embarked on a dangerous romance with unhinged Lachlan White – who unbeknownst to her was a secret killer. When the truth did out, Lachlan kidnapped Belle and held her hostage.
She almost became his last victim, but managed to escape his clutches.
Belle also had a short-lived affair with Kim Tate’s son Jamie – which turned sour when he tried to frame her for a hit and run he carried out.
Belle’s relapse
In 2020 Belle suffered a terrifying relapse in her mental health after she stopped taking her medication then began to hear the voice of her late mother, Lisa.
Whilst experiencing a hallucination, Belle ended up stabbing pregnant Tracy Robinson in the hand. Luckily Tracy’s injuries were not life-threatening and she recovered.
Belle was hospitalised for a second time.
Belle Dingle and her abusive marriage to Tom King
Belle’s whirlwind romance with childhood sweetheart Tom King seemed like a fairytale but has ended up a nightmare.
The couple went out with each other at school before Tom moved away with his mum Colleen in 2013. He returned a decade later and rekindled the flame with Belle.
The couple became engaged, but in the weeks leading up to the wedding Tom began displaying signs of coercive control towards Belle.
After the wedding, Tom’s mental and physical abuse towards his wife increased as he isolated Belle from her family.
When Belle discovered she was pregnant, she had a secret abortion, terrified of bringing a baby into her abusive marriage. She told Tom she’d had a miscarriage, but he soon found out the truth and predictably went ballistic – using the truth against Belle.
After spending time with Tom in an isolated cottage in Wales, and suffering even more abuse, Belle finally found the courage to leave him.
But since then, Tom’s been increasingly manipulative. He’s dating Amelia Spencer and when Belle tried to ‘rescue’ her from her ex, and went to the police, things took an even darker turn.
Determined to get Belle to drop the charges, Tom pursued his wife with an axe.
Terrified, Belle fled for her life only to be cornered by a violent Tom. But he was the one who ended up with an axe in his back.
Now Belle’s trying to cope with the death of her dad, while Tom’s busy covering his abusive tracks, intending to blame Belle for everything.
How will she get out of this nightmare?
Who plays Belle Dingle in Emmerdale?
Belle Dingle in Emmerdale is played by British actress Eden Taylor-Draper. Eden was born on 28 October 1997 and grew up in Selby, which is around 30 minutes from where the soap is filmed.
She joined the cast of Emmerdale in 2005, aged eight, and took over from Emily Mather who had played the part of Belle since she was a newborn baby in 1998.
Her other acting credit is an appearance in the 2009 short film The Cardiac Oak.
Eden has won numerous awards for her portrayal of Belle. 2007 was a stellar year for the star, who scooped Best Dramatic Performance at the British Soap Awards, Best Young Actor at the Inside Soap Awards and Personality of the Year at the Yorkshire Young Achiever Awards.
Then in 2013, Eden won Best Young Performance at the British Soap Awards.
Eden’s personal life is thankfully a lot more settled than her on-screen alter ego’s. She’s in a long-term relationship with high-school sweetheart Ed Lewis.