ITV Emmerdale viewers ‘rumble’ who will be ‘killed off’ at Christmas – and it’s not Tom King

Viewers believe Eric Pollard could be killed off at the end of the year as his health appeared to deteriorate during this Monday’s trip to Emmerdale.

Portrayed by the ITV soap’s longest serving cast member Chris Chittell, the owner of David’s Shop was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2023. In scenes aired this Monday, November 11, however, he was embroiled in an argument with Caleb Miligan (Will Ash) in scenes aired this Monday, November 11, 2024, as he was infuriated by his new haulage company.

The businessman’s latest venture led to an increase in local traffic but when Eric approached Caleb with his concerns, he was coldly dismissed. He then protested by climbing into one of Caleb’s lorries – but his efforts led him to experience hand tremors.

Eric struggled to regain his composure while Will Taylor (Dean Andrews) tried to help. In later scenes, Eric was still suffering from tremors when Caleb confronted him, issuing him with a chilling warning. But soap fans were more concerned for the Dales legend’s health.

Many concerned viewers of the Yorkshire-based drama took to Twitter, now X, convinced that Eric could be killed off at Christmas, after almost 40 years in the eponymous village. One of them wrote: “Don’t like Eric getting bad when it’s nearly Christmas. Don’t want a Christmas death”, while another bluntly predicted: “”Eric is gonna die next year #Emmerdale.” A third added: “Eric struggling with his Parkinson’s”, along with a sad face emoji.

This comes after a recent report alleging that Lesley Dunlop, Chris’ on and off-screen wife, is tipped to leave the long-running drama after 16 years. On Friday (November 8), the Daily Mirror revealed that Lesley would be leaving alongside co-star Roxy Shahidi, also known as Leyla Harding in Emmerdale.

While her exit has yet to be announced formally, Lesley’s exit from the programme has sparked fears among the line-up, with one source claiming: “There have been so many exits recently and the talk is of more. With people like Lesley and Roxy potentially in the mix, nobody feels safe.”

“The show has grown a lot bigger in recent years but soaps are expensive to make. It’s inevitable saving money means losing people – but it’s a huge shame all the same for those involved, their friends and colleagues.”

Emmerdale bosses have recently confirmed James Chase’s time in the Dales was drawing to a close as the final chapter of Belle Dingle’s coercive control storyline will be aired next month.

A special hour-long episode will be aired as the long-running show is set to highlight the real-life voices of domestic abuse victims and survivors, who have been a source of inspiration for Emmerdale bosses as they collaborated with The Refuge to ensure the accuracy of the storyline. But will Tom be killed off?