ITV Emmerdale star admits ‘I didn’t know’ as character makes surprise return on Christmas Day

Emmerdale is teeing up an emotional rollercoaster this Christmas as Belle Dingle, played by Eden-Taylor Draper, gets a festive miracle when she’s reunited with her dog, Piper, after fearing the worst due to her villainous husband, Tom King (James Chase).

Emmerdale sẽ mang đến một chuyến phiêu lưu đầy cảm xúc vào dịp Giáng sinh này khi Belle Dingle, do Eden-Taylor Draper thủ vai, có được một phép màu lễ hội khi cô đoàn tụ với chú chó Piper của mình sau khi lo sợ điều tồi tệ nhất xảy ra do người chồng độc ác Tom King (James Chase) của cô.

Upcoming episodes will see Belle suspecting something isn’t right when she realises she never actually clapped eyes on Piper’s dead body and thinks devious Tom might have been lying about her pet’s demise. She ropes in Vinny Dingle (Bradley Johnson) to exhume the grave and check out the coffin.

When they find no trace of Piper’s remains, Belle’s wheels start turning, and she contemplates confronting Tom in prison to suss out what’s really happened with her four-legged friend.

The plot thickens on Christmas Day when Belle heads to her fathers’ grave only to be gobsmacked as Piper makes a shock appearance, courtesy of Vinny and Gabby’s (Rosie Bentham) detective work.

One Emmerdale star has addressed the recent backlash from viewers (Image: ITV)

She divulged further: “I didn’t know! It was only probably a couple of months ago, probably three months ago that I got told she is coming back at Christmas. There was a period when it was just, ‘Is she going to come back? Is she not? ‘ She had to! Fans would have been in uproar.

“I think the main thing is that she never actually saw Piper’s body, she never really saw what actually happened; she was just told. I think she has that in her head, and she can’t get it out of her head.”

Eden Taylor-Draper has confirmed her character Belle did not expect her beloved dog to return (Image:PAWire/PA Images)

As Tom had lied about so many things, Belle couldn’t shake the feeling that he might have also lied about Piper’s death. Eden said, “He’s obviously lied about so much, so she just thinks, ‘We never saw the evidence. We buried a casket, but who knows what’s in there? ‘ kind of thing. It’s actually Vinny and Gabby who end up tracking her down.”

Vinny and Gabby managed to contact the people Tom had given Piper to and explained the situation, revealing the shocking truth that Piper was indeed alive. Eden noted that Piper had played a significant role in the abuse storyline, and Tom’s treatment of her had sparked outrage.

She added: “I think everyone’s attached to her. Because Minnie’s so great to work with and so easy, it’s been so nice that we’ve had her in so many scenes, she’s always been a part of it.”

Eden acknowledged that the viewers’ affection for Piper was not surprising, given how integral the dog had been to the storyline. She said, “Often if someone’s got a huge dog, you’re not going to stick them in every scene because they’re so big or distracting or whatever.

“But Minnie’s been in so much of the journey, she’s been as much a part of it as me and James. So I kind of expected that from the viewers but it has been overwhelming how much everyone loves Piper.”

Emmerdale airs weekdays at 7:30pm on ITV and ITVX