Obviously Belle Dingle (Eden Taylor-Draper)’s wedding day in Emmerdale is a hugely emotional occasion for her. As she prepares to marry Tom King (James Chase) there are two people in particular on her mind – her parents Zak and Lisa Dingle (Steve Halliwell and Jane Cox).
She would have loved Zak to be there to give her away, but he’s in Scotland with his granddaughter Debbie and has hurt his back and can’t make the journey.
Sadly Steve Halliwell died in December. While the show has paid tribute to the beloved actor by dedicating an episode to him, Zak Dingle is often mentioned in the show.
Belle’s mum Lisa died in 2019, and Belle is sad that neither of her parents will be there to see her get married to the man she loves.
‘Belle finds this out pretty last minute that Zak is definitely not going to be there and has a freak out and says “Let’s call the wedding off,”’ Eden Taylor-Draper explained. ‘His attendance means so much to her.’
Tom points out that his parents won’t be at the wedding either. His mum Colleen (Melanie Ash) died last year and his dad Carl (Tom Lister) was killed in 2012. Tom says that the day should be about him and Belle and she eventually agrees.
But as the wedding is about to get under way, Sam (James Hooton) arrives to give Belle away – and he has a letter from Lisa.
‘I don’t want to say what the letter says but Belle is given it just as she is going into the church,’ Eden told us.
‘Zak has given Sam a letter to give Belle. Her mum Lisa wrote it before she passed away to open on the day she got married. When Belle gets the letter she gets upset as it is too emotional and she thinks “I can’t read this now, it’s too much.”’
Instead, Belle keeps the letter close by all through the wedding – tucked inside her wedding bouquet.
Eden described the emotional moment when Belle finally opens the letter and reads the message from her mum.
‘Belle ends up reading it right at the end of the day. The letter is beautiful and so emotional and I can’t imagine receiving something like that – something so precious that had been kept safely for that special day. It is such a precious moment and so emotional that someone would do that.’
Eden told us that she thought if Lisa was still alive she would approve of Belle marrying Tom.
‘Based on all of the good things in Tom, Zak loves him and thinks he is great for her. And I think Lisa would love him too. All the Dingles seem to like him,’ she mused.
But she added a warning.
‘Of course they haven’t seen that other side of Tom when he tries to control things. The audience saw it when we did the 12 Angry Dingles. So to the Dingles he is a great guy.
‘A lot happens at the reception. I won’t say what, but I think that does change things a bit, as she can tell he’s getting annoyed about little things. Right at the end of the day something happens that just makes her think, “Have I done the right thing? Is this the right man for me?”‘
