Emmerdale fans recognise Joe Tate’s accomplice Shaun as real identity ‘revealed’
Emmerdale fans were left convinced that they recognised Joe Tate's accomplice, Shaun, who has been helping him with his sinister plan to steal his uncle's kidney
Emmerdale has been full of drama with the arrival of new character, Shaun.
Fans will recall that Joe Tate is grappling with chronic kidney disease and his prognosis is grim without a transplant.
After attempting to drug his half-brother, Noah Dingle, in a desperate bid to secure his kidney, he discovered they weren’t a match. This revelation led Joe to turn to another family member, his uncle Caleb Milligan, who was found to be a suitable donor.
This week saw Joe and his personal physician, Dr Crowley, hatch a dark scheme to target Caleb and extract one of his kidneys.
Their plot almost came undone when Kim Tate enlisted Ross Barton for security duties and to keep an eye on Joe. During a covert meeting between Joe and Dr Crowley, they were interrupted by Ross who had been tailing them, reports Leicestershire Live.
The encounter left Dr Crowley rattled, refusing to proceed with the plan unless Ross ceased his meddling. This prompted Joe to orchestrate an attack on Ross’ brother, Pete Barton, by his accomplice Shaun, forcing Ross to leave town to visit his hospitalised sibling.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday, with Ross out of the picture, Joe set his plan in motion as another accomplice, Gina, tried to spike Caleb’s drink. When the plan went awry, Joe resorted to violent tactics, meeting with Shaun again and instructing him to stab Caleb and steal his car.
Emmerdale viewers quickly took to Twitter, now X, to point out actor James Boyland, who portrays Shaun in the soap. One eagle-eyed fan remarked: “For anyone interested, that man talking to Joe Tate a few minutes ago in the woods on @Emmerdale, he slept with Carla on @itvcorrie in around 2019 when she had her psychotic episode after Rana’s d.e.a.t.h. #Emmerdale #Corrie.”
Another tweet queried: “WHO WAS THAT MAN IN THE WOODS #emmerdale”, and yet another viewer posted: “I recognise him! Hollyoaks? #Emmerdale.”
James Boyland, the actor behind Shaun, is no stranger to the small screen, having featured on a number of shows, including Coronation Street where he has played multiple roles – Jordan, a burglar, and Don – across a decade from 2010 to 2020.
He also appeared as Dan Cravely for five episodes in Emmerdale back in 2010, his credits also span various popular series such as Tony Grimes in DCI Banks (2011), Communist Comrade in Peaky Blinders (2014), and Wild Hunt in The Witcher: Blood Origin (2022).
Speculation about Shaun’s true identity and potential connections within the village is rife among fans, with some theorising a link to one particular family. A speculative tweet read: “@emmerdale Hang on, Joe’s side kick is a Barton? ! ! ! ! #emmerdale.”
One person responded: “I think he arranged for that bloke in the car to beat Pete up (or get someone to) to get Ross away from there for a few days, to stop him spying on them and save his scheme. Unless the bloke is someone Barton related I don’t recognise?”
They further added: “Dawn said “I hope he’s OK” and Joe said “These Bartons are full of tough stuff”. Didn’t know he was anything to do with any family in the village.”
Emmerdale airs weeknights at 7:30pm on ITV1 and ITVX, with an hour-long episode on Thursdays.
