ITV Emmerdale Moira kills again as brain tumour battle leads to devastating twist

Moira Dingle has killed again, years after murdering Emma Barton and letting her own son take the fall.

The feisty farmer portrayed by Natalie J Robb was diagnosed with a brain tumour in recent Emmerdale scenes but has been trying to keep up a positive attitude while her family remain concerned for her well-being, particularly due to her seizures. To top it all off, Moira is often misguided and in a daze, leading her to make silly mistakes.

But this Wednesday, October 2, one of her mishaps led to heartbreaking consequences. Vanessa Woodfield (Michelle Hardwick) was called into Butlers Farm as it was revealed that young Isaac’s sheep, which Moira bought recently, had died while a handful of them were in a bad way.

Once at the scene, Vanessa gave Moira a grim prognosis as she stated that most of her sheep had died after ingesting paint, which Moira had left in their food without being able to pay attention as her brain tumour takes over, with her son Matty Barton (Ash Palmisciano) as a witness.

Later on, Mackenzie Boyd (Lawrence Robb) and Moira had a chat as she vowed to replace her son Isaac’s sheep but her brother was against the idea, which he branded “a waste of money.” Over on Twitter, now X, however, viewers of the Yorkshire-based programme were horrified by the scenes.

This wouldn’t be the first time Moira kills in the eponymous ITV village. Back in 2017, a brutal brawl with Emma Barton led her to kill her former love rival by pushing her from the viaduct to her death. Moira was recently haunted by her memories of Emma as she was involved in a scuffle with Ruby Fox-Miligan.

At the time, villagers weren’t aware of Moira’s brain tumour and her strange actions, including throwing herself at former lover Nate Robinson, were enough for them to believe she was cheating on her husband Cain Dingle (Jeff Hordley) again. After a barn fire, however, the truth finally came to light. Moira was diagnosed with a non-cancerous brain tumour called a meningioma.

Speaking about the devastating health twist, actress Natalie J Robb told Radio Times: “Moira is scared. You start to see a vulnerability and a fear she is losing her identity. Everyone is worried about her and she feels quite smothered, but she’s just in denial. This is the start of a long journey for Moira, and the family.” But more heartache will be coming to the Dingles.

Zak Dingle star Steve Halliwell will get the tribute he deserves as Lisa Riley confirmed the Emmerdale cast and crew filmed a special episode in his honour back in August, 2024. The instalment is due to air in upcoming weeks as Cain Dingle was last seen heading to Scotland to help him.