Jeff Hordley has teased the identity of an unexpected attendee at Zak Dingle’s (Steve Halliwell) funeral in Emmerdale.
The Dingles will gather to pay their respects to the patriarch in emotional scenes next week, after Zak passes away off-screen in Scotland.
The farewell to the iconic soap character comes after actor Steve Halliwell died in December at the age of 77, following a short period of illness.
Amid their collective grief, the Dingle family get a blast from the past when a long-lost relative appears at the graveside…
Hinting at who it might be, Jeff – who plays Zak’s on screen son Cain Dingle – says: ‘It’s someone you might know. They’re not going to make things go smoothly for the Dingles.
‘Could it be someone back from the dead?’
Zak’s funeral takes place soon after Cain and brother Sam (James Hooton) head to Scotland to bring their father home following his death.
‘The funeral has got Dingles written all over it,’ Jeff says. ‘If you could say shotgun wedding or shotgun funeral, you’d kind of get a picture of what it’s like.’
The actor also said the cast did their best to keep the mood on set light as they filmed the emotional scenes, explaining that it is what Steve would have wanted.
Jeff explained: ‘There’s really poignant moments in it. And whilst we were filming, we were all focused and giving the script everything it needed. But off camera as well – and Steve would have enjoyed this, because Steve always liked to have a giggle behind the camera – whilst we weren’t rolling, we made sure we had some laughs as well. Because when we do get together as a group, we do make sure that it’s fun to film.
‘What I’m trying to say is that the mood wasn’t just downbeat, we were making sure that we were having a laugh, and Steve wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.’
The actor had played the role of Zak between 1994 and 2023, during which time he featured in countless storylines, including the surprise birth of daughter Belle, the death of his son Butch in a bus crash and his beloved partnership with on-screen wife Lisa, played by Jane Cox.
Following the Covid-19 pandemic, Zak appeared in a recurring capacity, popping up every now and again, with Steve’s final appearance as the character airing in June last year.
