Emmerdale fans react in horror to Ross spending the night with an unexpected villager

Emmerdale fans have reacted to Ross spending the night with unexpected villager

Emmerdale fans were left stunned this week as Ross Barton (Michael Parr) ended up in bed with a completely unexpected character following a heartbreaking split from girlfriend Steph Miligan (Georgia Jay). Ross had been trying to support Steph through an emotional spiral which was triggered by the devastating truth about her grandfather Anthony.

Steph recently learned that she was the product of Anthony’s horrific abuse of her mother Ruby (Beth Cordingly), and has since struggled with the pain of that discovery. In powerful scenes that aired this week, Steph broke down in front of Ross, confessing that every time she looks in the mirror, she sees Anthony staring back at her.

Emmerdale fans have been shocked to see who Ross chose as a new lover after his split with Steph

She even looked into plastic surgery in an attempt to distance herself from the reflection she hates. Despite Ross’s efforts to be there for her, Steph pushed him away while dealing with her internal crisis.

She later returned and ended the relationship, explaining she needed to focus on healing alone. Devastated by the split, Ross found some unexpected comfort in local GP Manpreet Sharma (Rebecca Sarker).

The two spent the night together, but any suggestion of a budding romance was quickly shut down by Ross the following morning. After brushing Manpreet off in the street and which left her standing there awkwardly, Ross was seen walking away as Caleb (William Ash) watched from a distance.

Viewers have been appalled by the age gap between the new pair(Image: ITV)

The scenes prompted a strong reaction from viewers on social media, as many were shocked by the unlikely pairing. One fan expressed their feelings on X, writing: “MANPREET AND ROSS?…. BRUH WHAT.”

Another chimed in: “Steph and Ross break up, he ends up sleeping with Manpreet (Excuse me?)” A third voiced their disgust, hitting out: “What has Emmerdale come to? Ross and Manpreet – no thanks.”

Someone else commented on their age gap, slamming Manpreet for being “old enough to be his grandma”. Former bad boy Ross appeared genuinely invested in his relationship with Steph, and fans of the soap are now questioning what this rebound might mean for his character arc.

The actor who plays Ross previously opened up on the character’s romantic struggles after his true love Donna Windsor took her life when she was being pursued by the police. Michael Parr shared: “I don’t want to see Ross fall in love or get married or have kids. Ross’ USP is that he’s a loner, so I would like to keep him as a rogue. But he’s now 34, so I do wonder, does the way that Ross lives get a bit sad?”

He went on to add that he doesn’t believe any other love stories could live up to the decade-long romance Ross shared with Donna, saying: “Being with Donna, that was Ross’ first experience of love. And when love is snatched away from you, you’re always going to glamorise it and think about what could have been. Nobody lives up to Donna in his eyes.

“I think Ross must have abandonment issues just from the fact that his brother, mum, dad and girlfriend are all d.e.a.d. I’d say Ross is definitely comfortable in chaos. What’s that Nietzsche quote? ‘In times of peace warlike people will turn on themselves.’

“I think that’s a good way to look at Ross. When there are shenanigans going on, he’s actually very calm. It’s when people are being nice to him that he isn’t. You know where you stand with an enemy. He doesn’t know where he stands with people who are telling him they love him, because he always thinks there’s an agenda.”