Five explosive ITV Emmerdale theories: new love affair and TWO shock exits rock the village
TROUBLE is on its way to Mill Cottage this week as Ruby Fox-Miligan becomes curious about Tracy Robinson’s mystery lover.
But as the Emmerdale newcomer begins to investigate, another series of troubles hits fellow residents of the ITV Dales.
1. Huge feud
Despite her own husband’s one night stand with another woman back in 2021, which left her heartbroken, Tracy Robinson (portrayed by soap legend Amy Walsh) embarked on an illicit romance with Caleb Miligan (Will Ash).
However, when the troublemaker was caught rekindling his romance with his estranged – and soon-to-be ex – wife Ruby (Beth Cordingly), Tracy decided it was time to put an end to the affair as the newcomer made it clear she was willing to put up a fight to resolve the issues in her marriage.
Meanwhile, Tracy’s other half Nate Robinson (Jurell Carter) became aware that she was keeping a huge secret and possibly cheating on him, although his aunt Belle Dingle (Eden Taylor-Draper) fought Tracy’s corner by insisting she wouldn’t be capable of infidelity.
This week, all hell breaks loose between Tracy and Nate as she reaches another conclusion – it’s time for her and her husband to finally part ways
Coming up next week, Moira Dingle (Natalie J. Robb), who knew all about her affair with Caleb, advises Tracy not to throw it all away with her family.
However, Tracy later tells Nate she no longer loves him and his shock turns to anger as he demands to know why their marriage is over.
As he slams out of the house, a devastated Tracy breaks down in tears.
On the outskirts of the village, Nate is in a daze as he wanders aimlessly.
Against his better judgement, Caleb invites him to come home with him and Tracy is later shocked to learn Nate is staying with Caleb.
A concerned Cain Dingle (Jeff Hordley) tries to bolster Nate as Ruby shares a knowing look with the tough man when Nate remarks he thinks Tracy’s seeing somebody else.
Caleb’s perturbed when Ruby urges them to find out who Tracy’s secret lover is.
Later on, Ruby is suspicious to see her son Nicky (Lewis Cope) and Caleb arguing, making it her mission to get to the bottom of things.
Viewers have been expecting another fight to take place between Tracy and Ruby, particularly as a pregnancy twist could be in the works for the budding businesswoman.
But will Ruby figure out what has really been happening during her time away from Caleb?
2. New affair
Whatever the case may be, Nate shocks Tracy this week when he makes the decision to keep living with her for the sake of their daughter Frankie.
But due to the nature of her betrayal, many soap fans are expecting Tracy to be faced with a massive baby bombshell.
Theories have then suggested that this could lead to a big reveal for her affair with Caleb Miligan, which would then prompt Nate to get his own back on Tracy.
For weeks, viewers have speculated that Ruby may become Nate’s mistress in a joint effort to make their respective partners seethe with jealousy and potentially fix their relationships.
However, in another unexpected twist, these soap fans have also suggested that Nate may never romp with his uncle’s wife – but his father Cain could.
Viewers were recently taken aback as they spotted a hint of chemistry between Ruby and her brother-in-law and this has led them to believe that Cain may have an affair of his own.
After being attacked by his nephew Aaron, Cain confessed to his wife Moira that he no longer felt like the same man and Ruby may just be what he needs to feel like himself again.
“I thought I saw some chemistry between Cain and Ruby”, one TV fan commented on social media when the pair were first spotted in the same scene last week.
Another echoed: “Cain and Ruby incoming?”, just as a third fan penned: “Can spot the chemistry between Cain and Ruby a mile off. Another Dingle affair?”
3. Villager on the run
Elsewhere, Rhona Goskirk’s pull towards baby Ivy gets out of hand and she could be set for her own downward spiral.
As viewers of the Yorkshire-based program will remember, the village vet played by Zoë Henry was initially stunned to find out her ex-husband Gus Malcolms (Alan McKenna) had used some of her frozen embryos without her consent.
But when Gus’ wife gave birth to baby Ivy before drawing her last breath, Rhona couldn’t refute her maternal instinct and grew increasingly attached to the newborn.
Gus, on the other hand, crumbled under pressure as he faced a new life as a single father, thus giving Rhona the opportunity to step in and help… only for her attachment to grow.
Unfortunately for her, all good things must come to an end and Gus rocks up Emmerdale again to let her know he’s ready to take on his responsibilities.
In recent scenes of the long-running show, an overwhelmed Gus decided to trust Rhona to take care of Ivy while he was adapting to his new situation.
The presence of baby Ivy at Smithy Cottage has caused tensions to arise between Rhona and her husband Marlon Dingle (Mark Charnock).
But this week, and as mentioned above, Rhona is concerned to see Gus is coping well with Ivy and is later filled with dread as he explains he wants Ivy back full time.
Gus packs up Ivy’s things and heads out with her while Rhona tells Marlon that she hopes the baby will play up for him, giving her another chance to step in and take care of her.
The following day, they meet up with Gus and an emotional Rhona smothers the baby with affection.
However, she’s distraught when Gus moots finding them both a permanent new home.
Marlon asks Gus whether he’d be willing to let them co-parent but Gus tells them he plans to move to France.
In other scenes, guilty over his decision to go, Gus asks if Rhona and Marlon can take care of Ivy for the day, giving them a chance to say goodbye properly.
With all hope lost, Rhona is broken and she holds Ivy close.
Later, Marlon returns home to find Ivy and Rhona missing, along with their belongings.
Panicked, he explains to Mary Goskirk (Louise Jameson) that Rhona has taken off with Ivy.
But where have they gone?
Viewers have swarmed over to social media in recent weeks, speculating that Rhona may vanish with baby Ivy, leaving her marriage with Marlon Dingle hanging by a fragile thread.
Could she start off a new life away from the village with a baby she never knew she wanted?
4. More drunken danger
Soap fans have all been in agreement for several months – Belle Dingle’s relationship with Tom King (James Chase) is doomed.
After a decade of separation, as viewers may recall, Tom and Belle were reunited in 2023 when the hunk re-emerged in Emmerdale with the hopes of a fresh start.
But just as things seemed to settle down for the pair, Tom’s behaviour began to raise alarm bells.
Worries for Belle’s well-being reached an all-time high when her beau physically lashed out and hurt her, leaving her bloodied.
However, Belle continues to have starts in her eyes and, in a shocking twist following a failed proposal, she asked for Tom’s hand.
Recent episodes have shown Tom is becoming increasingly keen to walk down the aisle with Belle to the point where he has neglected to consult her while planning their wedding ceremony.
This week, Belle puts her foot down and reminds Tom that their lavish celebrations may not be the right option due to the amount of tragedy that has recently struck the village.
This week, Belle’s thrown that Tom is more in the know about their wedding than she is and demands to be kept in the loop.
Belle, Tom and Suzy Merton (Martelle Edinborough) organise the stag/hen “a Sten do” together.
However, Tom’s hurt when his uncle Jimmy King (Nick Miles) awkwardly declines the chance to be his best man.
As they plan to scale back their wedding preparations, the couple announce they’re not having bridesmaids or groomsmen but Mandy Dingle (Lisa Riley) has a naughty glint in her eye.
Soon enough, it is the day of the “Sten do” but Tom walks into the office and catches sight of Belle’s wedding dress, leaving Suzy mortified.
When Suzy also tells him that Marlon Dingle (Mark Charnock) is now doing the wedding cake, Tom is annoyed to be kept at arm’s length.
In later scenes, Suzy shows the wedding dress to a delighted Belle before admitting Tom has already seen it.
As the Sten begins, Mandy and Sarah Sugden (Katie Hill) handcuff Belle and force her home for a “proper” hen do.
Belle is clearly having the time of her life as the ladies celebrate with the addition of a cardboard cut out of a “hunked up” Tom.
Meanwhile, Tom immediately misses Belle and as the Hens continue to enjoy themselves, he gets drunk.
Later on, Tom looks worse for wear as he pours his heart out to Suni Sharma (Brahmdeo Shannon Ramana).
Once the evening draws to a close, Belle escorts a drunk, yet loved up Tom home.
But will she realise his behaviour isn’t normal?
As mentioned above, Tom hasn’t been on his best behaviour with Belle and viewers are on the edge of their seats as they await for another unprovoked angry outburst.
Moreover, theories have emerged about Tom potentially isolating Belle from her nearest and dearest in Emmerdale.
Could more horror come to Belle during her ill-fated relationship with the lad as their wedding nears?
5. Shock exit
Since her character has become a killer, after a bleak Christmas Day episode that left many fans fuming, actress Emma Atkins admitted she was terrified of a potential axing.
But as Charity Dingle grows more vulnerable, the possibility of her exiting Emmerdale to find solace in Scotland, near her daughter Debbie Dingle, becomes more likely.
Coming up this week, Marlon Dingle realises she is not acting like her usual self and he is adamant on finding out what is really on his cousin’s mind.
Could she tell him all about Harry’s murder ?
Charity has tried to open up to her sister-in-law Moira Dingle in recent scenes of the long-running drama as the fiery farmer put their differences aside to help her former love rival.
In doing so, Moira herself confessed she was also a killer as she was responsible for the death of Emma Barton, for which her own son Adam was willing to take the fall before escaping from prison and skipping town, never to be seen again.
How will the Woolpack landlady ever cope with her PTSD-related symptoms ?
Could she decide to leave everything behind ?
Emmerdale airs weeknights from 7.30pm on ITV.