Belle Dingle (Eden Taylor Draper) had a wobble on her wedding day over whether she’d done the right thing marrying Tom King (James Chase) after he cruelly lambasted her for her family’s behaviour in Emmerdale, but sadly it wasn’t enough for her to see what’s really going on.
Speaking previously of his bad behaviour, Eden told Metro.co.uk: ‘She’s just like wow, everything’s amazing, I’m so in love with you, and that’s very much at the back of her mind.’
That true love means she’s struggling to see the ever-increasing red flags – including leaving her crying in her wedding dress. But she’s not totally blind to them and his subtle abusive techniques – having had a reality slap from her mum’s letter which told of her hopes that Belle had found herself a good man. Belle’s tears hinted that perhaps she’s not as sure as she thought.
His latest toxic act sees him gaslight his new wife in a way that leaves her in a terrible situation.
Belle gets a job opportunity from Suzy (Martelle Edinborough), which leaves Tom disgruntled. He tells her he’d promised that she would talk to Angel (Rebecca Bakes) about her experiences inside to prepare her for the Secure Children’s Home. He piles on the guilt at her saying no, despite having agreed to it without talking to her first.
Belle does as she’s told and prioritises Angel, but it backfires badly when she tells the teen the truth, warning Angel of the impact her jail time had on her, leaving Angel fearing that her mental health will go the same way.
Jimmy (Nick Miles) walks in on the two of them in a heightened emotional state and gives Belle both barrels for upsetting his fragile daughter before she runs off, distraught.
But here’s the kicker, when she turns to Tom for comfort, he denies that he made her speak with Angelica in the first place. Huge, massive, ginormous alarm bells.
Actor James Chase previously told metro.co.uk: ‘I think when Tom came into the show people all thought something is going to be up with him because when he was younger he was going through his issues and was very aggressive and all that so it was very easy to assume he was going to be like that again.’ Seems like people thought right.
Emotional and confused, Belle accepts Tom’s promise to protect her in the future when really, he set her up for a huge fall. With this being Belle’s 25th year in the soap, there are no doubt big things in store for her character, and it looks like this storyline is set to have some HUGE twists and turns.
