Emmerdale in 2018

2018 was Emmerdale's 47th year. Production was overseen by Iain MacLeod until producer Kate Brooks took over the reigns and was later joined by producer Laura Shaw and executive producer Jane Hudson later in the year.
323 episodes were broadcast during the year. Major storylines included Charity Dingle’s fight for justice against her childhood rapist Mark Bails and the subsequent discovering of her long-lost son Ryan Stocks, Paddy Kirk and Chas Dingle losing their baby daughter Grace, the affair between Laurel Thomas and Bob Hope, Sarah Sugden’s illness battle and heart transplant, the acid attack on Ross Barton which was inadvertently caused by Debbie Dingle, Lachlan White’s murder spree, the kidnapping of Amelia Spencer, the temporary return of Kim Tate and Joe Tate’s disappearance, which led to Graham Foster manipulating Cain Dingle to believe that he had killed him.
==Production==
2018 was the last year of Iain MacLeod as a producer, his last episode being Episode 8230 (13th August 2018) before Kate Brooks took over as the sole producer of the show until she was joined by Laura Shaw and Jane Hudson as producer and executive producer respectively as of Episode 8347/8348 (25th December 2018).
The year featured a number of exits from fan favourite characters. The entire White family was gone by the end of the year with Louise Marwood and John Bowe leaving their roles as Chrissie and Lawrence, respectively, in a car crash stunt which killed both characters in January. The crash was caused by Chrissie’s son Lachlan, played by Thomas Atkinson, who went on to kill a further two people and hold his aunt Rebecca, played by Emily Head, against her will for two months. Lachlan departed the village in September when he was arrested for his crimes. He made a brief return the following January. Rebecca joined Ross Barton on his travels to Liverpool for a fresh start in November, as actor Michael Parr left the series after five years to pursue other projects. Shaun Thomas’s character Gerry Roberts was killed off in May as part of the Lachlan story.
Adam Thomas departed as Adam Barton in January, when he went on the run after being falsely accused of murdering Emma Barton. Freddie Jones made his final appearance as Sandy Thomas in February, whilst John Middleton returned as Sandy’s son Ashley for two episodes the same month in a video message, after Ashley died the previous year. Jane Cox temporarily left her role as Lisa Dingle in May. Her on-screen husband Zak also temporarily left the village in October due to actor Steve Halliwell’s health problems. The former returned to the programme in March 2019, and the latter did so in May. Another temporary exit came in the form of Leyla Harding as Roxy Shahidi left to have her first child in January. Leyla returned in October.
Ned Porteous left his role as Joe Tate after just a year when his character fled the village in October. He was believed to have been killed off, but five months later it was revealed that this was not true. This was part of the highly publicised return of Kim Tate, played by Claire King, who had not been seen in the village for nineteen years. The special return week in October was given the slogan ‘They All Fall Down’. Kim departed at the end of the week, but returned on a full-time basis in March 2019.
Cast additions included Sandra Marvin’s character Jessie Grant becoming a series regular and striking up a romance with Marlon Dingle, and the arrival of her feuding sons Ellis Chapman and Billy Fletcher, played by Asan N'Jie
and Jay Kontzle, respectively. Olivia Bromley joined the cast as Dawn Taylor, a friend of Ross Barton, in April, and joined the regular cast in December. Rebecca Sarker also joined the cast as Manpreet Jutla. Another new arrival for the year was James Moore as Ryan Stocks, the long-lost son of Charity Dingle, who was tracked down as part of her abuse storyline. James went on to win the National Television award for Best Newcomer for the role. Liam Cavanagh, played by Jonny McPherson, was also promoted to the regular cast after years of fleeting appearances. Louisa Clein joined the programme as Liam’s ex-wife Maya Stepney. The character began a relationship with David Metcalfe, and began to seduce David’s stepson Jacob Gallagher in a controversial grooming plot. Ash Palmisciano joined the cast as Matty Barton in a story which saw mother Moira discover that Matty, formerly known as Hannah, had transitioned without her knowledge.
==Viewership==
The average viewing figure for the year was 6.45 million viewers, which was up 10,000 on 2017. From 27th August onwards, BARB began incorporating viewing data from tablets, PCs and smartphones, which gave a small boost to the programme's figures. The most-watched episode of the year was Episode 8045 (17th January 2018), with 7.72 million viewers, while the least-watched episode was Episode 8196 (6th July 2018), with 4.98 million viewers. 66 episodes ranked within the weekly top 10 for all UK TV, which was 26 more than the year before.
==Episodes==
==Main Cast==
Ranking	Character 	Played by 	Duration 	Number of Episodes	Running total	Previous year's ranking
1 	Charity Dingle 	Emma Atkins 	Full year 	190 	2122 	3
2 	Robert Sugden 	Ryan Hawley 	Full year 	168 	1881 	4
3 	Chas Dingle 	Lucy Pargeter 	Full year 	166 	2458 	39
3 	Debbie Dingle 	Charley Webb 	Full year 	166 	2239 	13
5 	Cain Dingle 	Jeff Hordley 	Full year 	160 	2286 	10
6 	Ross Barton 	Michael Parr 	Until November 	159 	789 	4
7 	Joe Tate/Tom Waterhouse	Ned Porteous 	Until October 	155 	419 	71
8 	Marlon Dingle 	Mark Charnock 	Full year 	151 	3083 	16
9 	Aaron Dingle 	Danny Miller 	Full year 	146 	1243 	14
10 	Faith Dingle 	Sally Dexter 	Full year 	140 	293 	6
11 	Brenda Walker 	Lesley Dunlop 	Full year 	139 	1102 	49
12 	Vanessa Woodfield 	Michelle Hardwick 	Full year 	134 	755 	8
12 	Victoria Barton 	Isabel Hodgins 	Full year 	134 	1892 	1
14 	Pete Barton 	Anthony Quinlan 	Full year 	130 	623 	17
15 	Graham Foster 	Andrew Scarborough 	Full year 	128 	147 	73
16 	Moira Dingle 	Natalie J Robb 	Full year 	127 	1351 	12
17 	Bob Hope 	Tony Audenshaw 	Full year, except September 	125 	2513 	2
18 	Bernice Blackstock 	Samantha Giles 	Full year 	124 	1266 	25
18 	Lachlan White 	Thomas Atkinson 	Until September 	124 	444 	31
20 	Daz Spencer 	Mark Jordon 	Full year 	123 	171 	64
21 	Paddy Kirk 	Dominic Brunt 	Full year 	122 	2522 	19
22 	Tracy Metcalfe 	Amy Walsh 	Full year 	119 	492 	9
23 	Rebecca White 	Emily Head 	Until November 	118 	302 	7
24 	Laurel Thomas 	Charlotte Bellamy 	Full year 	116 	2026 	10
25 	Kerry Wyatt 	Laura Norton 	Full year 	112 	821 	21
26 	Doug Potts 	Duncan Preston 	Full year 	110 	883 	40
27 	Belle Dingle 	Eden Taylor-Draper 	Until September, from December 	109 	1374 	42
28 	Liv Flaherty 	Isobel Steele 	Full year 	108 	257 	50
29 	David Metcalfe 	Matthew Wolfenden 	Full year, except September 	107 	1533 	30
30 	Rhona Goskirk 	Zoe Henry 	Full year 	105 	1002 	26
31 	Zak Dingle 	Steve Halliwell 	Until October 	101 	2805 	29
32 	Nicola King 	Nicola Wheeler 	Full year 	100 	2156 	28
33 	Diane Sugden 	Elizabeth Estensen 	Full year 	99 	2848 	31
33 	Rodney Blackstock 	Patrick Mower 	Full year 	99 	1807 	55
35 	Dan Spencer 	Liam Fox 	Full year, except November 	97 	774 	47
35 	Harriet Finch 	Katherine Dow Blyton 	Full year 	97 	502 	24
35 	Priya Kotecha 	Fiona Wade 	Full year 	97 	839 	43
38 	Sam Dingle 	James Hooton 	Full year 	94 	2032 	37
39 	Frank Clayton 	Michael Praed 	Full year, except September 	91 	234 	36
40 	Jimmy King 	Nick Miles 	Full year 	89 	1866 	40
41 	Noah Dingle 	Jack Downham 	Full year, except July 	88 	454 	74
42 	Lydia Hart 	Karen Blick 	Full year 	85 	171 	44
43 	Eric Pollard 	Christopher Chittell 	Full year 	81 	2983 	20
44 	Jessie Grant 	Sandra Marvin 	Full year, except February 	78 	85 	84
45 	Sarah Sugden 	Katie Hill 	Full year 	74 	792 	44
46 	Megan Macey 	Gaynor Faye 	Full year, except February and September 	73 	783 	35
46 	Rishi Sharma 	Bhasker Patel 	Full year 	73 	596 	51
48 	Sebastian White 	Lily Westmoreland 	Until November 	68 	82 	76
49 	Matty Barton 	Ash Palmisciano 	From June 	67 	303 	N/A
50 	Gabby Thomas 	Rosie Bentham 	Full year, except January 	65 	780 	48
51 	Jacob Gallagher 	Joe-Warren Plant 	Full year, except July 	64 	479 	57
52 	Amelia Spencer 	Daisy Campbell 	February to August, from November 	57 	349 	61
53 	Jai Sharma 	Christopher Bisson 	Full year 	56 	1155 	31
54 	Arthur Thomas 	Alfie Clarke 	Until August, from November 	50 	432 	44
55 	Maya Stepney 	Louisa Clein 	March, from June 	49 	49 	N/A
55 	Moses Dingle 	Arthur Cockroft 	Full year 	49 	151 	75
57 	April Windsor 	Amelia Flanagan 	Full year, except June 	46 	258 	62
57 	Ellis Chapman 	Asan N'Jie 	From September 	46 	46 	N/A
57 	Liam Cavanagh 	Jonny McPherson 	February to May, from July 	46 	74 	83
60 	Heath Hope 	Sebastian Dowling 	Until August, from November 	45 	204 	78
60 	Isaac Dingle 	Harvey Brook, Bobby Dunsmuir and Elias Walker	January to March, May to July, from September 	45 	87 	60
62 	Cathy Hope 	Gabrielle Dowling 	Until August, from November 	44 	202 	78
62 	Lisa Dingle 	Jane Cox 	Until May 	44 	2689 	34
64 	Leyla Harding 	Roxy Shahidi 	Until January, from October 	43 	973 	22
65 	Ryan Stocks 	James Moore and Florence Spencer 	May to September, from November 	38 	38 	N/A
66 	Gerry Roberts 	Shaun Thomas 	Until May 	36 	90 	54
67 	Samson Dingle 	Sam Hall 	Until February, from June 	32 	392 	71
68 	Leanna Cavanagh 	Mimi Slinger 	March, May to June, August, from October 	30 	30 	N/A
69 	Manpreet Jutla 	Rebecca Sarker 	From July 	25 	25 	N/A
70 	Dotty Thomas 	Tilly-Rue Foster 	February to August, from November 	24 	78 	63
71 	Leo Goskirk 	Harvey Rogerson 	Until January, April, July to August, from October	23 	220 	66
72 	Jack Sugden 	Seth Ball 	Until February, May to August, from October 	22 	171 	66
73 	Dawn Taylor 	Olivia Bromley 	April to July, from October 	21 	21 	N/A
74 	Angelica King 	Rebecca Bakes 	February to April, August, from November 	20 	266 	78
75 	Johnny Woodfield 	Luca Hepworth 	March, June to September, from November 	19 	93 	82
76 	Elliot Windsor 	Luca Hoyle 	February to April, July to August, from November 	15 	102 	81
76 	Pearl Ladderbanks 	Meg Johnson 	February to May, July to August, from November 	15 	1102 	58
78 	Kyle Winchester 	Huey Quinn 	March, May to June, August, from December 	13 	131 	70
79 	Amba Metcalfe 	Ava Jayasinghe 	February to April, July to August 	12 	87 	76
80 	Carl Holliday 	Charlie Munro Joyce 	March to April, July to August, from November 	10 	59 	86
80 	Sandy Thomas 	Freddie Jones 	February only 	10 	815 	56
82 	Chrissie White 	Louise Marwood 	Until January 	6 	485 	15
82 	Lawrence White 	John Bowe 	Until January 	6 	408 	23
84 	Billy Fletcher 	Billy Fletcher 	From December 	5 	5 	N/A
84 	Eliza Macey 	Kyrena Robinson 	March to April 	5 	70 	68
84 	Kim Tate 	Claire King 	October only 	5 	810 	N/A
87 	Adam Barton 	Adam Thomas 	Until January 	2 	1014 	18
87 	Ashley Thomas 	John Middleton 	February only 	2 	2242 	64
==Storylines==
===January===
To be added.
==Who lives where==
Main Street
*Mulberry Cottage - Laurel, Arthur and Dotty Thomas. Sandy Thomas (until February). Lydia Hart (until April). Bob, Cathy and Heath Hope (May to November). Doug Potts (from June).
* The Grange - Liam and Leanna Cavanagh (from October). Bob Hope (from November).
*The Woolpack - Chas, Charity, Noah and Moses Dingle. Debbie Dingle and Sarah and Jack Sugden (January to March). Paddy Kirk (from April). Vanessa and Johnny Woodfield (from December).
*Woodbine Cottage - Harriet Finch and Pearl Ladderbanks.
*Tug Ghyll - Vanessa and Johnny Woodfield (until December). Leyla Harding (until January, from October). Tracy Metcalfe (from March). Frank Clayton (July to August, from November). Maya Stepney (from December).
*Dale Head - Dan and Amelia Spencer and Kerry Wyatt. Daz Spencer (until May, from October).
*Mill Cottage
**Apartment One - Aaron Dingle. Robert Sugden (from February). Sebastian White (March to November). Liv Flaherty (until April, from June). Gerry Roberts (until May).
**Apartment Two - Jessie Grant (March to December).
*Dale View - Ross Barton and Moses Dingle (both until November). Pete Barton (until August).
*Connelton View - Brenda Walker. Bob Hope (until May). Cathy and Heath Hope (until May, from November).
*Victoria Cottage - Jimmy, Nicola and Angelica King, Elliot Windsor and Carl Holliday. Rodney Blackstock (February to August, from December). Misty Allbright (April to August).
*Keepers Cottage - Victoria Barton. Robert Sugden (until February). Sebastian White (January to March). Rebecca White (February to July, September to November).
*Brook Cottage - Diane Sugden, Bernice Blackstock and Gabby Thomas. Doug Potts (until June). Daz Spencer (May to June, July to October).
Church Lane
*Farrers Barn - David Metcalfe and Jacob Gallagher. Tracy Metcalfe (until March). Frank Clayton (until February). Priya Kotecha and Amba Metcalfe (March to April). Maya Stepney (October to December).
*Tenant House - Megan and Eliza Macey. Frank Clayton (February to July and August to November).
*Jacobs Fold - Debbie Dingle and Sarah and Jack Sugden (until January, March to November).
Hotten Road
*Smithy Cottage - Rhona and Leo Goskirk. Pete Barton (from August).
*Butlers Farm - Moira and Isaac Dingle. Faith Dingle (until March). Cain Dingle and Kyle Winchester (from March). Matty Barton (from July). Debbie Dingle and Sarah and Jack Sugden (from November)
Cricketer's Row
*Tall Trees Cottage - Marlon Dingle and April Windsor. Paddy Kirk (until April). Ellis Chapman (from September). Jessie Grant and Billy Fletcher (from December).
Robblesfield Way
*Wishing Well Barn - Eric Pollard. Faith Dingle (from March). Rodney Blackstock (August to December).
*Wishing Well Cottage - Sam, Belle and Samson Dingle. Lachlan White (January to September). Cain Dingle and Kyle Winchester (until March). Lisa Dingle (until May). Zak Dingle (until October) Lydia Hart (from April).
*Holdgate Farm - Jai and Rishi Sharma. Priya Kotecha and Amba Metcalfe (until March, from April).
Connelton Lane
*Home Farm - Lawrence, Chrissie, Rebecca, Lachlan and Sebastian White (until January). Joe Tate (January to October). Graham Foster (January to August, from September).
Other
*Leeds - Ryan Stocks.
==Who works where==
Main Street
*The Grange - Eric Pollard and Diane Sugden. Doug Potts (until July). Tracy Metcalfe (from March).
*The Woolpack - Chas, Charity, Faith and Marlon Dingle, Victoria Barton and Lydia Hart. Rebecca White (March to July, October to November). Matty Barton (September to December). Bob Hope (from November)
*Beauty & Bernice - Bernice Blackstock and Kerry Wyatt.
*Take A Vow - Megan Macey. Leyla Harding (until November).
*Barton and Dingle Automotives - Cain Dingle and Dan Spencer. Ross Barton (until January, July to November). Debbie Dingle (from November).
*Café Main Street - Brenda Walker, and Rodney Blackstock. Bob Hope (until August). Daz Spencer (until August)
Church Lane
*David's Shop - David Metcalfe. Tracy Metcalfe and Frank Clayton (until March). Matty Barton (from August)
*St. Mary's Church - Harriet Finch (until January, from March). Rhys (February to March).
Hotten Road
*Emmerdale Veterinary Surgery - Paddy Kirk, Rhona Goskirk, Vanessa Woodfield and Pearl Ladderbanks.
*Butlers Farm - Moira Dingle and Pete Barton. Ross Barton (January to July). Sam Dingle. Matty Barton (July only).
Robblesfield Way
*Sharma & Sharma Sweet Factory - Jai and Rishi Sharma, Priya Kotecha, Nicola King, Laurel Thomas, Kerry Wyatt and Lydia Hart. Lisa Dingle (until May). Frank Clayton (from April).
*Holey Scrap - Aaron Dingle. Gerry Roberts (until May). Ellis Chapman (from November).
*Home James Haulage - Robert Sugden and Jimmy King.
Other
*Home Farm Estate - Lawrence, Chrissie, Rebecca and Lachlan White, Sam Dingle and Lydia Hart (until January). Graham Foster (from January). Joe Tate (January to October). Priya Kotecha (from August). Nicola King (from November).
*Connelton Primary School - Jessie Grant (until July).
*Hotten Academy- Maya Stepney. Jessie Grant (from July).
*Abbott Lane Surgery - Liam Cavanagh. Manpreet Jutla (from July).
*Waterhouse International - Graham Foster. Jimmy King (until April). Joe Tate (until October). Nicola King (from November). Debbie Dingle (January only). 
==Awards and nominations==
National Television Awards
*Best Serial Drama: Emmerdale (Winner)
*Best Newcomer: Ned Porteous (Nominee)
*Best Serial Drama Performance: Danny Miller (Nominee)
Television and Radio Industries Club Awards'
*Soap of the Year: Emmerdale (Winner)
*Best Soap Actor: Ryan Hawley (Winner)
British Soap Awards
* Best Soap: Emmerdale (Nominee)
* Best Actor: Michael Parr (Nominee), Ryan Hawley (Nominee)
* Best Actress: Emma Atkins (Nominee)
* Greatest Soap Moment: Hotten Bypass Crash (2016) (Winner)
* Villain of the Year: Gillian Kearney (Nominee)
* Best Male Dramatic Performance: Jeff Hordley (Nominee)
* Best Female Dramatic Performance: Natalie J Robb (Nominee)
* Best Storyline: Who Killed Emma? (Nominee)
* Best Newcomer: Andrew Scarborough (Nominee)
* Best Young Actor: Isobel Steele (Winner)
* Best Onscreen Partnership: Ned Porteous and Andrew Scarborough (Nominee)
* Best Single Episode: Cain and Faith Flashback (Episode 7992 (17th November 2017)) (Nominee)
* Best Comedy Performance: Sally Dexter (Nominee)
* Scene of the Year: Emma meets her fate (Nominee)
TV Choice Awards
* Best Soap Newcomer: Ned Porteous (Winner), Andrew Scarborough (Nominee)
* Best Soap Actor: Ryan Hawley (Nominee)
* Best Soap Actress: Emma Atkins (Winner)
* Best Soap: Emmerdale (Nominee)
Inside Soap Awards
*Best Actress: Emma Atkins (Winner)
*Best Bad Boy: Thomas Atkinson (Nominee), Ned Porteous (Nominee)
*Best Bad Girl: Sally Dexter (Nominee)
*Funniest Male: Mark Charnock (Nominee), Shaun Thomas (Nominee)
*Best Newcomer: Ash Palmisciano (Winner)
*Best Young Actor: Isobel Steele (Winner)
*Best Partnership: Danny Miller and Ryan Hawley (Nominee)
*Best Shock Twist: Lachlan Kills Gerry (Nominee), Moira Gives Birth (Nominee)
*Best Exit: Shaun Thomas (Nominee)
*Soap Superstar: Male: Danny Miller (Winner)
*Best Soap: Emmerdale (Nominee)
Digital Spy Reader Awards
*Best Soap (Evening): Emmerdale (Winner)
*Best Soap Actor (Female): Emma Atkins (Nominee), Lucy Pargeter (Winner)
*Best Soap Actor (Male): Michael Parr (Nominee), Ryan Hawley (Winner)
*Best Soap Storyline: Lachlan's reign of terror (Nominee), Charity fights for justice against DI Bails (Nominee)
*Best Soap Couple: Vanessa Woodfield and Charity Dingle (Nominee), Robert Sugden and Aaron Dingle (Winner)
*Biggest OMG Soap Moment: Cain and Graham kill Joe (Nominee), Lachlan kills his family in the crash (Nominee)
*Most Devastating Soap Death: Joe Tate (Nominee), Gerry Roberts (Winner)
*Most Bizzare Soap Storyline: Rodney and Misty's infatuation (Nominee), Rebecca's death fakeouts (Nominee)
*Best Soap Newcomer: Ash Palmisciano (Nominee), James Moore (Nominee)
*Best Soap Stunt: Gerry's demise at the B & B (Nominee), The White family's car crash (Nominee)
Category:Emmerdale year-by-year
Category:2018