Tricia Dingle

Patricia Susan "Tricia" Dingle (née Stokes, previously Fisher) was the daughter of Steph Forsythe and granddaughter of Alan Turner. She was the wife of Marlon Dingle until her death caused by the storm in 2004. 
==Biography==
===1998: Arrival and relationship with Terry Woods===
Tricia arrived at the Woolpack out of the blue in September 1998. Alan, who has had troubled relationships with his offspring, didn't recognise her initially, but quickly took her to his heart. She was a big hit behind the bar of the Woolpack, especially with the men of Emmerdale, and could wrap Alan around her little finger.
Tricia was a born tease, and immediately caught the attention of Terry Woods, especially after she took him breakfast in bed dressed in a skimpy nightie. He was so smitten he took her shopping and forked out for a sexy new dress. This got him into trouble with Alan for missing his shift at the Woolpack. Terry was convinced she felt the same and was crushed when she rejected his advances.
Tricia tried to help out in the Woolpack but contributed towards its destruction when fireworks she bought set alight and burned down the pub. She slept with both Terry and Scott Windsor, but was mortified both when Scott told Terry about their fling and when Terry spilled the beans to the drinkers in the village hall. She felt terribly guilty about her treatment of Terry and was sorry when he came back to the village on Christmas Day only to discover the tragic news about his friend Vic Windsor.
===1999-2002: Rivalry and friendship with Bernice Blackstock===
Tricia was put out when Alan appointed Bernice Blackstock bar manager instead of her (she tried her best to get the job ad, even put together a CV); had a mud fight with her work colleague Mandy Dingle; discovers Bernice's plan and laughs at her with Mandy; is surprised when Scott cannot perform in bed with her; goes to the vets ball but doesn't enjoy being groped all night; thinks Bernice made Gavin Ferris up and is a lunatic; sleeps with Gavin behind Bernice's back; comforts Roy Glover before his wedding; tries to get the village to buy the Woolpack; flirts with Chris Tate in the hope that he will give her the money; wants to plan her own theme night to prove she is better than Bernice. Hollywood night went well until a drag queen Marilyn Monroe impersonator turned up and caused a near-riot. Tricia realised she couldn't make cocktails either and had to beg Bernice to help out. She decided to get her revenge on Bernice at the summer fair, where they both had rival beer tents. She hitched Bernice's marquee to Jack Sugden's car and pulled it down.
Since it became clear Bernice was going to take over the pub, she and Tricia had buried the hatchet somewhat. Tricia wasn't silly though – she blackmailed Gavin to ensure that she and her granddad could stay on at the pub after the takeover – and she 'forgot' to mention that Bernice's name was spelt wrong on the new pub sign. She was also not keen on Bernice's feng shui fad – or as she called it, Chop Suey!
Paddy Kirk's cousin Jason arrived in the village just before Christmas. They hit it off straight away and she thought finally that he could be the man for her. However, Jason had a secret – he was gay and had promised Paddy he wouldn't tell anyone. Tricia and Bernice found him out in the most shocking way – at Marlon's Aladdin night in the Woolpack, the two women found Jason and Gavin kissing in Bernice's bedroom.
Tricia tried to be strong for Bernice but was wracked with guilt all over Christmas about her own fling with Gavin. Alan told her to stop feeling so sorry for herself.
In December 2000, she married Australian Joe Fisher, but for money, not love - the groom was having a relationship with Jason but needed to marry her to stay in the country. The marriage ended after nearly two years.
===2002-2003: Relationship with Marlon Dingle===
In 2002, Tricia's mother Steph arrived and she also started dating Marlon Dingle. They got engaged and planned to marry on 16th October. However, when the day arrived, it was full of mishaps, such as chewing gum getting stuck in Tricia's hair and eventually injuring her neck when she turned her head around too fast. However, the couple eventually married on Valentine's Day 2003.
Tricia got the chance to work on a Bollywood movie and she and Marlon left the village in April 2003. But, Marlon returned a few days later after problems with getting into the country. During Tricia's absence, he had a one-night stand with his second cousin Charity.
===2003-2004: Death===
Tricia returned in November that year and Marlon constantly acted oddly around her, fearing that she will find out. Eventually, he told her and Tricia struggled to forgive her philandering husband. Tricia decided to leave Marlon. In response, Marlon wrote a list of 101 things he loved about her. Once she was ready to leave at New Year's Eve, just as a severe storm arrived, Diane Blackstock gave her the list. As she reads through the letter whilst waiting in the bus stop and then in a phone box, she finally realised how much Marlon loved her and returned to the Woolpack. However, disaster struck when a nearby tree was hit by lightning, making Tricia stumble back, while another bolt hit the Woolpack roof and caused a window to collapse down on Tricia and sending the chimney to fall through the ceiling and into the packed pub. Diane and Marlon discovered Tricia lying under the rubble. The emergency services were called and Tricia was airlifted to hospital. Marlon followed suit in Diane's car and him, Steph and Alan arrived at the hospital, where the doctor informed them that Tricia had sustained massive internal injuries and was in a critical condition. While Tricia lay unconscious, she went into cardiac arrest. The consultant summoned Marlon to his office and Marlon was told that Tricia was brain dead and the only option was to switch off her machine. Marlon was conflicted over this decision until eventually, he decided it was for the best. Tricia passed away and her organs were donated.
===Legacy===
To this day, Marlon still takes Tricia's death hard and has been mentioned numerous times, such as in 2008 when Donna Windsor, Marlon's wife at the time, had a car crash and vented his anger at Ross Kirk, in 2009 after furiously telling Donna (who had just recently been having an affair with Ross) that Tricia was the love of his life, shortly after at Jack Sugden's funeral when he and Diane discussed losing their respective partners, in 2013, when Marlon gave a eulogy at Alan's funeral and in 2015 when Marlon's dog Daisy died after being run over by his old wife Laurel - he was heartbroken that he'd lost his last link to Tricia.
In late March 2021, Sam Dingle mentioned the huge fight Tricia and Mandy had 22 years earlier in February 1999.
==Background information==
*Tricia's 2001 and 2003 absences were due to Sheree Murphy's periods of maternity leave.
*Sheree Murphy decided to quit the show in September 2003 in order to spend time with her family. Her exit storyline was when she discovered her husband Marlon's one-night stand with his cousin Charity. After Marlon had left a letter listing 101 things he loved about her, she finally realized how much Marlon loved her and returned to the Woolpack, but was critically injured when the Woolpack chimney fell on her; dying from her injuries a few days later.
==See also==
*Full list of appearances
Category:Emmerdale characters
Category:1976 births
Category:2004 deaths
Category:1998 debuts
Category:2004 departures
Category:Turner family
Category:Dingle family
Category:Barmaids
Category:2003 marriages
Category:Residents of Pear Tree Cottage
Category:Residents of Victoria Cottage
Category:Woolpack employees
Category:Residents of The Woolpack
Category:2000 marriages