The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the British soap opera Emmerdale in 1978 and 1979, by order of first appearance.
Meg Armstrong | |||||||
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Emmerdale character | |||||||
Portrayed by | Ursula Camm Ruth Holden | ||||||
Duration | 1979–1980, 1983, 1986 | ||||||
First appearance | 15 May 1979 | ||||||
Last appearance | 10 July 1986 | ||||||
Classification | Former; recurring | ||||||
Introduced by | David Cunliffe (1979) Anne W. Gibbons (1980) Michael Glynn (1983, 1986) | ||||||
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Meg Armstrong is the wife of Seth Armstrong and mother of his sons, Jimmy and Fred. She appeared periodically from 1979 to 1986. [1]
Meg is first seen when her eldest son Jimmy and his fiancé come to stay with them after years living away from home. Meg is happy to see her son despite differences between Jimmy and his parents. Meg is initially portrayed as a downtrodden housewife but in her later appearances she is a highly religious woman, who Seth finds hard to live with. His nickname for her is "poppet". She gets a job as cleaner at The Woolpack pub and accidentally breaks Henry Wilks' favourite pipe. Henry and Amos Brearly decide to fire her but she resigns from her job before they can do so. This is Meg's last onscreen appearance. But she is mentioned several times by Seth over the following years.
Meg dies in February 1993, of a possible stroke, and Seth finds it hard to cope. [1] The villagers help him out with the housework to try to make it easier for him.
Bob Jerome is a vicar. He was portrayed by Richard Howard in 20 episodes from 1979 to 1981. [2]
John Jacob "Jack" Sugden is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Emmerdale. The character was originally played by Andrew Burt from 1972 to 1973 with a brief return in 1976, when the actor left for Italy to write a book. On his return in 1980 he was played by Clive Hornby. Hornby remained in the role until 2008 when he was forced to take a break from Emmerdale due to illness. His last on-screen appearance was on 21 February 2008, and his absence was explained by the character visiting his mother, Annie Sugden in Spain. Although Hornby was intended to return, he died from his illness in July 2008 without returning to the programme. Jack was written out following Hornby's death, dying off-screen of a heart attack in February 2009.
Zak Dingle is a fictional character from the British soap opera Emmerdale, played by Steve Halliwell. He first appeared on 20 October 1994. Halliwell initially joined the show as part of the Dingle family and was only initially supposed to appear for a few episodes, but has become a key part of the soap since his introduction. He has been nominated for several awards for his portrayal of Zak. Some of Zak's storylines have included his wife Nellie divorcing him in 1997, marrying Lisa Clegg in 1998, having a daughter, Belle in 1998, the death of his son, Butch in 2000, Lisa being raped in 2011, assaulting his son Cain and leaving him temporarily paralysed in 2011, suffering a mental breakdown in 2012, trying to control his rebellious daughter and dealing with the death of Lisa. Halliwell died on 15 December 2023, with Zak having made his final appearance on 27 June 2023. On 2 July 2024, it was announced that Zak would be killed off in the programme with a funeral as a tribute to Halliwell.
Edna Birch is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Emmerdale, played by Shirley Stelfox. She made her first appearance during the episode first broadcast on 25 May 2000. Edna is characterised as a proud and independent Christian woman who often judges her neighbours' lifestyles. She is recognisable amongst the public for her pudding-basin hat and dog – firstly, Batley the Yorkshire Terrier, followed by Papillon Tootsie. Many of her stories have involved her dogs, including being run over saving Tootsie and the death of Batley, which won an award. The programme established friendships for Edna with many characters of a similar age, and in later years, she was paired with Sandy Thomas, which generated many comedic scenes.
Betty Eagleton is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Emmerdale, played by Paula Tilbrook. She made her first screen appearance during the episode broadcast on 12 April 1994. Betty is characterised as the village gossip who is kind hearted, fun, adventurous and enjoys a sherry. Tilbrook was initially cast for three episodes and the character was introduced as the wartime girlfriend of Seth Armstrong. Upon her arrival, the characters reconcile and their relationship continues until Seth's death in 2005. Tilbrook retired in 2015 and the character departs in the episode broadcast on 25 May 2015, returning briefly for a cameo appearance in the Christmas episode that year. The character and Tilbrook's performance were widely praised by both viewers and critics alike; Brian Beacom of The Herald labelled her "a national treasure".
Pearl Ladderbanks is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Emmerdale, played by Meg Johnson. She first appeared on the show in episode 3500 on 30 July 2003. Pearl's storylines included defending her rapist son Frank Bernard Hartbourne, being trapped in a fire during the Sugden house explosion, developing a gambling addiction, committing embezzlement in order to feed her gambling and faking Alzheimer's disease to prevent her addiction from being revealed.
Archibald Seth Armstrong is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Emmerdale, played by Stan Richards from 1978 until 2004. The role of Seth began as a temporary "bit part" and he was due to appear for just a few episodes, but proved so popular that further appearances were made until Seth became a full-time regular character in the summer of 1980. Seth continuously annoyed the landlord Amos Brearly and later Alan Turner who took over in 1991, who memorably often shouted "Get out Seth!".
Amos Brearly is a fictional character from the British television soap opera Emmerdale, played by Ronald Magill. He made his first appearance during the serial's debut episode on 16 October 1972. Amos ran The Woolpack pub and was the village gossip. A double act was later formed between Amos and Henry Wilks, which lasted for 19 years. Amos became known for his bushy sideburns and catchphrase "Nay, Mr Wilks". Magill left the show in January 1991, but reprised the role for several brief appearances until July 1995.
Dolly Skilbeck is a fictional character from the British television soap opera Emmerdale. Dolly made her first on-screen appearance during the episode broadcast on 22 February 1977. The character was initially played by Katharine Barker, before Jean Rogers took over the role in 1980. She remained in the role until her departure from Emmerdale in 1991. Dolly is characterised as kind, generous and a homemaker. She is a "townie" from Darlington who arrives in Beckindale to work at the local pub, The Woolpack. Writers quickly developed a romance with Matt Skilbeck. He was a widower and had previously has two children that had died.
Kathy Brookman is a fictional character from the British television soap opera Emmerdale, played by Malandra Burrows. She made her first appearance during the episode broadcast on 26 November 1985. In 2001, new series producer Steve Frost decided to write the character out. Burrows briefly reprised the role in 2005, as Kathy returns for the funeral of Seth Armstrong. She was one of the show's central characters throughout that time.