John Middleton and
Elizabeth Estensen
Elizabeth Estensen (born 10 August 1949) is an English actress, known for portraying the role of Diane Sugden on the ITV soap opera '' Emmerdale'' from 1999 to 2021, with a guest stint in 2022. She has also made appearances in various British te ...
.
Meeks joked that he worried about there being a "Geordie overload".
In February 2006, it was reported that Meeks' character, Simon would be written out alongside his mother,
Lesley Meredith (
Sherrie Hewson
Sherrie Lynn Hutchinson (born 17 September 1950) is an English actress, television personality and novelist. She is known for her roles as Maureen Holdsworth in ''Coronation Street'' (1993–1997, 2006), Virginia Raven in '' Crossroads'' (2001� ...
).
Meeks said ""I'm so grateful to Emmerdale for giving me such a fantastic opportunity. Simon has been a great character to play. It's been an amazing two-and-a-half years. I've enjoyed every minute.
After leaving the serial, Meeks spoke to the BBC "It was the best time of my life. I think it was a popular character and people are saying 'When are you going back to Emmerdale?' – you never know," he said. "It was a great period of time, I still live in Leeds and I'm still in touch with a lot of the members of the cast. I still stand by it, I think of all the soaps on the telly it's got a brilliant blend."
Simon arrives in the village making a fish delivery to Cafe Hope. Nicola Blackstock asks her friend
Emily Kirk
Emily Kirk (also Wylie and Dingle) is a fictional character from the British television soap opera ''Emmerdale'', played by Kate McGregor. She made her first appearance in the episode broadcast on 5 May 1999. Initially portrayed as nervous and na ...
(
Kate McGregor
Kate McGregor (born 1972) is an English actress known for her portrayal of the character Emily Kirk in British soap opera '' Emmerdale''.
Early life
Born in Yorkshire, England, McGregor attended the now defunct Bretton Hall College of Educ ...
) to arrange a date with Simon's colleague Kenny Wade (Victor Gardener) but Emily mistakenly invites Simon, much to Nicola's horror. Nicola is rude to Simon but he takes it in his stride and she storms off. In spite of this Simon continues to pursue Nicola and they eventually begin dating. When Nicola asks
Syd Woolfe (
Nathan Gladwell) to be her date for her school reunion, Simon is hurt when he overhears Nicola thanking Syd as he planned to propose. Nicola soon realises she has hurt Simon and publicly declares her love for him. Simon then proposes and Nicola accepts. Their happiness does not last for long. The reappearance of Simon's ex-fiancée
Tash Abbott
The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the British soap opera '' Emmerdale'' in 2004, by order of first appearance. All characters were introduced by the soap's executive producer, Keith Richardson.
Val Pollard
Carl Ki ...
(Sally Evans) sets off the green eyed-monster in Nicola and the two women come to blows. Furious at Nicola's jealous behaviour, Simon flees to his mother Lesley's in
Scarborough - followed by Nicola. Desperate not to lose him, Nicola launches an impassioned speech and Simon finally accepts she properly loves him. The couple get re-engaged and buy Mulberry Cottage in Emmerdale and it looks like they are set for a happy beginning to their marriage.
However, unbeknown to Simon, Lesley has run their business into the ground and in a matter of weeks, they lose everything. When Nicola asks her father
Rodney Blackstock (
Patrick Mower
Patrick Mower (born Patrick Archibald Shaw; 12 September 1938) is an English actor who has portrayed the role of Rodney Blackstock in the ITV soap opera ''Emmerdale'' since 2000. As well as portraying Rodney, Mower has appeared in various film ...
) for some money to bail them out and Simon is horrified and it remains a bone of contention between the couple as Nicola cannot live without money and Simon's meager wages from working as a binman are barely enough to stay afloat. Their lodger
Ivan Jones (
Daniel Brocklebank
Daniel Brocklebank (born 21 December 1979) is a British actor, best known for portraying the roles of Ivan Jones in the ITV soap opera ''Emmerdale'' (2005–2006), and Billy Mayhew in ITV's other long-running soap ''Coronation Street'' (2014 ...
), who is dating Nicola's half-brother
Paul Lambert
Paul Lambert (born 7 August 1969) is a Scottish professional football manager and former player, who was most recently the manager of Ipswich Town.
Lambert played as a midfielder and won the Scottish Cup in 1987 with St Mirren as a 17-year- ...
(
Mathew Bose) finds himself in the middle of their rows. Nicola tries to seduce Ivan but is caught by Lesley and when it is revealed it causes ructions and Simon disowns both Nicola and Ivan. Nicola soon leaves but Simon and Ivan get their friendship back on track. Following Lesley's departure with old flame
Bobby-John Downes (
Brian Hibbard), and Simon making a clumsy pass at
Diane Sugden
Diane Sugden (also Blackstock) is a fictional character from the British soap opera ''Emmerdale'', played by Elizabeth Estensen. Since her first appearance in 1999, she has been involved in several high-profile storylines, including her marria ...
(Estensen), He and Ivan become dissatisfied with life in the village and decide to leave for
Costa Rica on 2 August 2006.
Ethan Blake
Ethan Blake is a
curate
A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...
at Emmerdale's church working alongside vicar
Ashley Thomas.
Debbie Dingle
Debbie Dingle (also Jones and Barton) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Emmerdale'', played by Charley Webb. Webb has taken maternity leave three times, with the first time being in 2010 and the second throughout 201 ...
who tries to seduce him but he rebuffs her advances. In October 2004, Cain discovers Debbie has been seeing someone and when Debbie lies that she went to the church, Cain gets the wrong idea and beats up Ethan, believing that he has been sleeping with Debbie. Ashley is disappointed and angry when Ethan confesses he kissed Debbie (when he was actually thinking of Niamh, not Debbie) and is worried when Ethan receives a death threat from Cain. Cain then destroys Ethan's car and attacks Ethan again. Zak and Ashley restrain Cain long enough for Debbie to swear on Noah's life that Ethan never touched her. Cain then leaves Ethan alone, with a badly bruised and bleeding face. Ethan then calls Niamh as he needs a friend. Ethan conducts the funeral of vet and a good friend of the village
Max King in October 2005 while Ashley goes to
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
for three weeks.
Ethan later leaves the village in disgrace after he tries to break up Ashley and his wife
Laurel Potts' relationship. He returns a year later with
Emily Kirk
Emily Kirk (also Wylie and Dingle) is a fictional character from the British television soap opera ''Emmerdale'', played by Kate McGregor. She made her first appearance in the episode broadcast on 5 May 1999. Initially portrayed as nervous and na ...
but does not stay long due to the previous unpleasantness with Ashley, as Ethan leaves the village for Dublin.
Denzil Calburn
Police Constable Denzil Calburn, played by Danny Lawrence, is a
police officer
A police officer (also called a policeman and, less commonly, a policewoman) is a warranted law employee of a police force. In most countries, "police officer" is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. In some, the use of the ...
. He appeared intermittently for two years from 2003 to 2005. Lawrence told ''
The Manchester Evening News
The ''Manchester Evening News'' (''MEN'') is a regional daily newspaper covering Greater Manchester in North West England, founded in 1868. It is published Monday–Saturday; a Sunday edition, the ''MEN on Sunday'', was launched in February 20 ...
'': "Originally I went in for a one-line reading. The character didn't even have a name when I read for the part. But I must have done something right because I won the role and they have asked me back on a number of occasions since."
Of his cast mates, Lawrence said: "The cast of Emmerdale are great fun to work with and there is no hierarchy, not even with the older established stars on the show."
Patsy Kensit
Patricia Jude Kensit (born 4 March 1968) is an English actress and was the lead singer of the pop band Eighth Wonder in the 1980s.
Beginning her career as a child actor, Kensit gained attention when she acted in a string of commercials for Bird ...
is a lovely lady as well and the younger members of the cast are great fun too. I was also lucky enough to meet
Stan Richards
Stanley Richardson, known professionally as Stan Richards (8 December 1930 – 11 February 2005), was an English television actor, best known for his portrayal of Seth Armstrong in the ITV soap opera ''Emmerdale''.
Career
He played the r ...
-
Seth Armstrong
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 due to appear for just a few episodes, but ...
- just before he died. He was a national institution and a great bloke."
Denzil first appears when he arrests
Cain Dingle
Cain Dingle is a fictional character from the British soap opera '' Emmerdale'', played by Jeff Hordley. Cain made his first appearance on 30 March 2000, and in 2006, he was written out of the series when Hordley left the soap; however, the op ...
(
Jeff Hordley) for physically assaulting his cousin
Charity Tate (
Emma Atkins
Emma Jayne Atkins (born 31 March 1975) is an English actress, best known for her role as Charity Dingle in the ITV soap opera ''Emmerdale''.
Early life
Atkins grew up in the village of Silverdale, Lancashire, and then went to study at the Uni ...
). He later arrives when
Jack Sugden
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. ...
(
Clive Hornby
Clive William Hornby (20 October 1944 – 3 July 2008) was an English actor, best known for his role as Jack Sugden in the ITV soap opera ''Emmerdale''. He first appeared in the programme (then named ''Emmerdale Farm'') in 1980, and remained in ...
) reports his land rover stolen but the matter is resolved when Jack's adoptive son,
Andy Sugden
Andy Sugden (also Hopwood) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera, ''Emmerdale'', played by Kelvin Fletcher. He made his first on-screen appearance on 4 July 1996. Andy is the son of Billy Hopwood ( David Crellin) and Trish ...
(
Kelvin Fletcher
Kelvin Warren Fletcher (born 17 January 1984) is an English actor, model, racing driver and presenter. He played Andy Sugden in the ITV soap opera ''Emmerdale'', a role he played from 1996 until 2016. In 2019, Fletcher won the seventeenth se ...
), knowing his half-brother
Daz Eden
Daz Eden is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Emmerdale'', played by Luke Tittensor. He made his first appearance in the show on 9 October 2003. Six years into his tenure on the soap, it was announced that Tittensor had ...
(
Luke Tittensor
Luke James Tittensor (born 3 November 1989) is an English actor best known for his role as Carl Gallagher in '' Shameless'' (a role he shared with his twin brother, Elliott Tittensor) and his role as Daz Eden in ''Emmerdale''.
Career
Tittenso ...
) has taken it, falsely tells Denzil that he had borrowed the car and Jack reluctantly corroborates Andy's story. However, the following day Daz is arrested when
Rodney Blackstock (
Patrick Mower
Patrick Mower (born Patrick Archibald Shaw; 12 September 1938) is an English actor who has portrayed the role of Rodney Blackstock in the ITV soap opera ''Emmerdale'' since 2000. As well as portraying Rodney, Mower has appeared in various film ...
) reports his car stolen. When Jack and Andy arrive at the station, Denzil tells them Daz is on a final warning as he has form for joyriding. He then reveals to Jack and Andy that Daz has been on a young offenders programme and will be appearing in court following this offence. A few months later, he questions the Dingle family over the theft of some whisky and investigates Jack Sugden's shooting and then is involved in the investigation of Paul Marsden's death. Denzil and his colleague tend to
Zoe Tate (
Leah Bracknell) when she has a schizophrenic episode.
In 2005, Denzil has a brief relationship with
Chas Dingle
Chas Dingle (also Spencer) is a fictional character from the British soap opera ''Emmerdale'', played by Lucy Pargeter. She made her first appearance during the episode broadcast on 16 October 2002. Chas returned on 21 September 2003. Chas wa ...
after he offers to change a flat tyre for her when she breaks down on the side of the road. However, she later falls in love with
Carl King. Denzil breaks up with Chas when she repeatedly lies for her lawbreaking father
Shadrach Dingle (
Andy Devine
Andrew Vabre Devine (October 7, 1905 – February 18, 1977) was an American character actor known for his distinctive raspy, crackly voice and roles in Western films, including his role as Cookie, the sidekick of Roy Rogers in 10 feature f ...
), who steals Denzil's patrol car, humiliating him. Denzil returns to give evidence at Zoe's trial for the attempted murder of
Scott Windsor (
Ben Freeman
Benedict Freeman (born 8 April 1980) is an English actor, known for portraying the role of Scott Windsor in the ITV soap opera '' Emmerdale''. After leaving ''Emmerdale'' in 2007, he embarked on a career in musical theatre, and has since play ...
) in September.
Gordon Livesy
Gordon Livesy, played by Gerard Fletcher, made his first screen appearance on 2 December 2003. In November 2015, it was announced that the character would return the following month, with
Gary Mavers taking over the role.
Daniel Kilkelly of
Digital Spy
Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television programmes, ...
reported that Gordon's return would allow the show "to delve back into the past of Chas and Aaron, with a busy few months ahead for both of them."
In 2016, Gordon become involved in a child abuse storyline after it is revealed that Gordon sexually abused Aaron when he was a child. Gordon departed on 11 May 2016 after he received his sentence.
Gordon is the former husband of
Chas Dingle
Chas Dingle (also Spencer) is a fictional character from the British soap opera ''Emmerdale'', played by Lucy Pargeter. She made her first appearance during the episode broadcast on 16 October 2002. Chas returned on 21 September 2003. Chas wa ...
(
Lucy Pargeter
Lucy Kate Pargeter (born 1 March 1977) is an English actress, known for her roles as Helen Raven in '' Crossroads'' (2002–2003) and Chas Dingle in ''Emmerdale'' (2002–present). She also finished third in the 13th series of the ITV reality ...
) and the father of
Aaron Livesy
Aaron Dingle (previously Sugden-Dingle, also Livesy) is a fictional character from the British soap opera '' Emmerdale'', played by Danny Miller. The character was originally played by Danny Webb and appeared in a recurring capacity. Aaron ma ...
(Danny Webb/
Danny Miller) and Liv Flaherty (
Isobel Steele). Gordon (Gerard Fletcher) visits Emmerdale when he drops off Aaron (Webb) to spend time with Chas. When
Louise Appleton (
Emily Symons) tells him that she saw Chas hit Aaron, Gordon is angry and takes Aaron home, telling Chas that in future she will only see him if it is what Aaron wants. Gordon later appears when Aaron (now played by Miller) is arrested after becoming a drug mule for the McFarlanes, a local crime family. Chas goes to the police station and later visits Gordon to find out what had been going on. Gordon tells her that he had thrown Aaron out after he hit his wife
Sandra (Janet Bamford), with whom he has a child. Aaron later asks to go back to his father's, but Gordon says they need a break from him and insists he stay with Chas. Later that night, Aaron vandalises Gordon's office, although Gordon cannot prove it.
Seven years later, Gordon (now played by
Gary Mavers) meets
Diane Sugden
Diane Sugden (also Blackstock) is a fictional character from the British soap opera ''Emmerdale'', played by Elizabeth Estensen. Since her first appearance in 1999, she has been involved in several high-profile storylines, including her marria ...
(
Elizabeth Estensen
Elizabeth Estensen (born 10 August 1949) is an English actress, known for portraying the role of Diane Sugden on the ITV soap opera '' Emmerdale'' from 1999 to 2021, with a guest stint in 2022. She has also made appearances in various British te ...
) in an
oncologist
Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with the study, treatment, diagnosis and prevention of cancer. A medical professional who practices oncology is an ''oncologist''. The name's etymological origin is the Greek word ὄγκος (''ó ...
s waiting room. He reveals that to her that he has regrets about being estranged from Aaron, but asks Diane not to tell anyone that she saw him. Gordon later visits Chas and Aaron. He and Chas reconnect and begin dating again, which upsets Aaron when he sees them together. Aaron tells his ex-lover
Robert Sugden
Robert Sugden (also Sugden-Dingle) is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera ''Emmerdale''. The character originally appeared on the show regularly between 22 April 1986 and 3 October 2005. During that time he was first played ...
(
Ryan Hawley
Ryan Alexander Hawley (born 21 September 1985) is an English actor, known for his portrayal of Robert Sugden in the ITV soap opera ''Emmerdale'' from 2014 to 2019.
Early life
Hawley, son of Christine and Steve, spent his childhood partly in ...
) that Gordon is the real reason why he self-harms but refuses to explain why. The next day, Aaron runs away from hospital and Robert tracks him down. Aaron tells Robert that Gordon raped him when he was 8 years old.
The following day, Robert comes face to face with Gordon and confronts him about what he did to Aaron when he was a child. Gordon denies it and Robert warns Gordon, telling him to leave town or he will finish him off. When Aaron is being prepared for discharge, Robert tells him he could be affected by false memory syndrome after being convinced by Gordon that Aaron has made the whole thing up but Aaron tells Robert that he is not lying. Aaron is horrified and he confronts Gordon about his twisted lies. Gordon later leaves after being accused of child abuse towards Aaron.
In February 2016, after a day at the seaside, Aaron admits to Chas that Gordon raped him and tells her the details of his rape. Chas then goes over to Gordon's house in order to confront him. Gordon lies and tells her that he did not rape Aaron but the truth comes out. Chas later tells her half-brother
Cain Dingle
Cain Dingle is a fictional character from the British soap opera '' Emmerdale'', played by Jeff Hordley. Cain made his first appearance on 30 March 2000, and in 2006, he was written out of the series when Hordley left the soap; however, the op ...
(
Jeff Hordley) about Gordon raping Aaron. Cain leaves and plans to get revenge on Gordon.
The next day, Gordon returns from shopping to find somebody has broken into his house and has wrecked it. Cain then walks in and knocks him out because of what he did to Aaron, tying him up in the process. When Gordon awakes Cain is preparing to drug him. Gordon still denies raping Aaron. As Cain is about to drug him, Aaron and Chas walk in and Aaron stops Cain from killing Gordon as he does not wish for Cain to be charged with murder. Aaron says he will report Gordon to police for what he did to him. Gordon is then reported to the police and taken in for questioning, but he tells the police about Cain attempting to force him take his own life, so the police then question Cain. Cain's wife
Moira Dingle
Moira Dingle (also Barton) is a fictional character from the British soap opera '' Emmerdale'', played by Natalie J. Robb. The actress successfully auditioned for the role after a call came through her agent. Robb's character and her family we ...
(
Natalie J. Robb
Natalie Joy Robb (born 3 December 1974) is a Scottish actress and singer. She played the roles of Trish McDonald in the Scottish Television soap opera ''Take the High Road'' (1990–1999) and Jude Carlyle in the BBC soap opera ''Doctors'' (2001� ...
) and Chas both cover for him and tell the police that Cain was with them all night.
The next day, Aaron goes to the scrapyard to find that Gordon is in the office waiting for him. Gordon threatens Aaron and tells him that if he does not recant his statement, then he will find a way to make sure Cain is locked up for threatening him.
2 weeks later, Chas vandalises Gordon's car, sprays 'Paedo' on the car and shouts at neighbours accusations of Gordons activities. Robert arrives and drags Chas away. Chas then received a warning by
DS Wise (
Neil Roberts). Aaron arrived and was furious at what his mother had done. When Chas arrived at the police station, Aaron told her to tell the officers that Gordon is innocent or he will walk away from her. However Chas reveals the situation to Diane,
Doug Potts (
Duncan Preston
Duncan Preston (born 11 August 1946) is an English actor. He is known for his appearances in television productions written by Victoria Wood, including his role in the soap opera parody sketches ''Acorn Antiques'' and as Stan in the sitcom '' d ...
),
James
James is a common English language surname and given name:
*James (name), the typically masculine first name James
* James (surname), various people with the last name James
James or James City may also refer to:
People
* King James (disambiguat ...
(
Bill Ward),
Emma (
) and
Finn Barton (
Joe Gill
Joseph P. Gill (July 13, 1919 – December 17, 2006) Goodman">/nowiki>Martin/nowiki> Goodman – who wnedMarvel later – into comics, and did the first omicsin my brother's office". Gill is reportedly among the writers who scripted Captain Ame ...
), telling them that Gordon abused Aaron. This left Aaron upset and furious at Chas for revealing his secret to the public and told her to stay away from him.
3 days later, another male victim came forward to the police and says Gordon abused him but later, revealed Robert paid Gordon's neighbour
Ryan Harred (
George Sampson
George William Sampson (born 29 June 1993) is an English street dancer, television presenter, singer, and actor. He won the second series of ''Britain's Got Talent'' on 31 May 2008 at the age of 14. He is an official ambassador of the United Da ...
) to lie to the police to get Gordon charges. Gordon went to the pub to see Chas, believe she paid Ryan to lie to the police but have no idea it was Robert. Gordon pinned Chas against a wall and threatening her. Chas' cousin
Marlon Dingle
Marlon Dingle is a fictional character from the British television soap opera ''Emmerdale'', played by Mark Charnock. He made his first appearance during the episode broadcast on 17 October 1996.
Storylines
Marlon comes to Emmerdale to stay wit ...
(
Mark Charnock
Mark Charnock (born 28 August 1968) is an English actor, known for his role in ITV's ''Emmerdale'' as Marlon Dingle, a role he has played since 1996. Charnock and ''Emmerdale'' co-star Dominic Brunt, who plays Paddy Kirk, produce a yearly ''Z ...
) walk in and grab Gordon away from Chas before the police arrived and they took Gordon away. Later, Robert admits to Chas, he was the person who paid Ryan. 2 days later, Aaron learns about Robert's deal with Ryan, Aaron warns Robert, if the case fall apart, he will blamed it on him. The next day, Aaron visits Ryan and told him to drop his statement and keep the money what Robert give. Then Aaron visiting Gordon who told Aaron that he's blown the case, insisting that he'll inform the police about his lying before close the door on him. Aaron returns and learns the police had charges Gordon.
In March 2016, in his plea hearing, Gordon pretended to be struggling to walk, and collapsed, explaining it was the side effects of his chemotherapy. Gordon pleaded not guilty and he was released on bail once again. Gordon requested to be escorted from the court. The following day, Gordon's daughter, Liv, visited him. Liv questioned him about Aaron's allegations, but Gordon protested his innocence and gave Liv his mother's necklace. Liv later ran out of Gordon's house and into Aaron, and apologised to her brother. The following day, Liv and Gordon met up and Liv informed him that her mother had made a statement to the police.
In April 2016, Liv meet up with Gordon when Gordon tells Liv about Aaron's involvement of warehouse robbery nearly 5 months ago and he believe Aaron pay Ryan to lie to the police. The next day, when Liv and Gordon meet up, Liv told him she don't wanted to help him that results Gordon telling Liv get out of the cat before drive off. Later, Aaron found out Liv had been spying on him for Gordon, Aaron went to Gordon's house when he confronts him about Liv. Gordon turns it round on him and tells Aaron he is the one who doesn't deserve to know Liv but Aaron stand up to Gordon. Aaron tells Gordon he'll see him in court before walks away. During court Gordon tries to blame it on Aaron by saying he just wanted to break up him and Chas. However he is later found guilty of rape.
On 11 May 2016, Gordon is sentenced to 18 years imprisonment. The next day Aaron gets a visit from DS Wise who tell him and Liv that Gordon has died after committing suicide in prison by hanging.
Aaron Livesy
References
{{Emmerdale characters, year
2003
File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia Space Shuttle Columbia disaster, disintegrated during reentry into Atmosphere of Earth, Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an 2002– ...
*, Emmerdale