Spoilers, Charity Dingle, The Metro Article on Jane, Women's health & could Emmerdale do a big return like EastEnders are doing?

 So last week's spoiler pictures showed a car crash involving Charity, Chloe and Mack, and I presume that would be the super soap week. 

And how predictable now! I don't want to complain before seeing it because it could be the best week of Emmerdale's 50 years. But I somehow doubt it, not if it involves Mack, and that's nothing against Lawrence Robb. 

All my moans about characters have nothing to do with the actors or actresses; ultimately, they can only ever act what they are given. They are just doing their job. 

So, back to the spoilers, if you haven't seen them, it shows a car falling over a cliff with what looks like Chloe in the back—charity pulling Mack back, etc. 

I just can't. I despair about what they are doing to Charity. Charity to me is the Kat Slater of Emmerdale; you root for her because you want her to be loved, to be happy. But her writing of her is making you give up on her at times, especially when it comes to Mack. 

Mack and Charity don't work. I don't know what the producers and the writers think we want, but we don't wish Mack and Charity together. 

Charity has been ruined in the past two years, and like Chas, she is in danger of being unredeemable. Watching Emmerdale on ITV3 at the moment is like watching a different Charity! You don't recognise the character, not just because of her hair! 

Charity then would never fall for any of Mack's bullshit! She wouldn't have looked twice at someone like Mack. 

As I've said before, I've always thought she wanted it to work with Mack because she knew she had royally messed up with Vanessa and wanted to prove to everyone that it wasn't in vain. I still stick by this and don't care what the producers say or do. 

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In the mid-2000s, the executive producer of EastEnders, Louise Berridge, oversaw EastEnders at its worst, including making Kat Slater/Moon the most disliked character in the show with her drinking and affairs. Jane is doing precisely the same to Charity Dingle. 

EastEnders had a great thing with Alfie and Kat, a couple you could root for, a couple you related to, and to make drama, they decided to go down the route of her being bribed into bed with someone else. Emmerdale had a couple in Vanessa and Charity that many could relate to. 

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What has Chloe's purpose been? They bought her in as a friend of Sarah, and then there was the storyline with Noah. I was not too fond of that storyline for many reasons; it wouldn't have been the storyline I would have chosen for her or Noah's first big storyline. 

But they did it, and the continuation of the storyline has been awful. As much as I like that they haven't changed Noah into a complete arsehole, having Chloe move into them was terrible writing. 

They may have glossed over it with a quick mention, but Chloe moved in with the person who stalked and abused her. Offering to make him breakfast. I couldn't even believe what I was seeing. My husband was like, and they wonder why people don't report crimes; Chloe is now eating breakfast with him—poor writing. 

And just as she was getting a storyline away from Sarah, Mack, and The Dingles in finding out Kerry was her mother, Kerry disappeared. What a complete waste of what potentially could have been a good storyline for her. 

What exactly does Chloe offer to the show? It's hard to say because she has hardly had any scenes with others other than the Dingles and the God-awful Mack. 

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Then we have the Lydia storyline coming up. Now, this could be brilliant and hard-hitting, giving Lydia, Sam, and Samson a storyline that is better than not wanting to be a dad and trying to force him to. 

But it has to be well written, has to be well directed, and they have to remember past events in the family. Lisa's storyline has to be spoken about. I want Charity to support Lydia, a dynamic scene with just Charity and Lydia.

I want them to remember history and have a gripping family storyline. 

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So, the Metro article last week on Jane Hudson's reign. There are a few points I'd like to make on it. First of all, I wouldn't call it successful. There's been a few storylines that I applaud and say have been amazing.

• Marlon's stroke was beautifully written and acted on and hasn't been forgotten. We are seeing its actions today. My mum had a TIA, a mini-stroke, and many side effects for years. 
• Paddy's Depression - In the year when the soap has been utterly diabolical, Paddy's storyline has been a shining light on the year and well acted, well written and just beautiful. 

Two - that's all I can think of. Two! I don't agree with the Meena one because it bordered on bloody ridiculous at the end. They didn't know when to end it, like when I used to mark my student's work, and they never quite knew when to finish their story. 

 I'm afraid I also have to disagree with the Noah part; people can't believe he's changed so much because soaps, TV, films, etc., don't show what prisons are meant to do. Of course, in life, it doesn't always work like that. Due to many reasons, I want to avoid getting political. 

As many know, my husband is a police officer; prison is meant to change you, give you a purpose and a skill, and make you turn your life around. I am not saying they have got it perfect because, let's face it, he let Amelia walk all over him. He needs to get a backbone and tell her, I deserve to be treated with respect. 

She also starts storylines and then forgets them for ages. Rhona's eggs, anyone? I know it's starting soon again, but I'll need to do a crash course on the storyline again, as I've forgotten everything that's happened. 

Women's Health storylines: 

I suffer with my health, caused by hormones. I have polycystic ovaries, the rare ones caused by my thyroid. This has caused me to have the skin condition hidradenitis suppurativa. So when I discovered they would be doing a never-before-seen storyline about women's issues, I was waiting for a great, informative storyline. 

Instead, it's made a mockery of it. No one sympathises or cares for Cathy because it's poorly written. It's taken away from what should be a storyline where the audience learns about different issues that aren't really in the public. How many of you have heard of hidradenitis suppurativa? 

Cathy is diagnosed with the same condition that Vicky Patteson has just been diagnosed with next week. After following her for a while on Instagram, I can say her symptoms seem to be more tearful, overeating and a little bit of anger. 

I get teary; I cried the other day when Britain won a medal in the men's 4x400 relay (no reason why, and looking back, I laugh). 

They also have made a complete mockery of the Bernice menopause storyline; they turned it into a comedy storyline, a parody of something that happens to every woman in the world at some time in their life, and now it's just been forgotten. 

Women's health isn't funny; it isn't a topic for comedy. You wouldn't turn a cancer storyline into a comedy or forget it. 

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EastEnders is the best it's ever been since the John Yorke era. They've managed to pull off one of the greatest soap comebacks in the history of soaps, Cindy Beale. And they've done it believably.

This got me thinking: Could they bring a character back from the dead at Emmerdale in a believable way? For instance, a Chris Tate or Joe Tate would give Noah a storyline away from Amelia. I don't think they could. Chris is practically impossible, but Joe is possible. 

But the thing is, at the moment, they couldn't pull it off; they would forget history and make it so over the top and camp. 

Cindy's return worked because it was slow, the mention of Rose, introducing her other family, and then just her on the sunlounger ignoring the call from George.

Then bang she's back with an explosion and the past is remembered, the affairs, her trying to shoot Ian, the arguments with Kathy, Sonia and Phil recognising her, it had everything. It had a history; it had everything. 

I didn't even look on Twitter during the episode because I was that engrossed in the episode. After all, it was just so damn good. 

I pray for the day all three British soaps are brilliant again, but sadly for me, there's only one soap that's top dog, and that's the soap from London.

The Cast leaving and next week spoilers

There have been many cast departures at Emmerdale recently. Rishi, Dan, Priya, Marcus, Marshall and the rumours of David leaving too. Why is this cast exit, and did we enjoy their leaving storylines?

I would never have let Rishi and Dan (Bhasker Patel & Liam Fox) leave; they are reasonable, family men who add a bit of realism to the show. We all know a Dan and Rishi in our local area, the person we wave to when we get the paper, ask how the family are etc. There is far better dead wood to get rid of first than those two. 

If the producers knew they were getting rid of Dan and Rishi and that David (Matthew Wolfenden) wanted to leave, I would have killed those three in the 50th-anniversary episodes. It would have given purpose to actors we had yet to see. 

Priya would have had one last big storyline before her departure, the devastation of her father's death and Jai could have found the adoption papers while going through his dad's belongings (if they went down that route). 

Dan could have died on the quad bike while looking for Amelia, and as the saying goes, life for a life. It would have given Amelia (Daisy Campbell) a great storyline away from Samson being an idiot, influencing, and whatever. 

Then, David's death would have given Eric a storyline again, a purpose; Brenda and Jacob, those characters we don't see. It would have allowed Alicia to arrive back. There was scope. 

This would have been better than Harriet and Liv dying and they will Sam and Samson die.  

Dan's Leaving Storyline:

It's not the storyline I hated; it's a perfect topic and happens more than you would believe. It was the writing, the direction, the why and the characters involved. 

We've had too much Amelia recently, and that isn't Daisy Campbell's fault. We've just got bored of her, and I am a massive Amelia fan; it's just been too much. They should have concentrated on her being a mum, her college work and finding herself. 

It's not just who was in the storyline; it was the writing, who the characters interacted with, and who they didn't. It didn't seem right to me. 

Why the sudden need to have Chas remember she was married to Dan? All this I will look after Amelia; I like her. It seemed so false; we didn't need this scene. 

It just needed a scene in the Woolpack with Mandy, Charity and Noah, asking them to look after her and that he appreciated the support she had. Three characters that Amelia interacts with, and the audience knows that. 

Then we suddenly see David and Dan scenes. Where did that come from? It reminded me of that scene about five months when Arthur and Noah suddenly had scenes together. David had yet to meet his quota of scenes for the month, and they had to throw him in the scene. 

I did enjoy the scene with Kerry and Dan, and I always thought they made a mistake breaking Dan and Kerry up. I wish Kerry were back for this storyline; she's bought Amelia up for a long time.

And not only was Charity absent, but where was Amy? Dan, her stepfather, had a big speech from Amelia when Esther was christened that Amy was like a sister to her. So where was she, and where was she? 

Poor writing not to have Charity or Amy in any of those scenes. It's little details like that that annoy me. They should know their characters, who they interact with, family details and everything else. 

Before I finish on this topic, Lydia, the week before, told Samson that Noah isn't Esther's father, and then on Monday, she had the gall to say Noah will use his trust fund to pay for Amelia and Esther. Wow! 

Spoilers

If you read my last blog post, you will know my feelings on The Andersons. And these new spoilers make me so bloody angry. 

It was predictable; my husband said he would steal and lie when Victor arrived. Why did they have to go down the stereotypical black man route? It's lazy writing and damn right offensive if you ask me.

Now, I hope you are sitting comfortably so you don't fall over, but I enjoyed the Claudette scenes with Amelia recently; it showed Claudette in a different light. 

You'd expect her to judge, but she didn't. She wanted to give Amelia her money to help; she needed to do it correctly. I hope Amelia will provide her with the same support after this Victor spoiler.

Charity & Liam

Well, I didn't expect this pairing, but you know what? It doesn't fill me with dread. Charity could do much worse; she's married to someone much worse. 

I will give this a chance; many want her back to Vanessa, but she needs time to find herself again. 

Gabby

She comes back, and somehow they will make her even more annoying. So Gabby doesn't like the fact that Suni is working at the Hide. 

Could they make this character any more unlikeable? She's becoming more unlikable every episode. Okay, she's been hurt and embarrassed, but she's now becoming so unlikeable you don't feel sorry for her.

Finally

What is the point of doing the Mary and Faye storyline and not showing the story's conclusion is stupid. How can they expect us to care about storylines if they don't conclude them properly? 

It's just a basic fact that I taught writing when I was teaching even youngsters; I would teach them that every story should have a beginning, middle and end. I should teach Emmerdale that important fact. 

Thank you for reading

Racial Representations in TV and Emmerdale's next week spoilers

Racial representation has always been a subject quite close to my heart. I've been married to a black man for seven years, going out with him for 21 years and having known him since we were three. 

Growing up, his mother always taught him he was a person before his colour. He was just Craig, not black Craig. He could be anything he wanted as long as he worked hard. 

Even though he was sometimes known as a bad boy due to personal things going on in his life, he managed to work hard and became a police officer.

And throughout his career, he gets the saying, oh, you only got the job because you are black. To make up a quota, to be a number. No, he got the job because he is calm, an easy talker, works hard, and is a damn good policeman. 

So what has this got to do with representation on TV? How many people of colour do we see on TV that aren't drug dealers, criminals, etc? Where are the black police officers, firefighters, detectives? 

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My husband, my mother-in-law and I watch most soaps, and we have to say we aren't impressed with Emmerdale's representation of black families. 

At first, we were pleased that Charles was a vicar, a black person in a good community position: his son Ethan, a lawyer, another black person in a great job. 

Then they bought his daughter in, and my God, didn't they ruin it. Naomi was everything that everyone thought a black woman was. Loud and rude. 

How dare they go down the stereotypical route. Yes, some black women are loud and rude, but guess what? So are white women. My mother-in-law doesn't like noise; she hates it; she whispers when she talks and doesn't have the TV on above twelve volume-wise. 

The only redeeming quality of Naomi was the small scenes with Marlon when she helped him in the kitchen; it showed a caring side to her that we didn't see enough. 

Then they had her take Vinny's money to go off and probably never pay him back. I couldn't believe it; we watched with our mouths open. 

Then Charles's parents came, and they could have been more stereotypical. A father who's been in prison for a violent crime, a con man, a liar, everything that the media might have, you believe, is like a typical black man. 

No, just no! How dare they. How dare they portray a black family like this? Yes, some families happen to be black like this, but guess what? There are white families like that too. 

They could have had a storyline like Sickle Cell, which only affects black people, a severe condition, and it would raise awareness of this condition. 

Now the positives with Emmerdale and racial representation. How lovely was it to see the Hindu aspects recently since Rishi died. I learnt a lot about the Hindu culture. It was beautiful to see. 

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EastEnders has always managed to do race relations so well; they show a wide range of black and Asians in various ways. 

Denise had a hairdressing business, Patrick and Yolande were Mini Mart owners, and Alan Jackson worked in the cafe, just everyday jobs that anyone can be. 

I remember growing up watching EastEnders in the early nineties and hearing racist language for the first time when Jim Branning didn't want Carol to marry Alan because he was black. It was hard-hitting and thought-provoking because it gave me and my parents a discussion. 

I didn't get how anyone couldn't want Carol to marry Alan; he was just Alan. My parents explained about racism and that some people judge others by the colour of their skin. I said Craig's that colour, and we don't judge him. I'm going to marry him, I said. And I did. 

How about that storyline now? It still exists both ways, not just the white family not wanting their family to marry into another race. My husband's father isn't happy he married a white girl. 

My parents have had family members not speak to them because I married a black man. I'd love to see a storyline about that now. A hard-hitting, thought-provoking race storyline that has nothing to do with drugs, violence or the stereotypical image around it. 

EastEnders would be the only soap that could pull this off. But I would like Sarah Dingle to bring a person of colour home, and the family act surprised, or comments are made. It would give Sarah a storyline, and the actors pulled this storyline off. Of course, the boy or girl would not be a drug dealer or a violent criminal; he could be at college learning to be a scientist, a doctor or anything. 

Do better, Emmerdale. 

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This week and spoilers for next week:

I will probably be in the minority, but I liked the Dan and Amelia scenes on the hill. They remembered the history of Ali, Ruby, Sean etc. If this is Liam Fox's last few days in the soap forever, I am pleased he gets a good storyline. (It would have been better if Amelia hadn't had so many storylines in the past year. If it had been the pregnancy and then this, I believe many would have liked it more.)

Dan and Chas were married, but the scene with them this week wasn't necessary. When was the last time Chas had a scene with Amelia? That scene would have been better with Charity. Charity is, first of all, Esther's Godmother. Secondly, she has Amelia live with her more often than not; thirdly, she is Esther's grandmother; let's be honest about that. 

The Mary, Marlon and Rhona scenes are always great; I adore Mary and hope Jane Hudson doesn't ruin her. But I am so annoyed that we didn't have the court case on screen; why not?

You have had this long-running storyline and don't show the conclusion; why not? Is it not worthy of an ending? 

Spoilers:

Oh my, where do I start? 

When you thought Jane Hudson couldn't get worse, she throws more shit at you, hoping you will still watch. 

Charity and Mack, Charity and Mack are the worst pairing in the history of soap. I don't say that lightly. I am thirty-five and have watched all soaps, Neighbours, Home & Away, and even soaps like Night & Day, Crossroads and Family Affairs. 

I hated Will and Dani in Home & Away because I shipped him with Gypsy, I disliked Libby with Mike because I wanted her with Drew (Neighbours), and I hated Lorraine with Grant because I loved Tiffany (EastEnders). I don't even need to bring up my utter hatred for the Bob and Laurel and Laurel and Marlon pairings; they were awful. 

But I would watch all those couples on repeat for twenty-four hours a day and enjoy it compared to Mack and Charity. Do you know why? Because at least the writing was good, the characters had depth, and you could understand their feelings and emotions, even if you didn't like the pairings. 

Emma Atkins deserves better than this; you only have to watch the ITV3 episodes to see her brilliant acting. 

Now the Sam, Lydia and Samson storyline. 

If they go down Lydia having an affair, I give up. I want Lydia to get a storyline because Lydia is one of my favourites; she is kind, caring, funny, adorable, and she and Sam work. 

Is this just Lydia trying to better herself, get money, and help Samson get experience, and it isn't the start of an affair storyline? If it's an affair, I will be so disappointed. 

 

My husband, mother in law and I.
 

Thank you for reading.

Emmerdale and it's cast - Part Two

The Males.

 

Recently the male characters have nearly been just as bad as the females; the males seem to have a toxic trait in almost all of them. I won't go into Cain Dingle in this post because they have given him different depths over the year since he got with Moira. I want depth to my characters, not that I condone some of the things Cain has done over the years.

Let's get the big one out of the way.

Mack!

I wonder if the writers or producers have written Mack like this is an undertone of a bullying, abusive, toxic man or if they have written it not knowing what it comes across as. I am trying to figure out what version is worse.

Mack's treatment of others, no matter what sex is bordering on disgusting at times. He has treated Charity, Chloe, Ryan, Noah and probably others appallingly or given them awful advice showing his views on women.

Like my previous post, he has ruined the character Charity, and I believe it will only worsen. Hooray for Super Soap Week. I noticed his abusive and toxic trait with Charity when Chloe moved in, and he wanted her to move out. 

He used Charity's failures in the past as a mother. Below the belt, especially after what she went through with Ryan, we all know how long it took for Noah and Charity to get a proper mother-and-son relationship. 

He then spoke to Noah about how awkward it would be for him to live with Chloe, using Noah's past with Chloe to get what he wanted. Sadly for Mack, it caused Noah to move in with Amelia and Dan for a bit. 

Then we get to his treatment of Ryan; this one made my blood boil. Anyone who follows me on Twitter will know that my husband is in the Police, but I am a qualified Special Educational Needs zero to five teacher, so children and SENCO hold a special place in my heart. 

When Ryan found out about Mack having cheated on his mum and wanting to go and tell her, Mack's words to Ryan made my blood boil. Using Ryan's health and disability is utterly disgusting and diabolical. 

I want Charity to find out what Mack said to Ryan; I am dismayed they seem to have forgotten it. Well, trust me, Emmerdale producers, many viewers haven't. 

Then we have the advice to Noah about Chloe, which I had forgotten until a lovely Twitter friend reminded me. If a girl says no, she doesn't mean it; go for it or something along those lines. 

I do not condone what Noah did. He was old enough to know better, but that advice was utterly shite from a grown man with more life experience than Noah. 

His treatment of Chloe is no better; okay, Chloe isn't my favourite character, but she is young and has lived a sheltered life. Mack has treated her like a dirty secret, hidden her away, sent her to Scotland, and now has moved her next door to his wife, parades her around in the pub and then acts like a petulant child when he is pulled up on his actions. 

Please tell me this is a storyline they are bubbling away that he is a toxic, abusive man, or have they written him like that without considering how he has come across? Which, to me, is far worse than the first option. 

Bob

So last night, we had Bob threatening to kill Liam—Bob, the man who has had more affairs than I have corrected spelling mistakes at school. Why have they gone down the Bob is angry at everyone route. 

Wendy isn't everyone's cup of tea, and I will write about her, but he cruelly humiliated her at her place of work in front of patients. Why couldn't they use this affair to get him with Bernice? 

Bob

Then we have David, pointless David, the man who decided to steal his partner's driving license and add points to hers without her knowing and then having the gall to blame her for not taking the points! 

Has David had a good storyline since his excellent cancer storyline? 

Samson

What have they done to Samson? Now I am not like others on Twitter; I have no problems with him not wanting to be a father, he is sixteen/seventeen, and he has his whole life ahead of him. 

I also felt sorry for him when Sam and Lydia wouldn't listen to him about what he wanted. I am very much the woman who decides to continue with a pregnancy, but I also think Samson should be heard in a world where we want and value equality. 

I'm afraid I have to disagree with how he rang social services, pushed his dad over, and blackmailed Noah for money using his daughter as collateral damage. Some would say he wasn't listened to; he did it because no one heard his wants. 

And when we finally get an insight into his behaviour, we don't see him for three months, and he's completely forgotten about. I wonder if they needed Samson to turn into a bit of shit to make a storyline. Only some characters must change to fit a storyline's purpose, and Samson didn't need a character assassination. 

They could have done a proper adoption storyline, a grown-up storyline for three teenagers, one with a criminal record. It would have been better than this rubbish.

Or if they went down the route of phoning social services, how about them charging Samson? As someone who has worked in Early Years settings, getting hold of Social Services when needed is utterly hard, and people making fake accusations is annoying. 

Last night though, gave me hope that the character change had finished; he argued his point of not having Amelia and Esther live with them in a grown-up and articulate way. 

I will add my annoyance with Lydia in this section; she doesn't listen, does she? Trust me; I understand her because, as someone who has had three miscarriages and problems with fertility, I understand her utter love of children and wanting to be a grandmother. 

She can't, though, forget the wishes of her stepson; he has told her numerous times that he doesn't want to be a father. Does someone also want to remind Lydia, who is paying for her granddaughter, babysitting her, supported Amelia during pregnancy and was there at the birth? It wasn't Samson; it was Noah. Being a dad isn't always about biology; it takes more than that; it's about being there. You could tell in the car the other day that Esther recognised Noah; if it were real, Esther would think Noah had her dad. 

Noah

I am going to applaud Emmerdale on this. Well done for breaking the stereotype of making people come out of prison worse than what they went in. 

My husband is a police officer and always gets so annoyed at the TV showing how prisons are, and he knows prisons very rarely work in which they should do, which is reform, give you a trade and help you never commit a crime again. 

So well done on giving Noah a profession and so far not turning into a Cain. Now I like Amelia and Noah; they work well together, but he needs to stand up for himself and tell her that she is sometimes immature and wrong. There is nothing wrong with it; she's a teenager and still learning to be herself, but her behaviour recently isn't the best. Please see my first blog on Amelia. 

I would like to see more scenes with Noah and Charity, some of Charity's best scenes have been with Noah. 

Wendy and Victoria

Oh, good God! Where do I start? It's such a shame Wendy isn't a great character because Susan Cookson is an outstanding actress, I loved her in Casualty and Land Girls, and Emmerdale isn't giving her the material to show off her acting skills.

Even though soaps have a certain leeway in what can happen in real life, not being a qualified nurse still nursing is pushing the boundaries. And how can she work at the GP and the hospital? Wow, does she ever sleep? 

At first, I thought she and Liam were a bit of fun which we needed in Emmerdale, but it quickly turned boring. At first, I thought well, this is great. It will be Bob and Bearnice together and Liam and Wendy together. But it's just turned into a storyline to make Bob angry, and Wendy looks utterly stupid, considering she's the one that had an affair and now demanding Bearnice move out. 

Then we get to Victoria; what does she do? What is her purpose on the show now? She's the last Sugden remaining, but she's so yawn-worthy now. 

She's turned into a busybody that is in everybody's business. Before last week, had she and Amelia ever had a scene together, and now she's going to court with her to support her? They've just turned her into a Betty about twenty years before her time. 

Chas

I saved the best to last. This past year has seen the utter character assentation of Chas Dingle. I am still determining where they can go from here with her. 

Her affair with Al was the worst thing they could have done to her character. It didn't help that Al was one of the worst characters they have bought in recently. 

My mother fought cancer during lockdown and was so lucky to survive, and for Chas to use her mother's illness as an excuse for her to have an affair left me feeling sick. 

She's had no consequences for her actions; she's just carried on with her life; okay, she's lost her son and her husband, but has she shown any remorse? 

I wanted Charity to kick her out of the pub and move in with Noah and Amelia to spite her. But alas, no, Charity was the one to support her. 

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Emmerdale needs a massive overhaul; the same characters are getting storylines repeatedly. This means we are getting bored of them, the writing could have been better, and we are seeing the same people all the time. 

We have seen too much of Amelia, Gabby, Chas, Charity, Mack and Chloe. We've got bored of them. 

We don't see characters for months, such as Samson, Lydia, Eric, Zak, Jacob, Brenda etc. I know with Zak, it's due to age, and I understand that. 

The overuse of characters is making us dislike them. Please use the whole cast! 

 

They seem to need to remember past storylines as well. Was I the only one shouting at the TV last summer at Kerry when she kept trying to break up Noah and Amelia?

I get it; you might not want your daughter going out with a boy that's just come out of jail, but considering she burnt Frank to death, I think that was hypocritical.

I was shouting for Charity to remind her of that fact. Same with Amy when she was trying to get custody of Kyle, now Cain isn't going to win father of the year anytime soon and isn't winning awards for the best citizen in Yorkshire, but Amy did set fire to the sweet factory and caused Frank's death.

I am already sensing the storyline of Kerry's return, the jealousy over Mandy and Charity helping Amelia and being upset about Noah's most probably living with her. Please give me strength.

 However, Kerry has my permission to hurt Mack and Chas for their lies and deception.
 

Positives

• Mandy and Paddy are just perfect together; a bit of fun is just what we need. 
• Marlon, Rhona and Mary - I love this dynamic; Mary and Marlon working together is perfection. 
• Gail - I know she's not everyone's cup of tea, but I like her. She reminds me of Laurel when she first arrived, and she's a bit of fun behind the bar. Also, it's nice to see relationships on TV showing people with disabilities have a love life. 
• Nicola, Jimmy, Bearnice, Laurel. Need I say more? Even though the Kidknapp storyline was awful this week. Laurel is still a character with depth and could have so much more to her. 

Next blog post:- Racial representations.

Emmerdale and its female cast

 As an avid soap fan, I am often drawn to strong female characters, once that are least like me most will say. For instance, I am a huge Kat Slater, Charity Dingle, Stacey Slater, Tiffany Mitchell, Bianca Butcher and many more. But recently the writing in Coronation Street and Emmerdale has been woeful and mostly with the female characters. 

 

Emmerdale:

 

The writing for the past year has been woeful, especially for many of the women in the show. It's not the acting, for the main part it's the writing. And next week's spoilers give me no hope that the writing is going to get better. 

Gabby:

What has happened to Gabby? Yes she was a little madam growing up but in the last year its been horrific. Yes being left at the altar is horrific, and I wouldn't want anyone to go through that, but her behaviour has been terrible. 

Firstly threatening Nicky with losing his job unless he slept with her, imagine if it was the other way round and Nicky had said that to her, the uproar that everyone on Twitter saying what a horrible, vile man he was. But because it's a woman nothing was mentioned, not even an eyebrow raised. 

The way she blurted out Dawn's secret that she was firstly a prostitute and then a few months later she was pregnant, was utterly diabolical and her reaction to it was like a two-year-old not being allowed an ice cream before dinner. She may have apologized, but her apology was utter crap, she had no regard for Clemmie and her feelings. 

And then the reaction to Nicky staying in for one night was like it was her house. The last time I checked it belonged to Kim Tate and Kim has a say who lives there and if she allowed Nicky to stay because it made her adopted granddaughter happy, then guess what, you can't do anything about it. 

And the spoilers coming up for next week, Gabby going into kiss Billy and then making gooey eyes at him. Utterly pathetic, is this all they can think of? 

Why couldn't they have Gabby and Nicky become BFFs, after a period of healing. 

Sarah

Wow, where do I start with Sarah, she doesn't get many scenes but recently when she does, they are horrific. For instance, this whole thing with Chloe. 

It is of course not her fault that Mack got her best friend pregnant, but her first fault in all this was not telling Charity when she found out. Okay its a soap, and we all need a bit of drama, but still Charity is your grandmother who has taken her in and looked after her like her own. 

And then when Charity did find out, and it was her 18th birthday she wanted Chloe at her birthday party. Never mind that Chloe had upset her grandmother, and had the gall to turn up with Mack and Sarah still just happily sat there like nothing. Selfishly not thinking about the hurt her grandmother was feeling. 

Then recently with Amelia, going on and on about Dan and Noah being wrong and Amelia should show them about who good influencing is. Well how right were Dan and Noah? 

Then next week's spoilers suggesting Amelia lying about Lloyd raping, how low and disgusting. Her grandmother was raped, and she's now encouraging someone to lie about it? I mean really, what is wrong with her? 

Amelia: 

Amelia has always been one of my favourite characters, I loved her sassiness, but I also loved her religious and kind. A different take on a teenager in a soap and I liked it. 

I liked her supporting Noah in prison and being the only one to give him a second chance, because it fitted in with her Christian values and her character. 

What I don't like recently is her complete character change. And yes I get she is sixteen and a young mother and finding herself, and that's what teenagers do, but some things just don't sit right with me. 

Whatever you may think of Noah and the whole thing about him suddenly changing, my opinion is actually rather good on the writing and storytelling, the whole point of prison is to rehabilitate and give you a trade, and they have. 

How many eighteen-year-old boys would take on a baby that isn't there, probably not many, and Noah had no qualms about it, and all Amelia has done recently has treated him like a glorified babysitter and someone to dump her child on. Even when they weren't speaking, I wanted Noah to just say no to her. 

This influencer storyline, I get it, I honestly do, as someone who has an Etsy store for my handmade cards and gifts, plus a debilitating condition that has taken away my profession as a teacher, I have thought about going on YouTube and Instagram and using both to my advantage. 

She wants the best for her daughter, and with money being tight and Dan's income low, I get the idea of it. But her treatment of Dan and Noah was utterly dreadful, not listening, thinking she was right, and no care for their feelings and concern. 

And now for the spoilers for next week, to even think about lying being raped is utterly disgusting, her future mother-in-law, maybe was raped, Noah's brother is a result of rape. I get it, she's scared of her dad going down but to lie about something so horrific. Can her character and everything that I liked about her survive that?

My storyline for her this year would have been involving Samson, her and Noah, and it would either be an adoption storyline with Samson telling everyone he doesn't want to be a dad, no blackmail, nothing. How would adoption services see it with Noah's criminal record. 

Or I would have had Social services charging Samson after the false allegations late last year, showing the consequences of false allegations. Still keeping her Christian values and still being a little bit sassy. 

Charity

My God, what have they done with this woman! This strong woman, the Kat Slater of the Emmerdale Dales, she was strong, vulnerable, funny, witty, but they have destroyed this character for at least eighteen months. 

Charity to me, I believe wanted to make it work with Mack because it ruined things with Vanessa, the woman she truly loves. Hence, why she tried so much, but my God the writing was terrible. 

I honestly hoped she found out and would have done a big reveal at the wedding, but it was such a disappointment. 

Emma Atkins given the right material is the best in the business and her scenes with Jack Downham, Jeff Hordley and Daisy Campbell. Especially Jack Downham, but this whole Mack thing ruined her character and I just hope and pray her character can come back and this big October storyline has nothing to do with Mack and please God not a pregnancy storyline. 

Other things:

• They have done two storylines which Kerry should have been there for, one Reuben being ill, I am sorry but if my grandchild was potentially dying I would have swum the channel to be with my daughter and grandchild. And now the Dan storyline, she bought Amelia up as her own, are you telling me she wouldn't be there. They should have waited for the actress to finish maternity, it is unrealistic. 
• What the hell have they done with The Andersons. Could you have made a more stereotypical black family? Daughter a loud mouth, brash, opinionated, stands by and lets an attack happen, father in jail, liar, steals and the mother religious busybody, but turns a blind eye to crimes and forgives. I am married to a proud black family, and they are tired of the stereotypes that are still portrayed, okay the son is a lawyer and Charles is a vicar, but why oh why make the rest of the family, fit the stereotypes. Why not have a sickle cell storyline, a condition that commonly affects black people?
• Mary being conned, yes I know it happens, but it was such a shame they went down the route with Mary, why not give the storyline to Rishi, or another older generation, or Zak to be conned. The actress Jane Gurnett who played Faye, is a great actress, and she would have added so much to the soap. Plus do we really need another LGBTQ+ relationship failing, especially the older generation. It took a lot for Mary to come out.
  

What EastEnders have got over the past eighteen months right is character development and that's what Emmerdale has failed at recently.  These characters can come back, and when they get it right they get it right, Paddy's mental health storyline, Cain and Moira in everything they do, Marlon's stroke, Marlon and Mary, Bernice and Nicola, I really like Gail and I think she has potential, she adds a bit of humour and I love Bear, him telling Chas exactly what he thought of her had me standing up and clapping.