List of past Emmerdale characters (1972–1999)

The following is a list of past characters that first appeared in the British soap opera Emmerdale from 1972 to 1999. From 1972 to 1989, it was known as Emmerdale Farm.

D

Butch Dingle

Francis Albert "Butch" Dingle , played by Paul Loughran, arrived in the village in August 1994 to confront Luke McAllister, who Butch believed was responsible for the death of his brother Ben. Butch caused trouble for Luke for the remainder of the year in revenge.

Butch got his nickname because at six years old he had come home from school with some flowers which he wanted to dry and press in a book. His father Zak was concerned that his son was too sensitive so he started calling him "Butch" in an attempt to get him to behave more like a man.

As a result of this Butch felt he was unable to develop as a person properly and unable to express his true feelings and he became a bully and troublemaker during his early years on the show. However he mellowed as the years went by and lost his virginity to nanny Sophie Wright when they were drunk at New Year 1996/1997. Butch later began stalking Sophie as he couldn't handle her rejection.

Butch also had an obsession with his cousin Mandy Dingle. In November 1998 he married Mandy but she only went through with it for financial gain and not because she loved him. Butch felt himself in love with her and was sad that his feelings were not reciprocated.

Butch later divorced Mandy and fell in love with Emily Wylie. Emily and Butch had a lot in common and both considered themselves to be misfits. Emily decided to stay in Emmerdale with Butch rather than leave the village with her father.

Butch died in hospital of injuries sustained in the bus crash on 24 March 2000. Butch had been a passenger in the community bus when it was hit by an out-of-control lorry driven by Pete Collins. Before dying Butch married Emily on his death bed. Butch was buried next to his brother Ben who died nearly six years earlier. The epitaph on their tombstone is 'Dead but still Dingles'. Butch now resides in Lisburn, 6 foot under.

H

Mark Hughes

Mark Hughes, played by Craig McKay, arrived in the village as a 15-year-old in 1988 with his mother Kate and sister Rachel. Mark had been a model son until the breakdown of his parents marriage. He then became a troublesome teenager which coincided with his mother's relationship and subsequent marriage to Joe Sugden.

In January 1989, Mark ran away from home after Kate announced her intention to move in with Joe. Mark intended to go to Germany to be with his father but only made it as far as Hull. His father David alerted Kate who brought Mark home.

Despite this Mark tried to get his parents back together on numerous occasions and he reacted badly to being clipped around the ear by Joe for messing around with a gun.

In January 1990, Mark and some friends tried trapping some mink using dangerous and illegal snares but only managed to succeed in trapping a puppy called Lucy. Mark also got into trouble when he went to the pub with his sister and her older friends. He wanted to prove his manhood by drinking alcohol but was cautioned for underage drinking.

Mark then began shoplifting. He stole things he didn't need but was caught by Rachel and Sarah Connolly. He was arrested and given a warning at the police station but afterwards his mother collapsed and suffered a miscarriage. Mark blamed himself for this.

After leaving school Mark initially intended to join the army and follow in his father's footsteps. However he then decided to stay at school and study A-Levels in Art, Technical Drawing and English. But he refused to turn up to his final exams and as a result his girlfriend Melanie Clifford split up with him and he lost his place at Glasgow University.

Mark also got himself into debt by letting his friends use telephone chatlines and he had to get a job at the Woolpack to pay them off. Joe's mother Annie Sugden later paid the bill for him.

In 1992, Mark started work as a handyman at the holiday village where he had a holiday romance with an older woman called Lisa. He also worked as an assistant gamekeeper to Seth Armstrong.

Mark did have a sense of fun and he organised the village's sheep race in 1992 and in 1993 he organised the fell race which was a challenge between the village's teenagers and his sister Rachel's student friends from Leeds. But it ended in disaster when Lorraine Nelson was bribed to move the signs and mountain rescue teams had to be called out to search for the lost runners.

Mark died in the 1993 plane crash that devastated the village. His former stepfather Joe had wanted him to return a vacuum cleaner that evening which had been borrowed from Lynn Whiteley and this resulted in Mark being in the wrong place at the wrong time when a large section of the Eastern European airliner came down on Whiteley's farm. Mark was crushed by a falling wall and Jack Sugden identified his body after recognising his watch amongst recovered items.

M

Jackie Merrick

John Jacob "Jackie" Merrick was played by Ian Sharrock from 1980 to 1989. The character was originally seen as a silent young boy (actor unknown) in the earliest episodes of Emmerdale Farm before becoming a fully-fledged regular character in September 1980. He was the son of Pat Merrick (originally Ruth), a former lover of Jack Sugden. Jack had left the village in 1964 and Pat subsequently married local bad boy Tom Merrick the same year and made him believe he was the father and even said Jackie had been born prematurely which was not the case.

Jackie celebrated his 18th birthday in November 1982.

In 1985, Jackie almost died after being run over by Alan Turner while fixing his motorbike. During his slow recovery after waking from a coma, he finally acknowledged Jack, with whom he'd been feuding prior to the accident, as his father by referring to him as "Dad".

Jackie married Kathy Bates in 1988 but the marriage didn't last very long as Jackie was killed the following year, in an accident while he and Seth Armstrong were hunting for a £10 bet. Jackie tried to take a shotgun out of his car, but it got caught and went off by mistake, killing him in the process.

Jessica McAllister

Jessica McAllister was a series regular for a period of two years between 1993 and 1995. She joined with her family in late 1993. She had been engaged to an older youth called Danny and her parents disapproved of the relationship and thought Danny was undesirable. The McAllister's believed that moving to Emmerdale would put some distance between them and Jessica started dating her brother's friend Biff Fowler. Jessica was bullied at school by Tina Dingle who blamed Jessica's brother Luke for the death of her brother Ben. Tina stirred things up by telling her brother Butch that Jessica was secretly in love with him. This led to Biff and Butch fighting in the Woolpack. When her parents decided to leave the village Jessica didn't want to go and ran off with Biff. Jessica lost her virginity to him but later returned to her parents and went back to London with them. In April 1995 she visited Luke who had stayed behind and was outraged to discover that he and Tina were now in a relationship. Jessica rang Tina's father, Zak Dingle and told him about the relationship and he tried to force Tina to come home but she told him he was pregnant. After Luke's death Jessica made one last visit to the village in the 2000th episode before leaving for good.

P

R

Marian Rosetti

Marian Rosetti (née Wilks) was first played by Gail Harrison from 1972 to 1976, then by Debbie Blythe for two stints in 1987 and 1988. She first appeared in the show in the first ever episode and was the daughter of wealthy retired factory owner Henry Wilks who later ran the Woolpack with long standing landlord Amos Brearly. Marian embarked on a brief affair with Jack Sugden in the first few months of the show.

Francesca Rosetti

Francesca Rosseti played by Natasha Dilleyston in 1987, her character returned to Italy due to her Father being shot.