List of ''Emmerdale'' characters (2000)

The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the British soap opera Emmerdale in 2000, by order of first appearance.

Gloria Weaver

Gloria Weaver (previously Pollard) is the fourth wife of Eric Pollard (Chris Chittell). She was portrayed by veteran actress Janice McKenzie and appeared on a recurring basis between 2000 and 2004.

Carlos Diaz

Cain Dingle

Charity Tate

Shadrach Dingle

Edna Birch

Bishop George Postlethwaite

George Postlethwaite, Bishop of Skipdale is the local bishop and Ashley Thomas' (John Middleton) boss. He has appeared from 2000 to 2010 and was often known as Bishop George.

When Ashley decides he wants to marry Laurel Potts (Charlotte Bellamy), George is against the marriage as he believes that Ashley is rushing into things. Ashley announced his resignation from the priesthood - so he could marry - to the shock of the Bishop. Ashley later withdraws his resignation, causing George to once again say that Ashley is quick to make decisions. Eventually, the Bishop gives his approval and marries the couple in November 2005. Among the ceremonies he has conducted include the marriage of Tom King (Ken Farrington) and Rosemary Sinclair (Linda Thorson) on Christmas Day 2006 and the baptism of the Hope twins in May 2007. He also appears to judge village competitions.

When the death of his housekeeper leaves George lonely, Laurel tries to matchmake him with Emily Kirk (Kate McGregor), despite the age gap between the two. While Emily and George spend more time with each other, he is persuading her to become a priest. In October 2008, Bishop George announces that Emmerdale's village church, St. Mary's, is to close due to low attendance at services. The congregation, organised by Nicola De Souza (Nicola Wheeler), start a village choir and enter a competition, where they win an effort award. However, the church is still to be sold to Eric Pollard (Chris Chittell) and the last service will be on Christmas Day 2008. However, on Christmas Day, Nicola organises a sit-in at the Church and invites all the press including Calendar. This causes Eric to pull out of buying the site, and the Bishop tells Ashley the following day that he may continue services in the church until a new buyer is found. He returns in January to tell the Thomas' that the church has been bought and they must be prepared to leave. However, the following day the church's new owners, Mark (Maxwell Caulfield) and Natasha Wylde (Amanda Donohoe), give the church back to the community and Ashley keeps his job. In February 2009, he visits the village when Ashley and Laurel have to tell him that Jasmine Thomas (Jenna-Louise Coleman) has run away after murdering someone while Laurel is being charged with perverting the course of justice. He appears frequently appears during Sally Spode's (Siân Reeves) time in the village. Her husband was a vicar who he thought was abusing her so sent him to a health retreat. In 2010, he realises that it is Sally who is ruining the Thomas family's lives and apologises.

Bob Hope

Caleb Dingle

Caleb Dingle is the father of Mandy Dingle (Lisa Riley) and the brother of Zak Dingle (Steve Halliwell). He appeared in 2000 to reunite with his daughter.

Married firstly to Vera-Lynn, with whom he had Mandy, he remarried secondly and gained four stepsons.

Rodney Blackstock

Faith Dingle

Faith Dingle is the ex-wife of Shadrach Dingle (Andy Devine). She appeared in 2000 and 2004 played by Gillian Jephcott. In March 2016 it was announced that she would be returning, she made her return on 6 February 2017 this time played by Sally Dexter, however she was credited for the first couple of episodes simply as Woman in Barn as her identity was kept a secret.

The ex-wife of Shadrach, Faith is the mother of Cain (Jeff Hordley) and Chas (Lucy Pargeter), grandmother of Aaron Dingle, Kyle Wyatt and Debbie Dingle and great-grandmother of Sarah Sugden and Jack Sugden. She had an affair with Shadrach's brother Zak Dingle (Steve Halliwell), who is Cain's father. First appearing in 2000, Faith returns to Emmerdale in October 2004 for celebrations to mark Zak and his family's 10th anniversary in the village. She tries to get to know her granddaughter Debbie (Charley Webb) but Cain does not let her.

Faith was born in Leeds to a teenage Josie Dingle, in 1974 Faith had a one night stand with her married distant cousin Zak Dingle, resulting in Faith falling pregnant with her son Cain. The following year Faith married Zak's elder brother Shadrach, and then in 1978 gave birth to daughter Chastity. Faith and Shadrachs marriage was not a happy one, including many affairs and violence on both sides. Faith left her family when her children were young and did not see them again until they were in their twenties.

In February 2017, Faith is found hiding in the barn at Wishing Well Cottage and meets her great-granddaughter, Sarah (Katie Hill), who has no idea who she is. She asks Sarah to keep her presence secret and to supply her with things. When Debbie becomes suspicious of Sarah's behaviour, Sarah takes her to meet Faith, only to find Faith has gone. At the B&B, Faith collapses in the bathroom and is found by Doug Potts (Duncan Preston), who calls an ambulance. When Faith is taken outside, she sees Cain and Chas, who are not pleased to see her. While in hospital it emerges that she is Sarah's benefactor, having made herself penniless by donating £20,000 for Sarah's cancer treatment. Faith is horrified when she discovers that Aaron was raped by his father when he was young and told him that he did the right thing to change his name to Dingle. At Aaron's wedding to Robert Sugden (Ryan Hawley), a woman arrives with the police and tells them that Faith murdered her father.

Faith later hosts a psychic night at The Woolpack, panicking Emma Barton (Gillian Kearney) who killed her husband James (Bill Ward) the previous year. Faith makes out as though she knows this after overhearing Emma confessing in church, however Emma realises that Faith cannot know the truth when Faith believes that James committed suicide. After an emotional heart-to-heart with Chas, Faith rejects a hug from her, leaving Chas furious and heartbroken. It is later revealed that she has had a double mastectomy after battling breast cancer.

Laura-Jayne Tyler of Inside Soap praised Faith's reintroduction, describing Faith as "a wonderfully wicked addition" and "fun. frivolours and feisty". She added, "we're under no illusion that she can also be an evil cow when she wants to be! Bring on the episode where we get the nitty-gritty on why her kids hate her so much..."^[1]

Chloe Atkinson

References

1. ↑ Tyler, Laura-Jayne (25 February – 3 March 2017). "Hits & Misses!". Inside Soap. 2017 (8): 98.  |access-date= requires |url= (help)CS1 maint: Date format (link)