Emmerdale bosses talk future of ‘incest storyline’ amid 50th anniversary Dingle feud

The producers of the Dales-based series Emmerdale have announced that an incest storyline will continue.

The ITV soap opera has previously addressed incest, particularly within its most well-known family, the Dingles.

In the 1990s, Mandy Dingle wed her own cousin Butch, the son of her uncle Zak, and Cain had a committed relationship with his own cousin Charity.

While Cain is Zak’s son, Charity is the daughter of his cousin Obadiah; the two also share a daughter, Debbie.

In the past, Charity had an affair with Marlon, a cousin of Obadiah and Zak whose father was Albert.

As part of the ITV ongoing drama team, Emmerdale executives Jane Hudson, Kate Brooks, and Laura Shaw have now discussed confronting taboo subjects, however they have admitted they have decided against addressing a relationship between couples.

When questioned about future themes they’d like to cover, Jane responded: “Incest has not been discussed, but we are not engaging in it. Now, it will be extremely different to tell a racial story. It’s crucial to convey a narrative in its current setting.”

Kate furthered: “It is our responsibility to investigate stories in many ways because soap operas have dealt with a wide range of topics and genres. Making stories timely is our goal.”

The performers countered that incest plots haven’t recently been the ones that have stirred up the greatest controversy.

After Laurel Thomas decided to have her pregnancy terminated after learning that the child had Down’s Syndrome, Jane said that she had received “death threats” directed at her.

“Laurel’s termination drew the most response,” she added. Before the show aired, it was quite negative, but after it aired, it was extremely positive.

Without having watched the show, people condemned us for performing it after hearing about it. We also received some death threats.

“I distinctly recall receiving a message that said, ‘You are going to hell and so is your child.’ But I won’t let my fear stop me from sharing my story.

We’ve succeeded if just one person quits thinking about taking their own life.”

Then Laura added: “Someone emailed me a private Instagram message after the show aired and said, “This happened to me 12 years ago; I had never told anyone, and then I walked into my office to discover everyone talking about Emmerdale.

“For the first time, I acknowledged that I had also been fired. It made my skin shiver.”