James Hooton, a star of Emmerdale, has been entertaining viewers as the lovable buffoon Sam Dingle since 1995.
The character has been shot, abducted, and stampeded by a cow during his time on the soap opera. Now, it appears as though his world will be turned upside down when his wife Lydia comes into contact with a familiar figure.
Fortunately, James leads a far more peaceful existence away from the camera, where he spends time with Nancy, his fiance, and their daughters Ava-Rose and Lilly. Here’s the dirt on what James, 50, does after the cameras stop filming as viewers get ready for Sam’s big week.
Family life
James is a member of the Dingle clan in Emmerdale, which has 11 generations and is still growing.
The actor’s family is significantly smaller in reality, though. James and businesswoman Nancy Lucas, who owns a dancing company, have been engaged since Valentine’s Day 2010 and have two daughters together, Ava-Rose and Lilly, whom James frequently posts in glitzy photos.
When Nancy texted him when he was filming Emmerdale, begging him to call her as soon as he could since she was expecting their youngest daughter, James admitted he was on the Emmerdale set at the time. James arrived to the hospital after learning that his partner was in labor, and the couple’s second child was born quite swiftly, according to Nancy, who shared that the baby was delivered after just three pushes.
Fortunately, James was able to spend a lot of time at home after the birth because Emmerdale was on a break at the time. At the time, he said to OK! Magazine, “Luckily, I haven’t had loads on at work either, so I’ve been able to spend a lot of time at home.”
The actor posts pictures of his family enjoying days out, holidays, and country walks, showing how happy the family of four appears to be.
Hidden talent
James leaps up and down mountains as he learns how to rock climb when he’s not practicing lines for Emmerdale.
The actor is a fervent supporter of the activity and frequently posts photos of his adventures on Instagram, where he can be seen using only his hands to scale viaducts and boulders, among other structures.James spends his weekends exploring the UK in quest of the best climbing locations. He posts videos from locations including Yorkshire’s Pateley Bridge and Shipley Glen. Additionally, he made waves in Majorca, where he uploaded a photo of himself scaling a tall wall along with the remark, “I was SO tired last night, I just had to climb into bed!”
James tweeted a picture three years ago of himself ascending his house wall while only wearing a pair of shorts, to the amazement of his fans who flocked to tell him how good he looked.
Among the comments was “OMG never thought Sammy was such a DILF.” Another person continued, “You must have muscles of steel.” “Flippin’ ‘eck that’s impressive!” yelled a third.Viewers of Corrie were shocked when James revealed Sam was privately ripped because they were used to seeing him dressed in rural attire. The actor has a very powerful figure from his love of rock climbing, which left admirers speechless when the soap star posted topless pictures of himself online.
James has throughout the years gained quite a bit of weight due to the demanding nature of his profession, proudly displaying his chiseled physique to admirers.
His co-stars have expressed their admiration for his workouts, with Jay Kontzle of Billy Fletcher writing: “That fingertip strength makes my fingers ache – great work Hoots!” Actress Lisa Dingle, who plays Mandy Dingle, concurred: “Check you out Jiblets!!!!! amazing.” James responded modestly, laughing off the sexual remarks, “It’s amazing what good lighting and a good camera angle can do!”