Seasons & episodes

Carl confronts Del about the events of the night before and despite how he feels about Chas he asks her to make a go of things. Meanwhile, Ashley tells Laurel he has buried his anger towards his father but continues to find somewhere else for him to live. Jasmine is shocked to find out her grandfather is being kicked out so close to Christmas.

Carl's rescue mission goes disastrously wrong. Their trip to win Chas back doesn't begin well when the car runs out of petrol but a determined Del flags down Pearl and begs her for a lift. When Del explains to Pearl where they are going, Pearl looks worried but Del convinces her she knows exactly what she is doing. Arriving at the barracks the sentry refuses them access. A few minutes later they spot a mini bus leaving the barracks heading to a formal function. On the bus with her fellow soldiers is Private Chas Dingle. Del announces they will go in pursuit.

Del visits Chas in hospital and nobly states that despite her best attempts, Carl only has eyes for her. But Chas doesn't want to hear it and an annoyed Del tells her she doesn't deserve a man like Carl and goes to leave. Chas stops her, wanting to know if her and Carl had slept together. Meanwhile, when Adam tentatively raises the subject of counselling an annoyed Steph insists that she doesn't want to discuss her problems with him or anyone else. Also, Eric boasts to Val that he has rushed the Christmas light licence through the council eager to rub Rodney's nose in it. Val marvels at Eric's work and later seizes an opportunity to scoff at Rodney. Rodney vows to Kelly that he will wipe the smile off both of their faces.

Betty lets Steph into the secret that she is trying to track down Terence as a surprise for Alan. However she is left perplexed when Steph panics and leaves. Alone at the B&B, Steph's terror at the thought of coming face to face with her abuser takes over and she hits the bottle. Adam returns home to find Steph drinking vodka, with pills in her hand. Meanwhile, at a christening meeting things quickly descend into a slanging match with rows over Sarah's middle name, christening gown and hymns. Debbie remains silent until she can take no more and leaves. Elsewhere, Val is up to her devious ways when she happily swaps the pensioners’ expensive wine for custard creams. Rodney looks on suspiciously.

Not standing for any talk of abuse, Alan tells Adam that the only reason Steph is anxious about Terence's return is because he will expose her lies. Adam urges Alan that bringing Terence back into the equation will be bad news, however Alan seethes at Adam's impertinence. Meanwhile, Debbie is nervous when she returns home to find Cain with Sarah but he lies calmly saying that Emily didn't feel too well. He insists it is not a problem as he wants to be a more hands-on granddad from now on. Wondering what Cain is up to Debbie is unsettled and asks if she can have a night out. He agrees through gritted teeth and is left holding the baby.

Emily confesses to Paul that she feels guilty for allowing Debbie and Sarah to grow apart. Meanwhile, Cain struggles to understand why Debbie has not yet bonded with Sarah. Much to Debbie's disappointment he announces he intends to spend the day with the baby. Elsewhere, Steph struggles to cope with the possibility that her brother may return to the village. Adam reassures her it is unlikely. Meanwhile, after Rodney snaps at Kelly, saying that she only ever takes and never gives, she is determined to prove him and the village wrong.

Tired of her interfering and blaming her for the rift between Debbie and Sarah, Cain packs up Emily’s belongings and forces her to leave. After hearing the news, Debbie desperately tries to stop her. A distressed Debbie admits to Emily that she doesn’t love Sarah the way Emily does. Debbie blurts out a shock proposal that leaves them both stunned. Meanwhile, Sam is overjoyed when Alice returns. Alice admits she was wrong but explains her fears about being pushed into giving up on her baby. After Alice apologises for any worry she may have caused, she and Sam resolve to face whatever the future holds together.

As the Dingles prepare for Sarah’s christening, a distraught Debbie is upset after Cain has driven Emily away. However, she is relieved when Emily arrives in time for the christening. Emily manages to discreetly make it clear to Debbie that she is only back for Sarah. After the ceremony, Debbie makes Andy kiss the baby goodbye which he does despite being puzzled by Debbie's behaviour. Debbie manages to say an emotional goodbye to Sarah as Emily and the baby leave in a taxi. Elsewhere, after Sarah's christening, Alice worries that due to her cancer she may not be around for the christening of her own child. Her worries lead to a shock marriage proposal to Sam.

As everyone celebrates the christening in The Woolpack, a devastated Daz is left to break the news to everyone in the pub that baby Sarah has gone. Cain reacts violently, appalled Zak and Lisa both contemplate their failure as parents, and a heartbroken Andy blames Daz for allowing Emily to leave. Andy, Daz and Jack frantically search for Emily and the baby but are left distraught by what they find. Meanwhile, Alice is upset when Debbie brands her selfish, questioning how Sam will cope if she dies. In fury, Alice slaps Debbie hard across the face. Later Alice has a heart to heart with Diane which leaves her feeling more positive about her future.

As Lisa heads off to visit Granny Clegg, and the rest of the Dingles celebrate Christmas in The Woolpack, Belle is left in the care of Shadrach. When Daz calls round with Spike the ferret, Belle is intrigued by the animal. As drunk Shadrach sleeps, Belle lets the ferret out and follows him outside. When Daz realises she is missing he tracks her down but a frightened Belle runs away from him and terrified, she slips and falls down a mine shaft. As Daz panics and tries to help her he loses his footing and also becomes trapped. Meanwhile, Cain is still angry at Debbie and unwilling to forgive her for giving away his grandchild. Whereas Zak reminds Debbie how much she is loved by the Dingles and after seeing her devastation he reluctantly forgives her and tries to understand.

Lisa returns from Granny Clegg’s on Christmas morning full of festive joy until the hungover Dingles admit they thought Belle was with her. The family begin to frantically search for missing Belle and Lisa calls the police. Zak remembers Sandy befriending Belle at the christening and goes on the rampage to find him. As accusations fly around the village, Zak interrupts the Christmas morning church service to beg everyone to help find his little girl. A formal search of the area gets underway but when Zak learns that Daz is also missing, his suspicion leads to fury and he launches himself at Jack.

Having returned to the Kings’, Jimmy gets a shock when Helen admits that she and Sadie have been working together to convince Tom to retire. Jimmy bitterly reveals the discovery to Matthew, warning him he will be pushed out next as Sadie is on a mission to win charge of the business. Matthew covers but decides to test Sadie by asking how she would feel if they left the business to Jimmy and did a runner together. Sadie's reaction leaves Matthew thinking that Jimmy is right but later Sadie turns up unexpectedly with her bags packed and agrees to run away if it's what he wants. Meanwhile, Nicola arrives home from Christmas in Scarborough to find Ivan has also returned from spending Christmas with his family up North.

With Matthew due to take control of the business the following day, he and Sadie agree that they will have to wait a bit longer before announcing they are together, to avoid suspicion. Later, Jimmy returns home and picks up on a moment of intimacy between Matthew and Sadie. As the realisation hits him that they are an item, Jimmy is left humiliated. He is quick to tell Tom of his discovery but Tom is convinced he is being paranoid.

As Tom prepares to hand over the business to Matthew, he can’t get Jimmy’s suspicions out of his head. The official handover gets underway but is interrupted by the owner of the guest house that Sadie and Matthew frequented. Jimmy smugly asks her to confirm the affair but when she can’t and Jimmy realises in horror that Sadie has scuppered his plans. When Tom stalls, Matthew fears all is lost but Sadie refuses to be beaten. She finds Tom and tries to manipulate him into believing that Jimmy is lying, but Tom claims she's been trying to rip his family apart from day one.

Sadie suggests to Matthew that perhaps they would be best cutting their losses and leaving Emmerdale for good, but Matthew is adamant that they should stay and fight. Tom initially refuses to see Matthew but is persuaded by Carl to change his mind, although he still refuses to allow Sadie into the office. Tom demands Matthew explain himself to them all. Matthew claims that all he did was fall in love. Later Jimmy tells Matthew he is incapable of love and has never managed a long-term relationship but Matthew replies that it is because he has been sleeping with Sadie on and off since before she married Jimmy.

Sadie is at a loss over her next plan of action. She wants to see Matthew, though whilst sitting outside Home Farm she realises she may have lost him forever. Instead she takes solace in a drink at the Woolpack. Louise takes the opportunity to rib Sadie about being dumped but Sadie uncharacteristically breaks down and Edna kindly takes her to her house. Sadie opens her heart to Edna and admits she should never have married Jimmy as she has always loved Matthew and always will.