If they thought Joe Tate (Ned Porteous) was bad before, the villagers of Emmerdale haven’t seen anything yet.

The most dangerous animal is a wounded one, and losing his love, Dawn (Oliva Bromley), has wounded him so deeply that he’s vowed that everybody involved in what happened will suffer, with Billy Fletcher (Jay Kontzle), Ruby (Beth Cordingly) and Caleb Miligan (William Ash) all in danger of feeling the full force of Joe’s wrath.

‘He’s just lost the person closest to him, rather, he feels she was ‘taken”, explains Ned. ‘The key to helping him become the good man he’s capable of being.

‘He blames anyone who came into contact with her over the last few weeks, all adding to this butterfly effect leading to the crash.

‘He’s not thinking rationally, and is ready to dish out blame to anyone who won’t join him in his rage.’

His first act? To make Dawn’s funeral completely private, with only himself in attendance.

‘He’s feeling extremely protective,’ Ned reasons.

‘Even in death, he’s feeling like his way of controlling the situation is to remove the outsiders. To have this whole experience by himself, where nothing more can go wrong.’

Even Ruby tries to get through to him, with little success: ‘Ruby represents the enemy in his mind’, says Ned.

‘Even if she’s speaking sense, it’s falling on deaf ears and he’s too angry to hear any guidance.

In the end, it’s Clemmie (Mabel Addison) who gets through to Joe, convincing him to allow Billy and the kids to attend the funeral.

‘What he’s lost seems to be the driving factor in his decision-making right now. I think it’s more he realises he has no actual say in who’s allowed to be there.

‘Either legally or morally as even though she was his fiancée, she was these kids’ mum! So it kind of trumps his feelings really.’

So this is the new Joe, then? More ruthless than ever and dedicated to causing destruction?

‘I believe that Dawn was the one thing truly tethering Joe to a life leading toward moral good,’ said Ned.

‘He won’t improve for himself, but he would have done it for her. He’s lost his anchor, now likely to be lost in a storm of vengeance and rage.’

With Joe determined to give his and Dawn’s son – that she birthed hours before her death – up for adoption.

His pseudo parental figures, Kim Tate and Graham Foster (Claire King and Andrew Scarborough) have been desperately trying to change his mind, but thus far, have had no luck.

‘You would imagine that Joe’s abandonment issues and lack of a strong parental system would make him desperate to overcorrect and be the ‘best parent’ he could be,’ mused Ned on Joe’s decision.

‘But then again, that wouldn’t be as interesting to watch as someone who is doing the opposite. At the moment, he’s just overwhelmed with how being around this child reminds him of Dawn and that is too much to bear

‘[Kim and Graham] both continuously make valid points about the situation and how poorly Joe is dealing with it, which is the last thing Joe wants to hear. It’s shining a light on his failures.’

Is there any chance Joe will open up to either of them?

‘At the end of the day, Graham is the closest thing he has to a parent. As volatile as their relationship can be, if Joe ever needs anything, comfort included, it’s likely going to be Graham.

‘He and Kim seldom see eye to eye. But I’ve always figured Joe understands the importance of having a team around him.

‘And someone as formidable as Kim Tate serves better as an ally than an enemy.


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