"Emmerdale Farm" (1972) TV series 1972-????

Creator:

Kevin Laffan

Seasons:

1 | unknown

Release Date:

16 October 1972 (UK)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

"Emmerdale Farm" was renamed "Emmerdale" in 1989. The rich Tate family, headed by Frank Tate, will sometime...

Plot Keywords:

Family Relationships | Rural Setting | Soap | Soap Opera | Neighbor

Awards:

27 wins & 70 nominations

Cast

Elizabeth Estensen	...	Diane Sugden / ... (459 episodes, 1999-2009)
Mark Charnock	...	Marlon Dingle (445 episodes, 1996-2009)
Nick Miles	...	Jimmy King (440 episodes, 2004-2009)
Charlie Hardwick	...	Val Lambert / ... (430 episodes, 2004-2009)
Charley Webb	...	Debbie Dingle / ... (415 episodes, 2002-2009)
Lucy Pargeter	...	Chas Dingle / ... (415 episodes, 2003-2009)
Antony Audenshaw	...	Bob Hope / ... (413 episodes, 1997-2009)
Jane Cox	...	Lisa Dingle / ... (405 episodes, 1996-2009)
Tom Lister	...	Carl King / ... (390 episodes, 2004-2009)
John Middleton	...	Ashley Thomas / ... (388 episodes, 1994-2009)
Chris Chittell	...	Eric Pollard (385 episodes, 1986-2009)
Steve Halliwell	...	Zak Dingle / ... (382 episodes, 1995-2009)
Paula Tilbrook	...	Betty Eagleton (368 episodes, 1995-2009)
Kelvin Fletcher	...	Andy Sugden / ... (360 episodes, 1996-2009)
Deena Payne	...	Viv Hope / ... (357 episodes, 1993-2009)
Charlotte Bellamy	...	Laurel Thomas / ... (336 episodes, 2002-2009)
Nicola Wheeler	...	Nicola De Souza / ... (333 episodes, 2001-2009)
Dominic Brunt	...	Paddy Kirk / ... (333 episodes, 1997-2009)
Billy Hartman	...	Terry Woods (330 episodes, 1995-2009)
Patrick Mower	...	Rodney Blackstock (329 episodes, 2000-2009)
Shirley Stelfox	...	Edna Birch (318 episodes, 2000-2009)
Sammy Winward	...	Katie Sugden / ... (301 episodes, 2003-2009)
Verity Rushworth	...	Donna Windsor-Dingle / ... (300 episodes, 1998-2009)
Richard Thorp	...	Alan Turner / ... (291 episodes, 1982-2009)
James Hooton	...	Sam Dingle / ... (288 episodes, 1995-2009)
Luke Tittensor	...	Darren Eden / ... (271 episodes, 2003-2009)
Meg Johnson	...	Pearl Ladderbanks (267 episodes, 2003-2009)
Matt Healy	...	Matthew King (265 episodes, 2004-2008)
Emily Symons	...	Louise Appleton / ... (254 episodes, 2001-2008)
Adele Silva	...	Kelly Windsor / ... (253 episodes, 1993-2007)
Jeff Hordley	...	Cain Dingle (248 episodes, 2000-2009)
Andy Devine	...	Shadrach Dingle / ... (246 episodes, 1998-2009)
Clive Hornby	...	Jack Sugden / ... (243 episodes, 1980-2008)
Kate McGregor	...	Emily Kirk / ... (225 episodes, 1999-2008)
Matthew Wolfenden	...	David Metcalfe (221 episodes, 2006-2009)
Matthew Bose	...	Paul Lambert (216 episodes, 2004-2009)
Emma Atkins	...	Charity Tate / ... (203 episodes, 2000-2009)
Duncan Preston	...	Douglas Potts (193 episodes, 2007-2009)
Alex Carter	...	Jamie Hope (190 episodes, 2006-2009)
Joseph Gilgun	...	Eli Dingle (187 episodes, 2006-2009)
Isabel Hodgins	...	Victoria Sugden (186 episodes, 2006-2009)
Sian Reese-Williams	...	Gennie Walker / ... (186 episodes, 2008-2009)

Also Known As:

Emmerdale (UK) (new title)

Runtime:

UK:30 min (including commercials)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Australia:PG | Canada:PG | USA:TV-PG

Filming Locations:

Arncliffe, North Yorkshire, England, UK

Company:

Yorkshire Television (YTV)

Trivia:

Although the show was renamed Emmerdale in 1989, the village was still named Beckindale until 1994.

Quotes:

Christopher 'Chris' Tate: [talking to Debbie about math] Don't let anybody tell you that two wrongs don't make it right.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "The Paul O'Grady Show: (#4.5)" (2006)

Best Soap Ever

Emmerdale Farm (Emmerdale since 1989) is the best soap on TV and has been for a number of years; I am still puzzled as to why it doesn't get the credit it deserves.

I usually watch this soap at my girlfriend's house and it is a great way to unwind after a hard day's work. It's set in Yorkshire (probably the most beautiful county in England)and follows the trials and tribulations of a small village. The villagers can usually be found in local pub The Woolpack or the village shop. However, unlike other soaps, there's several scenes set outside with the beautiful Yorkshire scenery.

Unlike other soaps, Emmerdale is a character driven soap. Every now and again it has a big drama such as the 1993 plane crash or the 2002 lorry crash but it doesn't need to have such big events often because it focuses more on the characters. Since it started in 1972 the writers have done a wonderful job.

Another ingredient to Emmerdale's success is the balance between humour and tragedy. Some soaps such as Eastenders and Brookside are far too gloomy with no comedic scenes at all but Emmerdale balances the tragedy out with comedy scenes involving the likes of the Dingle Family or the dodgy Eric Pollard. Comedy has always been one of Emmerdale's strong points.

The characters themselves are great. Obviously, I would love to go into detail but there wouldn't be enough space when you consider 30 years worth of shows. The 70's focused mainly on the Sugden Family who were always interesting. The 80's saw the likes of Rachel Hughes and the debut of the immoral Eric Pollard. The 90's was a great time for the likes of millionaire Frank Tate, his heartless son Chris, his evil wife Kim Tate and lesbian vet Zoe Tate. Here in the 21st century, Emmerdale continues to be good with characters like the romeo Rodney Blackstock, the crazy Dingle Family and gangster Ray Mullan.

I have actually lived in a village for a period and this is quite true to life. Okay, soaps could never really be considered reality but when I lived in a village I found that the small community really did stick together through thick and thin and the same happens in this programme. The only thing that isn't realistic is the amount of time the characters spend in the pub-one of these days Emmerdale is going to suffer from a mass outbreak of alcohol poisoning.

All in all, Emmerdale has been consistently good and recently celebrated it's 30th birthday with some great episodes. Here's to the next 30 years.