Hour long Emmerdale special to highlight voices of domestic abuse survivors

Belle King has been suffering coercive control and abuse at the hands of her manipulative husband, Tom King, on the ITV soap for months

An hour-long Emmerdale special will highlight the voices of domestic abuse survivors as a long-running storyline on the issue comes to an end.

Belle King, played by Eden Taylor-Draper, has been suffering coercive control and abuse at the hands of her manipulative husband, Tom King (James Chase), on the ITV soap for months.

The show, based on the Yorkshire Dales, says the final chapter will see Belle find the strength to report Tom to the police.

The conclusion will come in December, when the special hour-long episode highlights “the real life voices of domestic abuse victims and survivors”.

Emmerdale producer Laura Shaw said: “When we first embarked on this journey we knew we wanted to show domestic abuse, coercive control and manipulation in all its guises.

“The privilege we have on a drama such as Emmerdale is being able to show the reality of a situation like Belle’s over a longer period of time to authentically reflect what so many people go through in real life on a daily basis.

“We knew from the outset that Belle would need some sort of closure on Tom and we know our Emmerdale audience always look forward to our villains getting their comeuppance.

“We don’t want to spoil the outcome of this story and reveal what will happen to Tom, but needless to say, Belle’s going to be in a much better place by this Christmas.”

During the storyline, Emmerdale has experimented with using an episode showing three potential futures for Belle, seen the character’s dog also become a victim of the abuse and has worked with domestic abuse charity Refuge and New Beginnings Peer Support on how to approach the issue.

Lindsay Oliver, chief executive of domestic abuse service New Beginnings Peer Support, said: “When Emmerdale explained they hoped to include the real life testimonies of domestic abuse victims and survivors within these scenes we knew it would be the truest way for them to authentically close this storyline.

“We have been on board with this story since 2023 when Emmerdale first approached us about depicting a cohesive and controlling relationship on the series.

“We are pleased Emmerdale have highlighted and are continuing to showcase this issue right to the end.

“And we hope these final episodes will continue to raise awareness about domestic abuse, controlling relationships and the fact there is help out there.”

At the 2024 National Television Awards (NTAs), Emmerdale scooped up the best soap prize, and Taylor-Draper was also recognised with a nomination.

Minnie the dog, called Piper in the soap, also scooped the best pet prize, at the Inside Soap Awards in September, while the best actress went to Taylor-Draper.

Emmerdale is on every weekday at 7.30pm on ITV1.

Published: 08/11/2024 by Radio NewsHub