After being identified as the enigmatic captive in Cain Dingle’s (Jeff Hordley) barn, troubled Emmerdale character Aaron Dingle (Danny Miller) has unexpectedly made a surprise comeback to the soap opera.
The episode’s opening moments on Monday night disclosed the unlucky man’s identity; it turned out that Cain had brought Aaron back from Italy after he had robbed deadly criminals.
It comes after Miller sparked rumors that he would go back to the Dales by saying: “You never say never with soap!” at the Inside Soap Awards last month.
Obviously not. But who is Aaron Dingle, and when did he first go from Emmerdale, for those who are less familiar with his persona?
Aaron Dingle, who is he?
Aaron Dingle, also known as Aaron Livesy, is the half-brother of Liv Flaherty (Isobel Steele), Grace, and Eve Dingle, as well as the son of Chas Dingle (Lucy Pargeter) and Gordon Livesy.
Since 2003, the figure has intermittently featured. Danny Webb initially portrayed the part from 2003 to 2006, and then Miller assumed control of it in 2008.
Throughout his time on the show, Aaron was a key player in a number of compelling storylines. For example, viewers saw him involved with the criminal McFarlane family, aiding his boyfriend Jackson Walsh in taking his own life after an accident left him paralyzed, and coming to terms with Gordon’s abuse of him as a child.
Danny also won particular praise for performances of scenes which saw Aaron come out as gay.
However it was his beloved relationship with Robert Sugden (Ryan Hawley) – leading to fans dubbing the couple ‘Robron’ – for which he is best remembered.
The relationship between Aaron and Robert captured a soap nation, with a fiery affair commencing while Robert was married to wife Chrissie.
There were some seriously turbulent times, as damaged Robert was implicated in the death of Katie, and also almost killed Paddy and Chas, as well as taking Aaron hostage.
One of the most contentious elements of the tale was Rebecca White becoming pregnant following a wild night of intoxicated lust with Robert.
This finally tore Aaron and Robert apart, but although they got back together, their happiness was shattered once more when Robert was sent in jail for killing Lee, the rapist of his sister Victoria (Isobel Hodgins).
Aaron Dingle left Emmerdale when?
Late in 2021, Aaron Dingle left Emmerdale.
Following Robert’s sentence, he experienced further sorrow when Meena Jutla, a serial murderer, killed his boyfriend Ben Tucker.
He first left the named town seeking a new beginning when his sister Liv was detained on suspicion of killing Ben.
During the soap opera’s 50th anniversary in 2022, Aaron made a brief comeback.
He reconnected with Liv upon his return and learned that his mother was having an affair with Al (Michael Wildman), which led him to shut her out of his life.
After Liv was killed by being crushed under a car in the epic storm that ravaged the Dales, he fled the soap opera once more.
Miller has talked openly about his return to the soap opera, especially the dark turn his character has taken while he was away.
Aaron originally denied committing a heist worth tens of thousands of dollars by stealing from some extremely dangerous Italian mafia. Cain then sent Aaron back to the UK for his own protection.
He said to Metro.co.uk that when Aaron returns, he is severely injured and furious and lashes out at everyone. “There are a lot of occasions when I’m performing the parts when I think the audience are going to hate this and hate me!” he exclaimed.
The development of a character adds intrigue. As fantastic as they’ve always been with Aaron, I’m hoping the audience will perceive it as a route toward self-destruction and self-loathing rather than something he’s doing randomly.
Emmerdale will recommence on Tuesday at 7.30 p.m. on ITV.