The following article contains spoilers from an episode of Emmerdale that hasn’t aired on ITV1 yet, but can be viewed on ITVX.

Lydia Dingle (Karen Blick) has finally returned to the Emmerdale village.

The beloved character was missing from the show for a while, and sparked concern in April when she failed to show up to her birthday party.

Kim Tate (Claire King) decided to organise a big do at her home for Lydia, the cleaner and her best friend.

Unfortunately though, as the hours ticked by, it became more and more apparent that Lydia wasn’t going to make it back from her mum’s.

Last month, Sam Dingle (James Hooton), Lydia’s husband, confirmed to his family members that she wouldn’t be returning anytime soon.

He revealed that her mum is still really sick, so she’ll be away for a good few more weeks – but potentially longer.

In tonight’s episode though, things finally changed as Lydia wandered into the café, ready for an overdue catch-up with her friend Kim.

And even Joe Tate (Ned Porteous) was pleased to see her!

Lydia sat down and confirmed to Kim that her mum is feeling better, but she’s not completely out of the woods yet. It means that Lydia is going to be ‘toing and froing’, suggesting she’s not permanently back on our screens just yet.

Lydia also learnt of Kim’s latest love interest.

The character confirmed that Eddie is a cosmetic surgeon and judging by the look on her face, he seems to be doing a very good job at charming her…