Emmerdale fans were left feeling emotional after the soap mentioned Zak Dingle. The character

was played by the late Steve Halliwell. Making his debut in 1994, Zak went on to become one

on the soap’s much-loved characters as the head of the Dingle clan. Sadly, Steve passed away at

the age of 77 last year after numerous health battles. His family confirmed at the time: “He went to sleep, peacefully with his loved ones around him.” Steve was a vital part of the ITV soap for many years until around last year. Zak was barely seen in episodes around the time, instead spending time in Scotland with other Dingles. Emmerdale horror as villager is rushed to hospital after shock accident – as another attempts to flee the dales Emmerdale’s Matty Barton to confide in cellmate amid prison ordeal Zak was a fan favourite on the soap ( ITV) But over in the soap at the moment, Zak’s daughter Belle Dingle (Eden Taylor-Droper) is at the centre of a gripping domestic abuse storyline with her new husband Tom (James Chase).

Former flames Belle and Tom rekindled their romance last year – and ended up tying the knot. However, viewers have seen the son of the villainous Carl King emotionally abuse Belle over recent months. Zak’s daughter is at the centre of a harrowing domestic abuse storyline ( ITV) At the start, he belittled her choices and undermined her – even criticising her wedding dress choice. But over the past few months, Tom has become more controlling of Belle. The coercive control storyline escalated in recent weeks, with him attacking his partner and things are only set to get worse. During Monday’s episode (June 24) Belle was visited by her mental health care coordinator, while Tom was out at work.

After opening up about her relationship with Tom, Belle was urged her to leave. Belle planned to visit Debbie and Zak Hesitant at first, she eventually agreed and packed up her things. She then called up her sister Debbie Dingle in Scotland, to thank her for purchasing her train tickets to visit her and her dad. Talking about her beloved dad, she told her sister: “ And can you not tell dad I’m coming? I want to surprise him.” Fans were quick to discuss the reference to Zak. On X, formerly known as Twitter, one person said: “Belle heading off to see Zak,” along with a broken heart emoji. Someone else added: “The Zak mention, I can’t.” Emmerdale airs weeknights on ITV1 and ITVX at 7.30pm