There have been plenty of comings and goings in Emmerdale recently, with several more cast changes ahead.
Last year, we said farewell to a number of villagers, including Rachael Gill-Davis, who played Gail Loman.
Another departee was Paula Lane’s Ella Forster, who left the Dales in the back of a police car after just fifteen months onscreen.
There was also the much-anticipated return of Robert Sugden (Ryan Hawley), who came back to the village following a prison stint.
We even saw Bernice Blackstock (Samantha Giles) pop back to the Dales for a brief stint.
As 2026 begins, more changes are afoot… so here’s the lowdown on who is returning, leaving, and arriving in the ITV soap…
EMMERDALE CAST RETURNS
Cathy Hope
Nineteen-year-old Gabrielle Dowling has also left the soap – but she will be back.
Recent storylines have included Cathy Hope coming to terms with a PMDD diagnosis, and also dealing with the horrific death of twin brother Heath, played by Gabrielle’s brother Sebastian, who passed away following a car accident.
Metro understands that the star is just taking a short break and will return down the line.
When is Cathy Hope returning to Emmerdale? Currently unknown.
Mandy Dingle
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Mandy Dingle star Lisa Riley made a temporary exit to facilitate her taking part in the recent series of I’m A Celebrity.
Mandy departed the village in December to help look after Tina Dingle’s children, following the character once again getting into trouble with the law.
When will Mandy return? Currently unknown, but she’s expected to be away for only a few weeks.
Graham Foster
Following Graham Foster’s (Andrew Scarborough) return from the dead in Corriedale, it won’t be long until he heads back to Emmerdale.
Teasing his arrival, producer Laura Shaw said: ‘A familiar face is returning to the village full-time! None other than Graham Foster will make a sensational comeback.
‘His return will have massive repercussions for both Kim Tate (Claire King), with whom he shares a complex love and hate relationship, and Rhona Goskirk (Zoe Henry), who was about to run away with him.
‘Graham will explain exactly what happened six years ago when he was ‘killed’, but the question will be whether Joe can ever forgive his father-figure for allowing him to believe he was dead’.
When is Graham returning to Emmerdale? He will be back soon.
EMMERDALE CAST DEPATURES
John Sugden
John Sugden (Oliver Farnworth) returned to the village over Christmas with the intention of killing Robert Sugden (Ryan Hawley) so he could be with Aaron Dingle (Danny Miller).
As expected, John’s plan didn’t go as he had hoped. Just before Corriedale aired, Aaron forced John to drive to the police station, but the crazed medic decided to turn the tables again and put them both in danger.
John let go of the wheel and told Aaron to take control. It led them to crashing into a car that was being driven by the Swains from Coronation Street. It set the foundations for the Corriedale drama, which saw more lives from both neighbourhoods in jeopardy.
John was killed by his sister Victoria Sugden (Isabel Hodgins). She injected him with a drug, leading to him having a bad reaction to it and dying.
When did John leave Emmerdale? During Corriedale.
Ray Walters
In the episode of Emmerdale that aired before Corriedale, we saw Ray Walters’ (Joe Absolom) dead body being dragged across a field.
We then saw it in the back of a depot van that was being driven by Jai Sharma (Chris Bisson).
As of January 17, we do not know who killed Ray, but that’s because we’re waiting for a series of flashback episodes to air that reveal what happened in the lead up to his murder.
They will air week commencing January 19, and focus on the prime suspects in his murder investigation.
When did Ray leave Emmerdale? At the start of 2026.
Celia Daniels
Celia Daniels (Jaye Griffiths) has proven a truly vile character since rocking up in the village.
The newbie was revealed to be behind a heinous, large-scale criminal operation, trafficking both drugs and humans, and a modern-day human slavery racket.
Celia was never going to be a redeemable character, and ultimately lost her life when son Ray Walters stabbed her.
Ray knew that he could never live the life he wanted to while Celia was alive, and killed his mum before getting rid of her body.
When did Celia leave Emmerdale? She was killed by Ray on New Year’s Day.
Cost-cutting at ITV
It was reported on July 28, 2025, that Emmerdale and Coronation Street will face more changes as a result of ITV slashing their budgets.
It is said that bosses at ITV will axe one in ten cast members from both soaps, as part of them cutting a further £15 million from the total budget.
As part of the changes, it’s also being reported that the number of scenes per episode will be cut.
Coronation Street currently has 84 permanent cast members, while Emmerdale has 70. Some of the older cast members have contracts, but most of the cast are paid by each episode.
This article was first published on October 25, 2024.
Emmerdale airs weeknights at 7.30pm on ITV1 and from 7am on ITVX.
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