Not everyone knows that Graham Foster (Andrew Scarborough) is back from the dead in Emmerdale, but he is, and now it’s all about timing in how he tells the world.
Graham first briefly appeared back in the soap in the legendary Corriedale episode, where he was seen driving a van with a tied-up woman in the back.
He then disappeared for a bit again but made his reappearance in the episode on January 20th – six years to the date since his death.
He snuck into Smithy Cottage where he accosted Rhona Goskirk (Zoe Henry) and tried to tell her the truth but emotions were running pretty high and she could barely absorb that he had used his SAS training to lie perfectly still and pretend to be dead when Priya and Billy found him.
He continued playing dead when he was taken to the mortuary (thankfully, not one soul decided to check him for a pulse), and then his friend on the inside, DI Dent, let him out the fridge and he hopped off to his new life.
He told Rhona he thought he’d saved her from Pierce but had learned while on a self-pity bender in Mexico City that Pierce gone back and had another go at her.
So he’s back in town to right his wrongs, and his first order was to rid the place of Celia Daniels (Jaye Griffiths) and Ray Walters (Joe Absolom) to save April Windsor (Amelia Flanagan).
He was nearly caught by Joe Tate (Ned Porteous) when Graham dragged Ray into the village hall to beat seven bells out of him and Joe walked in after hearing the violence and deciding to investigate. Thankfully, Ray didn’t actually know who Graham was, so didn’t manage to give the game away to Joe.
But then Graham decided it was time to meet Joe face to face and chose the most traumatising way possible, by popping out of the shadows at Home Farm.
Now Graham is back, and with the distinctive chap he is, it’s getting harder to hide. He and Joe decide to get ahead of the village gossip and reveal his return by brazenly walking into the village.
Do they just plan to act like he never fake died?! Goodness only knows how the locals will react, not to mention Marlon…
