The new Emmerdale episodes exploring characters’ lives in lockdown

Special episodes have been airing twice a week since Monday, June 8, giving audiences an insight into how a variety of their favourite villagers are dealing with “the trials and tribulations” of lockdown during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Filmed with scaled-down teams and social distancing measures in place, they have so far starred duos such as Cain Dingle (played by Jeff Hordley) and Aaron Dingle (Danny Miller), and Mandy Dingle (Lisa Riley) and Vinny Dingle (Bradley Johnson).

Still to come before the soap returns to its previous lockdown broadcast schedule is an episode following much-loved couple Chas Dingle and Paddy Kirk.

With the Woolpack pub shut because of coronavirus, landlady Chas is struggling. She feels like she’s cut off from her old life and is worried about the pub’s future.

“She has every right to be worried,” says Lucy Pargeter, 43, who plays the role. “There aren’t many people sitting in lockdown with no worries, thinking it doesn’t matter how long it goes on because they have an endless pot of money that will pay the bills and look after their kids and keep them fed, clothed and watered.

“The Woolpack is her livelihood and, with the state of how things are at the moment, pubs and the leisure industry is one of the last things that will be opened up, so it’s a massive strain on her.”

It’s not the only strain for Chas, as 50-year-old Dominic Brunt, who plays Paddy, sets out. “There is an unspoken strain [on their relationship] and Chas is feeling it more than Paddy.

“Chas has had the bulk of the childcare and is, to some degree, more isolated than he (Paddy) is. He’s also not very aware of others’ feelings and he’s clumsy emotionally.”

Paddy is keen to get their relationship back on track, so the pair take time to reflect, and come up with new plans for the future. “I like the fact that they are chalk and cheese,” Dominic reflects of the on-screen relationship.

“He doesn’t take her for granted and Chas always gives Paddy a run for his money. I get the feeling that Chas has been around the world and Paddy has been around the Harrogate area.”

Filming was halted on the long-running Yorkshire soap in March, in light of coronavirus restrictions.

A phased return to production was underway last month at Emmerdale’s studios in Leeds, with the recording of new episodes featuring the soap’s characters in lockdown.

ITV said with time on their hands, the show’s characters would “begin to think about what’s important in life”.

“We’ll see resentments and past feuds resurface, old wounds further exposed, relationships scrutinised, with doubts and insecurities laid bare,” a spokesperson said.

“Some seize the opportunity lockdown presents to heal divisions, whilst others get some sizzle back into their lives.”

New ways of working have been introduced to protect the show’s cast and crew, including social distancing measures and storylines featuring a smaller number of actors.

Dominic reflects on the two-hander script. “I was worried that it might be a 20-odd-minute monologue shared between Lucy and myself. But it’s quite episodic and cut into bite-size chunks. Most scenes are about five pages long.

“I hadn’t learned a single line of dialogue in about three months though. Lucy is a master at learning lines and hardly ever stumbles.”

“We’ve been given a few two-handers, so we are quite used to the scenario of Dom and I being locked in the Woolpack back room for days on end,” Lucy adds. “We know each other inside out.

“It is great as we know each other’s signs and on-screen cues to fill in the gaps or if we’re taking a pause.”

The process of filming is quite different from normal. Social distancing, Lucy says, is “almost like everything we go against”.

“I would say we are a very tactile industry, cast and crew alike. Our days are filled with hugs and kisses, being in close proximity, laughing, touching, sharing dressing rooms and spending a lot of time with each other.”

As with everything, a lot has changed in the past few months. Back in January, the soap won best serial drama at the National Television Awards for the fourth year in a row.

When the coronavirus pandemic took hold weeks later, the number of showings of the programme on TV each week was reduced to try and space out the pre-recorded episodes for as long as possible.

For Dominic, the break in filming over lockdown has been an opportunity to enjoy family time. “But home-schooling is not easy,” he says. “I’ve always admired teachers, but I have a newfound respect. I’ve also missed the job I love so much.

“It’s all been a bit of a worry too with the dangers involved and the news has been so utterly tragic every day. So much heartbreak for so many people.”

Lucy went into the lockdown feeling invigorated. But it didn’t last too long. “I went into it thinking ‘I’m going to be really creative and do something different every day’.

“Then tiredness kicked in, and monotony kicked in, and missing my mates and then the massive weight of responsibility kicked in.

“I’m here on my own with my three kids. I’m used to being a single mum, but then you have to put into the mix that you’re actually trying to fight to keep your children alive and the fear of what would happen if I became sick.

“It’s all the implications. It’s a life-and-death situation for so many people, and that has hit me massively.”

It’s been a learning curve for the star, as she, like all of us, looked to adapt to life in an unprecedented situation. “I have had a really stressful time with online shopping, as I couldn’t get a slot for six weeks,” she says.

“I was relying on my mates around me and my workmates to go shopping for me, which is a massive deal for me as I don’t like putting anyone out of their way.

“I’m very staunch in that I wanted to provide and be in control of everything, and asking for help from my friends just wasn’t me.

“To say to my friends ‘I can’t go shopping and we have nothing in the house’, well, it has been a massive learning curve. I have realised that I have so many people around me I can rely on and we’re so close.”

– Watch Emmerdale on ITV on Mondays and Wednesdays.

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