Charity Dingle became the victim of sexual assault during Sunday’s episode of the ITV soap
Emmerdale aired an uncomfortable scene as Charity Dingle was assaulted by Dr Caitlin Todd at the end of Sunday’s installment.
Over the last few weeks, Dr Caitlin Todd has been demanding money from Charity Dingle with the promise of keeping the secret that baby Leyla isn’t Sarah and Jacob’s. However, on a rare Sunday episode the storyline took a dark turn.
Charity has been struggling to cope under the pressure that her secret about baby Leyla could be exposed at any second, and she ended up turning to drink as Dr Todd continued to make more demands.
As Todd continued to get more menacing, things took an even darker turn as she arrived at Charity’s home later on where the latter was lay asleep on the sofa.
Noticing she’d finished a bottle of wine, Dr Todd hovered over Charity and sneered: “Wake up. Drunk, disgusting w****! One too many? Bad, bad girl. You should know better… ..than to lose control.”
It was then that the horrific assault aired as she could be heard unzipping Charity’s trousers before she awoke and realised what was happening. Begging Todd to get off her, Charity sat upright as she tried to process what had just happened to her.
In the coming weeks, Charity will struggle to come to terms with the attack, having to choose between confiding in her loved ones or internalising the trauma.
Viewers expressed how uncomfortable they felt during the latest installment of Emmerdale. On X (formerly known as Twitter), @emmerdale2dae wrote: “I admire Emmerdale for tackling such a huge storyline but it was such an uncomfortable watch and I know it’s supposed to be, that’s the point, but wow was it dark for an 8pm soap. Todd is beyond sick and Caroline Harker plays a very VERY good villain! Still shaking.”
@meeshyjay added: “I don’t think Dr Todd can sink any lower ffs i feel sick” as @bagflea75 penned: “That was really uncomfortable, it felt like you were witnessing something rather than just watching.”.
Ahead of the storyline airing, Emmerdale issued a warning for viewers of the ITV soap on their social media. It reads: “In today’s episode, (Sunday, June 7) Emmerdale will show scenes depicting sexual violence that viewers could find distressing.”
Emmerdale producer, Sophie Roper, explains the importance of the storyline: “Charity’s storyline will explore the impact of sexual violence, and though this heinous act is fundamentally about power, we’ll explore the complexities of how Charity processes her trauma when the perpetrator is a woman.
“With little conversation surrounding female-on-female assault, we’ll explore the overwhelming feelings of isolation many survivors experience and will examine the disparity between the legal term sexual assault and the fact that many women in Charity’s position feel this minimises what’s happened to them, because they feel like they’ve been raped. Though difficult viewing at times, Charity’s resilience will inspire hope as she confronts what has happened to her.”
Emma Atkins commented: “This has been one of the most demanding and significant storylines I’ve had to navigate as Charity. We know her as a tough, resilient character, but this trauma will expose a deep, raw vulnerability that has been heartbreaking at times to play.
“I hope this storyline gives even one person the courage to speak out or helps others understand the quiet devastation of trauma.”
Emmerdale airs on weeknights at 8pm and is also available to stream on ITVX and YouTube from 7am.
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