Emmerdale fans should brace themselves for things to take a darker turn in Tom King’s abuse of wife Belle Dingle.
Tom, played by James Chase, is seemingly showing his romantic side as he whisks Belle (Eden Taylor Draper) off to a holiday cottage in Wales.
But his intentions are soon clear as the trip is part of his sneaky plan to physically isolate her from her friends and family after months of increasing his coercive control over her.
And things quickly spiral out of control in this self-contained episode set to air on ITV1 and ITVX next week.
Emmerdale Producer Sophie Roper explains: “When Tom takes Belle to Wales, Tom’s coercive and controlling behaviour will isolate Belle further from her family.
“The behaviour Tom King is exhibiting is typical of a coercive controlling relationship and at times will prove difficult and uncomfortable to watch.
“The assistance the charity Refuge has given us whilst researching this storyline has been enormously helpful in bringing this incredibly important storyline to our screens.”
Featuring a flashback episode, viewers will see Tom and Belle’s happy arrival at the remote cottage.
But when Belle overhears her husband arranging to extend their stay, through flashbacks we see the full extent of their week, with scenes revealing Tom’s physical and emotional control over wife Belle and their dog Piper.
With little chance of escape Belle realises she’s totally cut off from all those she loves.
Constantly trying to do her best for him, but with Tom blaming all their troubles on her, the balance of power has truly shifted.
Emma Pickering, Head of Technology-Facilitated Abuse and Economic Empowerment at Refuge said: “Working with Emmerdale on this storyline we really wanted to capture the isolation and control that we know underpins domestic abuse.
“That is illustrated in a very literal sense in this cottage episode, but we know often survivors are isolated from their families and communities over time in a deliberate act from their perpetrator to remove them from support systems and making it very difficult for them to leave their abusers.
“We know some viewers have found the Belle and Tom storyline hard to watch at times, but it is so important when we are talking about domestic abuse and covering it; even in a fictional sense, that it is true to life.
“We are so grateful to Emmerdale for allowing us to feed in with our expert knowledge and the vital awareness this storyline is raising about this issue.”
She added: “For anyone watching who is concerned they may be experiencing domestic abuse, Refuge is here for you, our National Domestic Abuse Helpline is available 24 hours a day 7 days a week for free, confidential specialist support on 0808 2000 247, Or visit www.nationaldahelpline.org.uk to speak to an adviser on Live Chat.”
Everything you need to know about Emmerdale
Emmerdale airs weekday nights at 7.30pm on ITV and ITVX.
