Emmerdale fans have been left baffled watching Charity Dingle seemingly crumble under Dr Todd’s blackmail campaign, especially given Charity is usually the one calling the shots.
Normally, anyone trying to take on a Dingle would not stand a chance. But this time Charity appears trapped, exhausted and completely outmanoeuvred as Todd tightens her grip over the baby Leyla secret.
Now actress Emma Atkins has explained exactly why Charity is reacting so differently this time around and according to her, it all comes down to survival.
Charity giving in to Dr Todd and her blackmail in Emmerdale
Ever since falling pregnant with Ross Barton’s baby instead of carrying a surrogate child for Sarah and Jacob, Charity has been desperately trying to keep the truth hidden.
After giving birth, she handed baby Leyla over and allowed everyone to believe Sarah was the mum, while also pushing Ross away to keep suspicion at bay.
But Dr Todd knows exactly what happened and she has wasted no time using the secret to her own advantage.
The first time Todd blackmailed Charity was immediately after the birth, when she forced her to convince Jacob to drop his complaint against her.
At the time, Charity was vulnerable, emotional and recovering from the birth, so viewers could understand why she gave in.
Now though, Todd is back for more and demanding a massive £10,000 to stay silent.
Despite Charity attempting to stand up to her, Todd continues to stay one step ahead and next week the pressure becomes so intense that Charity offers to sell her share of the Woolpack to Kim Tate at a discounted price just to raise the cash.
Emma Atkins on what’s going on here
With many fans wondering why Charity is not fighting back harder, actress Emma Atkins has now shed some light on her character’s mindset.
Speaking to the latest issue of Inside Soap, Emma explained: “I don’t think she’s come across someone who’s so fiercely one step ahead of her. Charity is aware of how vulnerable she is right now.”
She added: “Charity won’t underestimate how brilliantly Todd’s mind works… It isn’t about anything other than survival right now.”
And judging by the lengths Charity is now prepared to go to, including potentially handing over part of the Woolpack to Kim Tate, she clearly believes she has no other option.
Things will get worse between Charity and Dr Todd in Emmerdale
It also sounds as though this feud is nowhere near over.
Appearing on This Morning on Wednesday, May 13, Emma hinted there is still much more drama ahead and that Charity trying to sell the Woolpack will not solve her problems.
“There’s a trajectory that it’s going to keep going for some time,” she revealed.
Emma also teased that the truth about baby Leyla will eventually explode into the open. However, she admitted she is only learning parts of the storyline as it develops.
“[The secret] has to [come out] at some point, but it’s going to heat up,” she explained. “She’s [Todd] coming into her patch in Emmerdale, she’s getting involved with Vanessa and she’s like ‘why are you here? What do you want?’. So it’s going to go quite dark, I think.”
With Todd firmly holding the power for now, the big question is whether Charity can eventually fight her way back or whether this could finally be the battle that destroys her.
Read more: Emmerdale cast shake-up 2026 as exits confirmed and big returns teased – so who’s leaving?
Emmerdale usually airs weeknights on ITV at 8pm, with an early release on ITVX at 7am.
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