Emmerdale fans are convinced the soap may have accidentally revealed the identity of the mysterious farm firestarter after spotting an unintentional clue in Thursday night’s episode.
The ITV soap has been teasing a huge whodunnit over the fires at Emmerdale Farm. Several villagers are under suspicion. But eagle-eyed viewers now think a slip during the episode credits has completely given the game away.
*WARNING: Small spoilers for Thursday’s episode of Emmerdale (May 21) follow, which has not aired on ITV yet, but is already available on ITVX and YouTube.
Who is the Emmerdale Farm arsonist?
There is no shortage of suspects as the mystery continues to unfold.
At first, suspicion fell on Joe Tate after viewers believed he may have started an earlier blaze as a warning to Robert. But Robert has since questioned why Joe would bother with secret fires when he has the power to simply ruin him another way.
Attention then shifted to Kev, Robert’s bitter ex-husband, especially after news broke that he is returning to the village. However, Robert has now learned Kev is back behind bars after getting himself into trouble again.
Meanwhile, Aaron and Robert are becoming increasingly suspicious of Ross and Sam. They’ve noticed them acting strangely around one of the barns. In Thursday’s episode, they decide to follow them to uncover what they’re hiding.
But next week’s spoilers reveal Kammy becomes the main suspect when Robert catches him carrying a petrol can and lighter near the farm. Kammy is later arrested after the police are called in, although he insists he was only trying to burn his own car.
So if it’s not Kammy, who is really responsible?
Fans already suspected Kyle before Thursday’s episode
Earlier this week, viewers became convinced Kyle had been exposed as the Emmerdale arsonist during a suspicious scene with Cain and Moira.
As Aaron updated them about another fire at the farm, Kyle was quietly sitting nearby doing homework. But as the adults discussed who might be responsible, the camera lingered on Kyle just a little too long for some viewers.
Fans quickly flooded social media with theories that his worried expression was a clue.
One viewer wrote: “Of course it is Kyle, it’s not hard! Couldn’t be anymore obvious if he was singing Prodigy!”
Another added: “It’s written all over his face.”
A third commented: “I saw that look, Kyle could definitely be involved.”
Did Emmerdale accidentally reveal the arsonist?
Now fans think Thursday’s episode may have confirmed their suspicions by mistake.
The episode opened with the hooded arsonist returning to the farm to start another blaze. Viewers only saw the figure from behind along with a glimpse of their trainers before the fire was lit.
However, fans noticed something interesting during the closing credits.
Kyle’s name appeared first in the cast list despite the fact he did not properly appear in the episode itself. As Emmerdale credits are usually shown in order of appearance, viewers now believe the mystery figure at the start must have been Kyle.
One fan wrote online: “In tonight’s credits Kyle is listed as the first person to appear but the first person to appear was the arsonist and then Dawn so it looks like they’ve shot themselves in the foot and revealed it too early.”
Another joked: “Howling at Emmerdale exposing who the fire starter is before they were supposed to!”
A third viewer added: “Oh look who’s the arsonist? We all already knew, thanks for the confirmation, Emmerdale.”
Someone else commented: “Emmerdale spoiling their own little arsonist whodunnit in the credits of the episode.”
While the soap has not officially confirmed anything yet, fans are more convinced than ever that Kyle is secretly behind the terrifying fires.
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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