Emmerdale star Jaye Griffiths has spoken out about her emotional farewell to Celia Daniels, as the villainous character prepares to exit the soap.
Celia made her debut earlier this year as Moira’s seemingly harmless farming neighbour. But it didn’t take long for her true colours to emerge. She was secretly running a dangerous criminal empire, with ties to drug trafficking and modern slavery.
Now, as the storyline reaches its climax, Griffiths has confirmed that Celia’s time in the village is coming to an end. Like many of Emmerdale’s most notorious antagonists, Celia’s reign was never built to last, and her exit promises to be anything but quiet.
Jaye Griffiths reveals Celia exit news
Speaking about her character’s exit, Jaye confirmed that she knew it was coming. She said: “I knew it was finite, which I am very sad about, because I would like to stay forever, but it’s such a strong arc.”
She described working at Emmerdale as ‘heaven,’ adding: “It’s one of the nicest places I’ve ever worked, and I’ve done a little bit of work before! It is gentle and kind and professional and funny, and people care that it’s good. People care that we tell the story properly. It’s a joy to come to work.”
Jaye also shared her joy at being able to play a character like Celia. She explained: “I usually get the upstanding, morally robust people. Doctors, police officers, lawyers – not that they’re all morally robust, but you get my drift. Whereas Celia, her compass is buried. She doesn’t need one, she just needs to make money.
“It’s just so wonderful to explore someone who doesn’t mind whether you like them or not, because your opinion is of less than no value.”
However, despite her exit, she hopes her character has left a mark in terms of raising awareness to modern day slavery. “It’s not happening somewhere far, far away, it’s happening next door,” she said. “It’s horrendous. Hopefully, maybe conversations will start to be heard. Maybe a question will run through people’s minds.”
Celia’s time in the Dales
From the moment Celia Daniels set foot in Emmerdale, it was clear she wasn’t there to make friends. She wasted no time ruffling feathers, offending Moira within minutes and showing little remorse when her dog attacked Paddy.
But viewers were blindsided by just how dark Celia’s true nature was. In a jaw-dropping twist, she lashed out at April. And, exposed herself as the ruthless mastermind behind a county-lines drug network.
Alongside her son Ray, Celia ran a chilling operation, coercing vulnerable teens like April and Dylan into trafficking drugs and pushing April Windsor toward disturbing encounters with clients. The scale of her manipulation left fans reeling. Celia’s villainy reached depths no one saw coming.
More recently it was revealed that they were keeping people – including Paddy’s dad Bear Wolf – as slaves. Speaking about the storyline, Jaye added: “She has a line to Ray, ‘we never take local.’ You don’t take people who will be missed, you take the waifs and strays, and you give them purpose. You give them routine, and that lulls them, and you don’t give them any options.”
Will taking ‘local’ man Bear Wolf prove to be Celia’s downfall?