Emmerdale’s best storylines of all-time have been revealed.
This comes as part of the soap’s ongoing 50th anniversary celebrations. Entertainment Daily has tallied the iconic plots with votes coming from fans of the soap.
Serial killer Meena Jutla, played by Paige Sadhu, and her reign of terror over the village has been named the best Emmerdale storyline ever. When Meena first came to the Dales, Manpreet’s sister seemed like a kind nurse who perhaps had a few issues.
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But by June 2021 it became clear that she had more than a few issues when she hunted down and killed Leanna Cavanagh. She got away with it – at first – and went on to murder Andrea Tate and Ben Tucker. She also tried to kill Victoria Sugden, Billy Fletcher and his new bride Dawn on their wedding day, and her own sister Manpreet Sharma when she took her and Vinny Dingle hostage.
Meena shot Leyla Cavanagh and was eventually arrested for her crimes. The storyline has seen Meena Jutla win a series of awards. The storyline concluded with Meena sentenced to 75 years in prison.
You can see the list of Emmerdale’s top 15 storylines of all-time with the percentage of the vote they received.
- Meena Jutla’s killing spree – 17 per cent
- Faith Dingle’s cancer – 15 per cent
- Tricia Dingle’s New Year death – 10 per cent
- Marlon Dingle’s stroke – 9 per cent
- Ashley Thomas’ dementia – 9 per cent
- Cain Dingle learning Zak is his dad – 7 per cent
- Aaron Dingle’s childhood abuse – 6 per cent
- Paddy Kirk and Chas Dingle losing baby Grace – 5 per cent
- Kim Tate killing husband Frank – 5 per cent
- Moira Dingle’s grief after Holly Barton’s OD death – 5 per cent
- The Woolpack siege – 4 per cent
- Maya Stepney’s grooming of Jacob Gallagher – 3 per cent
- Rhona Goskirk’s rape ordeal – 2 per cent
- Charity Dingle facing abuser DI Bails – 2 per cent
- Zoe Tate’s psychosis – 1 per cent
Entertainment Daily Soaps Editor Carena Crawford says: “Meena’s killing spree was soap at its best. There was nothing she couldn’t do and over the course of her time terrorising the village, she made Emmerdale must-see television.
“Although it’s important for soaps to reflect real life, it’s also crucial that they provide some level of escapism for viewers. Meena did just that and the after effects of her reign continue to ripple on through the village, which is the mark of a truly great storyline.
You can vote for your favourite Emmerdale character of all-time below. Alternatively, you can vote here
“At the other end of the scale, there isn’t anyone who hasn’t been affected by Faith’s storyline. Played beautifully and sensitively by actress Sally Dexter and all those involved, it has tugged at the heart strings of everyone watching. There hasn’t been a dry eye in the house. As for Tricia: an iconic character with an iconic death scene - what more can I say?”
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