Emmerdale's Sam Dingle has been a staple character in the long-running soap for a huge 27 years.
James Hooton has seen his character Sam become a firm favourite among viewers, having been involved in some of the soap's most thrilling and devastating storylines. One of the most notable being the heart-wrenching storyline where James’ character Sam assisted his terminally ill partner Alice in ending her life by giving her an overdose of morphine.
More recently, the dad-of-one has been caught up in the dramatic storm that swept through the village to celebrate Emmerdale's 50 years on TV.
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Away from the cameras, however, James, 47, said he is "so different" from Sam. He previously told the Mirror he "hides behind the character".
Here's everything we know about James' life off-screen, as reported in Leeds Live.
James' relationship and two children
While Sam's love life has been turbulent to say the least, James' own personal circumstances are a million miles from his on-screen character. James found happiness with his beloved fiancé Nancy Lucas. The pair got engaged in 2010 and have two children together - Ava-Rose and Lilly.
The busy parents confessed they are in no rush to set a date amid their busy family life and have joked that their children will probably get married before they do. Their second daughter Lilly was a dream come true for the couple after Nancy fell pregnant naturally despite struggling to conceive for two years.
The couple had began looking into IVF and other options when they found out they were expecting their "miracle baby". After the birth of their second daughter, James told OK! Magazine: “We've been trying to get pregnant for around two years but it just wasn't happening.
"We'd just started going down the fertility route and were only three months into that when it happened without any intervention."
His 'posh' accent
Sam is known for his thick Yorkshire accent but in reality, James sounds nothing like his rural character. He keeps a low profile when not filming and rarely gives interviews, so it came as a huge shock to viewers when his real accent was revealed during an appearance on This Morning last year.
Viewers were distracted during James' interview as fans pointed out he sounded completely different to his character Sam. Taking to Twitter at the time, one fan penned: "Sam Dingle sounds so different in real life." A second pointed out: "Sam Dingle talks well posh in real life wtf."
'Anti-vax' comments
James has received a lot of criticism of late regarding his anti-vaccine views. The controversial actor is not afraid to share his views online and it's gotten him into a spot of bother on more than one occasion.
The soap star received a fierce backlash earlier this year after he confessed that he refused to get the Covid-19 vaccine and suggested regular exercise and a varied diet would help fend off the dangerous virus.
He posted on Twitter: "I’m 47yrs old. I take Vit c, d, zinc, b-12, Q10 and anti virals such as Andrographis, Sambucus, Curcumin, along with regular exercise and a varied diet.
"I may not be taking a covid vaccine. I may be labelled 'anti-vax' for being pro-immune system, pro-informed choice."
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