Emmerdale actress Emma Atkins has spoken about her character Charity Dingle's argument with Sarah Sugden.
The 47-year-old soap star said that Charity has been wrapped up in guilt after turning her son in to the police.
Charity has been unintentionally neglecting her granddaughter Sarah as she has been distracted by Noah's upcoming sentencing over charges of stalking ex-girlfriend Chloe Harris.
It comes to a head when Sarah's threatens to leave the village after birthday is forgotten.
Speaking of the tense scenes, Emma said that Charity missing Sarah's birthday provides a sense of realism as she struggles to come to terms with what's happening to her son.
Emma told Digital Spy: "It makes Charity human, because she's so wrapped up in guilt and worry and prioritising Noah. Charity feels she has potentially done the wrong thing by reporting Noah to the police. She's rallying round, trying to get Noah to come round to the idea that she did the right thing.
"[She] is so waylaid with that, that she doesn't even know what month it is. She has an argument face to face with Sarah, who blurts it out. Charity is mortified."
She went on to discuss the outcome of the spat and what the future holds for Sarah, she continued: "It's love-hate with the Dingles. You can fall in and out of love in a heartbeat, but they always come around in the end. I think Sarah's attitude is 'you've forgotten my birthday', but after a couple of scenes of them discussing it at length, Sarah does understand why Charity did it.
"She's hurt and rightly so – Sarah is her granddaughter and you're not going to forget your granddaughter's birthday. Although Charity has forgotten birthdays many a time!"
The actress said she is hopeful that Charity and Sarah will resolve their issues and with it looking likely that Noah could be sentenced, Charity is going to need her granddaughter's support.
She added: "After this, certainly. She feels she has learned her own lessons."
Emmerdale airs at the earlier time of 7pm this week on ITV and streams on the ITV Hub.
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