Dales' love triangle: 'I wouldn't do it to a mate'

Dales' love triangle: 'I wouldn't do it to a mate'
Dales' love triangle: 'I wouldn't do it to a mate'

TV Times talks to Mark Charnock (Marlon), Zoe Henry (Rhona) and Dominic Brunt (Paddy) about next week's explosive love triangle storyline in Emmerdale... What’s going on when Rhona dumps Marlon? Zoe: "Rhona thought she was in love with Marlon until she got that soul mate feeling she has about Paddy. She doesn’t want to hurt Marlon and she she’s not ready to tell Paddy how she feels, so she thinks ‘I’ll finish with Marlon, we’ll all remain friends and everything will be just fine while I suppress my feelings even more’. But of course, that doesn’t work!" Mark: "Marlon is shocked and bewildered. Rhona wants to be friends, but Marlon can’t just go from being a lover to a mate." Dominic: "Paddy is scared that Rhona is dumping Marlon because of him and is afraid to confront her. He sees her as somebody who could be a life partner, but he’d rather be unhappy for the rest of his life than hurt his best mate." What did you think when you heard this love triangle was coming up? Zoe: "I was delighted. For a start, of all the characters I have ever played, I didn’t think they would revive this one, so to be involved in such a big storyline is a privilege. For Rhona, this isn’t anything trivial, it’s an enormous step to come between these two and she doesn’t take the decision lightly. She’s not a strumpet – she’s somebody who has fallen deeply in love." Mark: "I love stories like this and I think it’s one of the best I’ve been involved with. I’m really good friends with Dom and I love the relationships that’s grown between Marlon and Paddy. This is as much about their bromance as it is about Rhona." Dominic: "I thought it was really exciting because in real-life, I don’t think I’d do that to a mate, but I have to sympathise with Paddy and that’s a challenge." Who should Rhona choose? Mark: "Nobody is an out and out baddie. They are all in a difficult situation and although I feel deeply sorry for Marlon, I think Rhona should follow her heart." Dominic: "Rhona doesn’t love Marlon, so she should choose Paddy – I am just not sure about how quickly she should do it." Zoe: "It’s a tough one. The Sisterhood would say that you should never fall for your boyfriend’s best mate, but you can’t help who you fall in love with. They are both boyfriend material." Have you ever been involved in a love triangle? Dominic: "No and I’ve never done it to anyone. I’d hate it. As an actor, I look at some of Paddy’s lines and think ‘Oh my God, you can’t say that. You’re being awful to Marlon.’ It would be too stressful for words to do it in real-life!" Zoe: "Yes, when I was younger, but I’m not going to talk about it! This storyline has made me realise how lucky I am to have been with the same person for 16 years. I’m married to Jeff Hordley, who plays Cain Dingle. I never want to be out there looking for love again. Jeff is only my fourth boyfriend. I’d hate to be going through all that turmoil and insecurity again." Mark: "It hasn’t happened to me and I don’t think I’d do it to anybody else." What does Jeff make of two fellas fighting over his missus? Zoe: "I hardly see Jeff at work as our characters paths don’t cross, but I know there’s been a bit of banter between him, Mark and Dominic." Mark: "After Rhona dumps Marlon on screen, I give Cain a smug look as if to say ‘Isn’t she great?’ Nobody else would notice it apart from the two of us." Dominic: "It’s fortunate that he doesn’t have to watch either of us snogging her. He won’t because nobody wants to see over 30s snogging at seven o’clock!" Wouldn’t it be best if Rhona left the village? Zoe: "She does threaten to leave at various points because Paddy and Marlon love each other so much. But this is extreme for Rhona. It’s make or break. The difference between being happy or unhappy for life. Paddy isn’t just a fumble in the night – he’s ‘the one." Mark: "It would be too easy to say ‘Don’t do this, you’re going to hurt Marlon’s feelings.’ Everything in life is a shade of grey and they are all trapped by the circumstances." Dominic: "Absolutely not, even though I think it’s a very small village to be doing something like this in! Rhona tells Paddy that it’s not working with Marlon, but it could with him and she’s got a point." So how is it all going to pan out? Mark: "Things go to a shocking new level. There are some big twists to come. That’s all I’m going to say!" Zoe: "It’s going to be explosive. Where love is concerned, emotions are always high. Rhona takes a big risk in breaking up those boys and their friendship and she doesn’t take the decision lightly." Dominic: "You’ve also got to remember that Paddy has the Dingles to contend with and people in the village are going to take sides."

Patrick McLennan

Patrick McLennan is a London-based journalist and documentary maker who has worked as a writer, sub-editor, digital editor and TV producer in the UK and New Zealand. His CV includes spells as a news producer at the BBC and TVNZ, as well as web editor for Time Inc UK. He has produced TV news and entertainment features on personalities as diverse as Nick Cave, Tom Hardy, Clive James, Jodie Marsh and Kevin Bacon and he co-produced and directed The Ponds, which has screened in UK cinemas, BBC Four and is currently available on Netflix. 


An entertainment writer with a diverse taste in TV and film, he lists Seinfeld, The Sopranos, The Chase, The Thick of It and Detectorists among his favourite shows, but steers well clear of most sci-fi.