Emmerdale's Charlie Hardwick adds some light relief to her tough safe sex message (VIDEO)

It's been over a year since Val was diagnosed with HIV in Emmerdale. So far she has lived her life without any major complications. But in a shock new storyline, Val's health takes a massive turn for the worse.

"Val forgets she's vulnerable. Or she doesn't want to think she's vulnerable," says Emmerdale star Charlie Hardwick who plays the character. "But she ignores several warning signs at her peril, and the implications on Val's health are grave."

But Charlie managed to give the difficult storyline some light relief: "Women in their 50s are the biggest group at risk because they think, A, going through the menopause, don't have to worry about contraception. Wrong! It's not contraception, it's safe sex. So we're all at risk. Use a condon.... Condom! Not a condon... A condom please!"

Watch Charlie on the Emmerdale set talk about Val's life and death situation, being reunited with co-star, Matthew Bose, who is back for a guest appearance as Val's son, Paul, above.

Will Val survive? Find out in Emmerdale this week on ITV.