Emmerdale star Lucy Pargeter has hit out at her character Chas Dingle for her affair with Al Chapman, and said she hopes Chas’s husband Paddy kicks the Woolpack manager into touch if he finds out she’s been unfaithful.
Chas embarked on the ill-fated fling after recently learning that mum Faith had terminal cancer.
Paddy, who tied the knot with Chas on Christmas Day 2020 and has two children with her - Grace, who died shortly after her birth in 2018, and Eve, who was born in 2019 - can see that his wife is struggling with Faith’s sad prognosis, but has no idea that she has sought comfort in the arms of her former nemesis.
Says Lucy, “I can’t justify it in any way, having sex with someone else. I can only explain it by saying that instead of Chas going to the gym, she’s going to Al.
“It’s that emotional release you get from going to the gym or going for a run; she’s having that moment of no responsibility to take her out of all the hell she’s in, in her head.
“There are no feelings, no love, no particular affection. It’s a momentary endorphin release.”
Asked how she thinks Paddy will react if he finds out about the affair, Lucy adds, “I really hope if he ever did find out, then this time, he could cut her out. She’s done it to him in the past [with Carl King] but they weren’t married with a baby then.
“It would be a great opportunity to show a different side to Paddy; for him to go, ‘You’ve taken this too far, and you’re going to get your comeuppance.’”
Al is currently away in Dubai, but he returns to the Dales next week and he and Chas quickly pick up where they left off; organising a secret liaison in a hotel.
He lies to his girlfriend Kerry that he is doing “business” but when Chloe finds out where he has gone to, she reports back to the beautician. Kerry then dresses up as a sexy secretary and goes to the hotel to surprise him.
Chas and Al are leaving the premises when Al spots Kerry in reception and quickly ushers Chas away. Kerry, meanwhile, is suspicious when she’s told there’s no one booked in under Al’s name.
Will the close call prompt Chas to call time on the pair’s steamy sessions?
Says Lucy, “The problem is, she’s a bit like an alcoholic. She’s like ‘No more! Oh, just a glass. Oh, go on then, I may as well finish the bottle.’
“She is using Al as her release. I think as time goes on, we start to see that Al maybe thinks more of it than she is very clearly stating.
“She’s definitely using him at the moment. He has no reason to use her — he’s got Kerry. There’s no ulterior motive with him.”
Emmerdale airs weeknights at 7.30 pm on ITV, with a hour-long episode on Thursdays — see our TV Guide for full listings. You can also catch up on ITV Hub.
