Emmerdale's Lydia Dingle makes emotional police visit over Craig
The following article contains a discussion of sexual assault.
Emmerdale spoilers follow.
Lydia Dingle has made a visit to the police station over her attack by Craig in Emmerdale.
This week has seen Craig continuing to intimidate Lydia by ingratiating himself with her family, first making friends with Sam and then offering Samson work experience.
Lydia has thus far chosen not to tell her loved ones that she'd been sexually assaulted by Craig, though they are starting to see something is very wrong with her.
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In Thursday's (September 14) episode, Sam was making plans to go to Ireland with Vinny, Paddy and Mandy, leaving Lydia terrified over the thought of being left alone.
She reeled when Craig brought Samson home from work and essentially invited himself over for tea. Lydia made an excuse to leave while the family ate, insisting she needed to nip off to get more beer.
Craig followed Lydia as she fled to the wheat fields, where he refused her requests for him to leave her and her family alone. Craig cruelly tried to blame her, insisting she was "breaking [his] heart" by rejecting him as she'd previously done years earlier.
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"You must know how I feel about you. I thought you felt the same," Craig told her.
As Lydia wept, Craig offered to share his wealth with her and "give [her] the best life" if she'd leave Sam. Lydia insisted she didn't want his money and ordered Craig to stay away.
"I'm not going anywhere," he vowed.
Lydia fled and found herself at the police station sometime later. She requested to speak with a female officer and broke down in tears before she could even share her story.
In harrowing scenes, Lydia confided in the officer that, with Sam going away, she was worried her attacker — who she chose not to name — would come round and she wouldn't be able to stop him.
"There are people who can help you," the officer assured Lydia. "You've made the first step coming here. We can support you."
When Lydia suddenly got a phone call from Sam, she rushed out of the police station without reporting Craig because she feared doing so would cost her her family.
"I can't lose them. They're all I've got," an anguished Lydia said.
The officer made sure to hand over contact information, assuring Lydia they would be there to support her when she was "ready".
Once Lydia got home, Mandy noticed an unusual interaction where Lydia tried to keep Craig away from her without letting on. Lydia wept alone in the kitchen, as her family played cards with Craig in the other room.
Emmerdale airs on weeknights at 7.30pm on ITV1, and streams on ITVX.
Read more Emmerdale spoilers on our dedicated homepage
If you've been affected by the issues raised in this story, you can access more information from Rape Crisis England and Wales, who work towards the elimination of all forms of sexual violence and sexual misconduct, on their website or by calling the National Rape Crisis Helpline on 0808 802 9999. Rape Crisis Scotland’s helpline number is 08088 01 03 02.
Readers in the US are encouraged to contact RAINN, or the National Sexual Assault Hotline on 800-656-4673.
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