Emmerdale fans are convinced Joe Tate is alive after Jeff Hordley interview

He plays Cain Dingle on the soap

Author: Emma DoddsPublished 18th Jan 2019
Last updated 18th Jan 2019

The question on every Emmerdale fan's lips is: Did Joe Tate survive? Is he alive? The character, played by Ned Porteous, was seemingly written out of the soap last year after his father-in-law-to-be, Cain Dingle, played by Jeff Hordley, punched him to the ground.

Joe then knocked his head on a rock, and his body was taken away by his business associate Graham Foster, who had actually been hired by Joe's step-grandmother Kim Tate to murder him.

However, fans have been convinced ever since then that Joe actually survived the beating - and that Graham helped him escape, since the body that was recovered the other day wasn't him.

However, with Cain confessing to daughter Debbie Dingle - who was meant to marry Joe - that he bumped him off, things will never be the same between the father and daughter, who have always been incredibly close throughout their time on the soap.

But Emmerdale fans are convinced that actor Jeff has given away Joe's survival in an interview on This Morning earlier today with Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford.

Swipe through to see all the Emmerdale spoilers you need to know for this week...

Emmerdale spoilers

The Dingle sisters know that someone needs to confront Cain. It's Charity who draws the short straw, and when she arrives at Home Farm, she's shocked at the state of the house and of him.

Emmerdale fans are convinced Joe Tate is alive after Jeff Hordley interview
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Jeff became very serious around the question of whether Joe had survived, and when referring to the body that wasn't Joe, he said, "It wasn't him - but as far as Cain's concerned, Joe's dead.

"People are asking the questions, 'Is he alive? Is he not?' but as far as Cain is concerned, he's dead, and as far as Debbie's concerned, he's dead. And I killed him. For the first time - blood on my hands."

Opening up about how Cain's relationship with Debbie will change, Jeff admitted, "If there's been one constant in Cain's life, it's been his daughter, and now that this has happened, it's rocked his world because she's always been there for him and he's always been there for her, and now this seems to be the end for them."

Later on, Jeff was prompted once again to speculate over whether he thought Joe would return, and he coyly answered, "I've not seen any evidence in the scripts that he is otherwise."

He didn't manage to convince viewers, however, with many taking to Twitter to question his wording. One wrote, '"As far as he’s concerned", the lack of a straight answer suggests he’s not dead', as another added, 'So Joe isn't dead then.'

Emmerdale airs every weeknight at 7pm on ITV, with a second showing on Tuesday nights at 8pm.

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