11 best Emmerdale Christmas episodes – jilted weddings, sinister murders, haunted ghosts, and a child is born

Christmas in Soapland is the gift that keeps on giving, and Emmerdale has treated us to some spectacular seasonal episodes.

Along with the usual turkey, trimmings and tantrums, December 25th in the village often brings the most dramatic births, marriages and deaths.

So here are our picks of the 11 best Emmerdale Christmas moments…

Emmerdale best Christmas episodes: Vic dies and Belle is born 1998

Birth and death was the theme for the Emmerdale 1998 Christmas episode.

Postmaster Vic Windsor was killed off in a bungled armed robbery by Andy Sugden’s dad, Billy Hopwood. A fight ensued after Vic caught Billy trying to break into his Post Office safe. Billy – who was armed with a shotgun – threatened Vic, then pushed him into a set of shelves. Critically injured by the impact, Vic pleaded with Billy to ring an ambulance, but the cowardly criminal scarpered. Poor Vic was left to die alone, as 11.1 million tuned in to mourn the passing of one of their favourite characters.

While Vic was breathing his last, over at Wishing Well Cottage the Dingles were receiving a surprise delivery. Belle entered the world after Lisa gave birth in the family’s pigsty. But the biggest shock was she didn’t even she was she pregnant. No wonder why Zak fainted at the sight of his wife cradling their newborn daughter!

Bernice and Ashley tie the knot 2000

Ashley and Bernice’s sweet love story led them all the way to the altar on Christmas Day 2000.

Fans had waited a long time to see the vicar and barmaid say I do, and the service was watched by an audience of almost 10 million. Bernice looked beautiful in a traditional ivory gown and veil, while Ashley was dapper in his dog collar. In a break with usual tradition, the wedding went without a hitch.

But sadly the fairytale wasn’t to last. Less than a year later, Ashley and Bernice’s marriage was over after she confessed to an affair with sexy chef Carlos Diaz.

Louise Appleton kills her stalker boyfriend 2002

Danger loomed in the 2002 festive episode when Woolpack landlady Louise Appleton discovered the identity of her secret stalker.

Louise was being hounded by creepy messages from a mystery tormenter, but had no idea it was actually her boyfriend, Ray Mullen. Having convinced Louise she was in danger, Ray then persuaded her to move away with him to Italy.

As Christmas Day arrived, the couple left Emmerdale and were on their way to the airport. But the journey took a sinister turn when Louise realised Ray was the one who’d been making her life hell.

She fought back and Ray lost control of the wheel, forcing the car off the road. With Ray knocked unconscious, Louise managed to flee the scene and make it back to the village, but he wasn’t far behind.

The drama continued on Boxing Day when Ray arrived at Mill Cottage for a final showdown with Louise. A violent fight ensued, which resulted in Louise killing her evil boyfriend.

Louise was now a murderer, but got away with it after her friend Terry Woods helped make it look as if Ray had died by accident.

Emmerdale best Christmas episodes: Who killed Tom King 2006

Tom King’s murder stands out as one of Emmerdale’s finest Christmas episodes.

The nasty King patriarch was killed at Home Farm on the day of his wedding to Rosemary Sinclair. Tom was getting ready for the reception in an upstairs bedroom when he was confronted by a shadowy figure. An argument broke out and Tom was bludgeoned with a bronze ornament before being shoved through a window. He fell to his death in front of the shocked locals, who were gathered to celebrate his big day.

The shock murder sparked a huge whodunnit, but the suspect list was rather long due to the amount of enemies Tom had. Those in the frame included Tom’s three sons, Jimmy, Matthew and Carl, and even his new bride Rosemary.

Fans had to wait a whole five months before it was revealed that Carl was the killer. He’d finished his father off after Tom threatened to disinherit him unless he dumped girlfriend, Chas Dingle.

Victoria falls through the icy lake 2008

Christmas 2008 was nearly Victoria’s last after she fell through a freezing lake.

Vic had been out drinking in the grounds of Home Farm with her mates when she stepped onto a frozen lake. Suddenly the ice beneath her gave way and the teen was plunged into the sub zero waters.

She was saved by Daz Eden’s quick-thinking actions, as he risked his own life to rescue Victoria. When she regained consciousness, Victoria revealed she’d seen a body floating in the murky lake.

The corpse turned out to be rapist police officer Shane Doyle, who had been murdered weeks previously by Jasmine Thomas.

Chas jilts Carl at the altar 2010

Emmerdale love a festive wedding drama – and Chas Dingle and Carl King‘s disastrous 2010 nuptials definitely delivered.

The pair’s toxic relationship imploded after Chas learnt Carl had been bedding barmaid Eve Jenson. Charity urged her cousin to take the cheating toe rag for every penny – which is exactly what she did! Chas popped the question to Carl and pretended she was pregnant with his kid. A wedding was swiftly arranged and Chas asked Eve to be her bridesmaid, putting her in a revolting peach puffball dress to ensure maximum humiliation.

With the stage set, Chas then dumped Carl in front of the entire congregation, outing his betrayal with Eve and revealing there was no baby. Now that’s how you do revenge.

Emmerdale best Christmas episodes: Robert sabotages Andy and Katie’s wedding 2014

Andy Sugden and Katie Addyman hoped it would be second time lucky when they set the date for December 25, 2014. Vengeful Robert had other ideas.

Unable to back down in the bitter war with his brother and the woman he’d once loved, Robert had already given Andy a black eye before his big day. But he wasn’t going to stop there.

As Andy and Katie exchanged vows at the altar they were horrified to realise Robert had sabotaged their rings. Inside her gold band was inscribed the words ‘village bike’, while Andy had ‘village idiot’ inside of his.

But Robert wasn’t the only one who tried to disrupt the nuptials. Andy’s broken-hearted ex Bernice Blackstock also screamed abuse at the congregation of St Mary’s and had to be restrained by Diane.

Despite all the interruptions, Katie and Andy did actually get end up getting wed – but what a day!

Robert’s dream sequence 2017

Robert Sugden took centre stage in 2017, in a festive offering that marked a change of direction for Emmerdale.

In a break away from the traditional style storytelling, the episode acted as a standalone one. It was described by Emmerdale’s then boss Iain MacLeod as “Groundhog Day meets A Christmas Carol with a little nod to the film Don’t Look Now.”

The episode saw Robert wake up multiple times on Christmas morning, facing a different reality each time. In each sequence, Robert was visited by the ghosts of Christmas future, as he saw the impact of his selfish and reckless behaviour.

Returning to present day, Robert made a desperate attempt to right his wrongs, hoping to rekindle his romance with on/off lover Aaron Dingle.

The installment really broke barriers for soap, and was enjoyed by 5.1 viewers. Unfortunately they didn’t get the Christmas gift of a Robron reunion, but that followed shortly afterwards.

Paddy and Chas say I do 2020

Who can forget Christmas 2020, aka the one where we were all in lockdown? But amidst the Covid pandemic gloom came a ray of light in the form of Paddy Kirk and Chas Dingle’s festive nuptials.

Paddy had decided to surprise Chas with a romantic wedding and had been busy making plans to ensure the day was perfect. But it nearly didn’t go ahead after Chas suggested Christmas weddings were cursed, and Paddy quickly cancelled.

When Chas realised what Paddy had been planning she had a sudden change of heart. She summoned Paddy to the church, where she asked him to marry her! The couple exchanged vows in an intimate ceremony with only Marlon, Aaron and Bear in attendance. And Chas looked stunning in a gorgeous red dress that Paddy had purchased specially.

Afterwards, the happy couple returned to The Woolpack, which had been transformed into a winter wonderland, and enjoyed their first dance as husband and wife.

Emmerdale best Christmas episodes: The Woolpack explosion 2021

Christmas 2021 went with a bang as the poor Woolpack was destroyed in an explosion.

The pub had taken a huge financial hit during the Covid pandemic and was failing to make a profit. So in swooped shady businessman Al Chapman who offered to buy the lease off landlady Chas Dingle.

But Al had a secret agenda – he and evil boss Gavin were planning to close down the Woolie and turn the building into swanky flats. Under pressure to deliver, Al torched the soap’s iconic boozer. The flames quickly took hold leading to an almighty explosion!

Meanwhile, serial killer Meena Jutla almost committed another murder after fearing her Manpreet was onto her.

Charity kills Damon Harris 2023

Last Christmas was one Charity Dingle will never forget – but for all the wrong reasons! Charity shot and killed Damon ‘Harry’ Harris to stop him murdering her husband, Mackenzie Boyd.

In the lead up to Christmas, Harry had kidnapped and tortured Mack as payback for him dumping his daughter. Bit extreme, no? Harry fully intended to finish Mack off (with Chloe watching), but Charity got wind of what was going on.

She tailed Harry back to the dingy warehouse where he was holding Mack. Watching from the shadows, Charity witnessed Harry drawing a gun from his pocket to use on Mack.

Read more: Emma Atkins – the actress behind Charity Dingle

Emmerdale usually airs weeknights on ITV at 7.30pm.

Classic Emmerdale usually airs every weekday on ITV3 at 6am and 6.30am, plus 1.40pm and 2.10pm.

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