Eric Pollard’s diagnosis of Parkinson’s has seen ITV soap Emmerdale highlight how the symptoms impact his day to day life.
Among other things, the beloved character suffers with hand tremors, confusion and coordination issues which impact him on a regular basis. We saw this at the end of last year, when Doctor Liam (Jonny McPherson) explained the paralysis Pollard suffered was as a result of not taking his medication.
Sudden changes in behaviour and erratic decisions have also plagued Eric’s mind since the diagnosis. After losing all of his money, Eric was found by Liam wanting to place a bet on a horse.
When Liam got nowhere with a determined Pollard, he got drastic and blocked Eric’s exit.
In upcoming episodes, Kerry (Laura Norton) finds Pollard. He says it feels like he’s failed Brenda (Lesley Dunlop) because he hasn’t sold the shop and paid back her life savings.
Kerry is adamant that Brenda would rather wait for her money, if it meant he didn’t completely push himself to the brink with his condition. She tells Pollard that he needs to take a break, but Kerry remains unaware of just how much he is struggling.
Towards the end of the week, Kerry pops by the shop to check on Pollard, but she’s alarmed to find matches and accelerants.
Backed into a corner, Eric admits that he’s going to burn down the shop for the insurance claim, hoping he can pay Brenda that way.
It’s a dark plan from Pollard – will Kerry convince him to not go through with it?
‘She’s shocked and sad to see that he must be feeling really desperate’, star Laura Norton said, discussing how Kerry feels when she finds the matches.
‘She gets very protective because she’s experienced something very similar. A series of bad choices led to an accident that was related to a fire. It’s haunted her ever since and she doesn’t want to find him in the same situation.’
