Ruby Fox-Miligan (Beth Cordingly)’s life has been thrown into turmoil in Emmerdale recently as she’s been forced to confront her past. The arrival of her daughter Steph (Georgia Jay) to the village was welcome, as Ruby longed to reconnect with the daughter who’d been estranged from her and Caleb for years.
But soon after Steph’s arrival, Ruby’s father Anthony (Nicholas day) appeared.
His presence was less welcome, as Ruby couldn’t forgive him and her mother for turning their backs on her when she became pregnant with Steph at a young age. Her family made her choose between them and Caleb (William Ash) – and she chose Caleb.
Anthony having terminal cancer was a further twist. Steph was keen to be there to support her grandfather through his illness, and Ruby knew that she would have no chance of a relationship with Steph if she couldn’t begin to mend bridges with Anthony.
Even so, Anthony’s presence makes Ruby distinctly uncomfortable. He’s made some remarks about the past that have left her feeling uneasy, even as she tries to focus on them all moving forward together as a family.
A special flashback episode will shed some light on secrets of Ruby’s past, as we’re given a glimpse into her teenage years. In the present day, Steph finds a photograph of her mum when she was 16.
Ruby’s reaction to this picture is strange – she pretends she doesn’t remember anything about where and when the picture was taken but is clearly troubled by it.
Then the action goes back to when the photograph was taken, at Ruby’s 16th birthday. She remembers that she was getting on well with a boy of a similar age to her, called Rob. And what we learn opens a whole new window into Ruby’s personality.
As we head towards New Year, Ruby is obviously finding it hard to cope and is drinking even more than usual and seems agitated.
Chas (Lucy Pargeter) offers her a friendly ear, wanting to get to the bottom of why her sister-in-law is struggling. Eventually, Ruby opens up.
But what will she tell Chas? Are the secrets from her past, and her 16th birthday party with Rob, still haunting her?
Or is she worried about more recent mistakes in her life – specifically, sleeping with Cain (Jeff Hordley) at his garage while Moira (Natalie J Robb) was in the middle of brain surgery?
Ruby has a lot to get off her chest. Will she find a sympathetic listener in Chas?
