Emmerdale spoilers follow.
Emmerdale airs emotional scenes for Matty Barton this week – as he reflects on the tragic losses of the past year. With more chaos unfolding around him, will he be able to cope?
Matty recently reached a sombre anniversary, as February marked one year since his wife Amy died in the limo crash disaster. At the time, Matty clashed with his stepdad Cain Dingle for expecting him to be his usual “cheeky chappy self” on such a sad day.
This week, the challenges continue for Matty as his family faces turmoil for other reasons.
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Cain is about to let the whole family know that he’s been diagnosed with prostate cancer, which leaves everyone shocked.
Meanwhile, Matty’s mum Moira remains in prison for crimes she didn’t commit and is seemingly no closer to proving her innocence.
Reaching breaking point this week, Moira summons Kim Tate to see her in jail – is she about to sell her share of the farm?
“Matty is still clinging to the idea that the farm can be saved,” our Emmerdale source explains. “The Bartons have been in charge of Butler’s for nearly 17 years, so there are a huge number of memories associated with the place.
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“This week, Matty, Mack and Ross all reckon the farm is about to turn a corner, as Vanessa comes back with some promising results after the livestock were tested for TB. But by this point, Moira has already had her crucial meeting with Kim, so it may be too late…”
Butler’s has recently been at a standstill while Cain and the family awaited these crucial test results. However, it’s no secret that the business is also facing other challenges to stay afloat.
If Moira does decide to sell up, how will Matty cope with saying a final goodbye to Butler’s?
ITV
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“Matty has faced some huge changes over the past year,” our insider continues. “He thought that he’d reached his happily-ever-after when he got married to Amy in 2024, but there’s been one problem after another since then.
“It’s no surprise that he needs time to reflect on everything that’s happened.”
Natalie J Robb, who plays Moira, recently explained why her character may be tempted to sell her share of Butler’s after hearing about Cain’s diagnosis.
Asked whether Moira’s family will be moving out of Butler’s, Natalie replied: “It’s a very high possibility, yes.
“I think family is the most important thing to her. Not much can get her down, but the fact is, her main focus is that they’ve got to come up with something to be able to get Cain back to his health. The pressure has to be taken off him in order for him to focus properly on his recovery.”
Emmerdale airs on weeknights at 8pm on ITV1, and streams on ITVX.
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