'Moira can be fierce'

There's drama ahead for Natalie J Robb in Emmerdale as she tells us more about Moira's fight to keep her farm

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he's survived a brain tumour, kept Cain steady through the heartbreak of Nate’s death, and somehow held her family together. But Emmerdale's Moira Dingle is about to face even more drama. “It’s all kicking off,” says Natalie J Robb, who plays the farmer.

“She's still in recovery, her tumour was only diagnosed last year.”

Moira has stood strong for hubby Cain, who's still reeling after the discovery of Nate's body in a lake. “She knows what it's like to lose a child, so she knows the pain he's feeling,” Natalie says, referring to the 2016 drugs death of Moira’s daughter Holly. “But there's just so many different emotions going on.”

Guilt is one of them. Before Nate’s death, he was beaten by Cain — fuelled by a rumour that Moira tried to kiss him. Believing Nate and Moira’s old affair had sparked again, Cain lashed out. “That fight they had,” Natalie says, “Moira believes she caused it.”

Now, the family’s about to be dealt another blow. Joe Tate's gunning for Moira’s land, hoping to hand it over to Kim Tate, his step-grandmother.

“Moira can be a bit crazy, fierce and protective,” says Natalie. “But she’s a fair woman when it comes to farming and her business. What they're trying to do to her is awful, it's really bad. Her hands are tied.”