Emmerdale’s Dingle family have been a huge part of the soap since the 90s

The Dingles are one of, if not THE most iconic soap family, and have been for generations.

The Dingles have been a staple on Emmerdale since the 90s and this week will air emotional scenes as the legendary family patriarch Zak Dingle dies. Steve Halliwell, who portrayed Zak, tragically died last December at the age of 77. The actor had been playing the Zak since 1994 and quickly became a beloved figure among viewers.

Following Steve’s death, the soap’s creators have incorporated a storyline to kill off the beloved character, where there will be a surprise return of a long-lost relative for his funeral. With Dingles being the main focus of the ITV soap, viewers may feel nostalgic as they reflect back on past characters on the ITV soap.

Longtime soap watchers may recall that Ben Dingle, played by Steve Fury and now Steve Jackson, was the first ever Dingle family member to appear on Emmerdale on August 9, 1994. Ben was the son of Zak, whose other children include Nathan, Butch, Cain, Sam, Tina and Belle. 

Zak shared Nathan, Butch, Ben, Sam, and Tina with his first wife, Nellie Dingle. He welcomed Cain with Faith Dingle and later Belle with Lisa Dingle. Yep – it’s as confusing as it sounds!

We’ve taken a nose dive into the Dingle family tree so you don’t have to – here’s how they are all related.

Zak Dingle

Zak was born to farmer Jedediah and Peg Dingle. He was one of six children and is responsible for bringing the first wave of Dingles to the ITV soap.

Zak married three times to wives Nellie, Lisa and Joanie and was widowed twice. Zak has seven children, including Tina, Cain, Ben, Butch, Rosemary, Sam, Belle and Nathan (who is spoken of but has never been seen).

Since his recent death there has been speculation about a possible love child!

Faith Dingle

Faith Dingle (née Miligan) was the mother of Cain Dingle, Caleb Miligan and Chas Dingle. She was the ex-wife of Shadrach Dingle.

Faith was a character with terminal breast cancer who chose to end her life. Her death was emotional and moving, and took place during the show’s 50th anniversary episodes in 2022.

Chas Dingle

Chas Dingleis the daughter ofFaith and Obadiah, she is also half sister to Cain and Charity.

Chas has four children – Moira Barton, Robert Sugden, Aaron Dingle and Grace Dingle. Grace was the daughter of Chas and Paddy Kirk but tragically she only lived for 29 minutes.

Cain Dingle

Cain is the son of Faith and Zak Dingle, he has four children – Nate, Debbie, Kyle and Isaac. Cain grew up thinking Zak was his uncle, only later discovering he was actually his dad. Zak had a fling with his sister-in-law Faith, who was married to Shadrach at the time, and Cain was their love-child.

Caleb Dingle

Caleb was introduced to the soap as Faith Dingle’s long-lost son back in 2022. He is a half-sibling to Cain Dingle, Caleb Miligan and Chas Dingle.

It was revealed that he is the son of the late Frank Tate, it is believed that Caleb was born while Faith was in prison.

Charity Dingle

Charity Dingle is the daughter of Kathleen and Obadiah Dingle, she has five children including Debbie who was fathered by her cousin Cain Dingle, as well as Noah whose dad is the late Chris Tate. Charity’s son Moses was fathered by Ross, who was actually her daughter Debbie’s lover at the time. 

Charity also has a long-lost son called Ryan Stocks, who was the result of a sexual assault when she was groomed into teenage prostitution by corrupt cop Mark Bails. Ryan was abandoned by his mum believing he had died shortly after the traumatic birth, but he was actually adopted by her midwife and later returned to the village to find his birth mum.

Charity adopted Johnny with her ex partner Vanessa Woodfield.

Marlon Dingle

Marlon is the son of Albert and Delilah Dingle, and the nephew of Zak Dingle. He is professional chef and much loved character in the village.

Marlon has a daughter named April from his marriage to the late Donna, he also has a son named Leo from his relationship with vet Rhona Goskirk. The couple got married in an emotional ceremony back in 2022 after Marlon suffered a devastating stroke.

Marlon has been married twice. Tragically, first wife Tricia was killed in a hurricane when she was buried under a collapsed Woolpack.

Mandy Dingle

Mandy is the daughter of Caleb and Vera-Lynn Dingle. She is Zak Dingle’s niece and is one of the earliest Dingle family members to have appeared in the ITV soap.

Mandy has a teenage son named Vinny, whom she adopted after his dad, her ex, Paul abandoned him when he was four-years-old.

Sam Dingle

Sam is the second longest-serving Dingle on the soap. He is one of Zak’s five sons and is married to Lydia.

Sam has a teenage son named Samson, whose mother is the late Alice. In heart-breaking scenes Sam helped his first wife Alice to die when she discovered she had terminal cancer.

Belle Dingle

Belle is the daughter of Zak and Lisa, she made her first screen appearance during the episode broadcast on 25 December 1998, originally played by twins Emily and James Mather.

Eden Taylor-Draper took over the tole in 2005 and has remained ever since. She has been part of some major storylines over the years, including falling down a mineshaft, killing her best friend Gemma Andrews (Tendai Rinomhota), having an affair with doctor Jermaine Bailey (Micah Balfour), faking a pregnancy to prevent Jermaine from leaving after their affair is revealed and being diagnosed with schizophrenia.

Other Dingles

As well as children Zak also has a lot of grandchildren including – Debbie, Nate, Samson, Kyle and Isaac. He also has a great-granddaughter – Sarah Sugden – who is the daughter of Debbie Dingle.