A long-standing character in the Dales has won over fans as they ask for them to be made permanent
Fans of Emmerdale demand for PC Swirling to be made a ‘regular character’ as they think he would bring some ‘needed humour’ back into the village.
PC Mike Swirling is played by Andy Moore, and first appeared on the ITV soap in 2004. He was called to the village by Terry Woods who was trying to prevent his wife Dawn from taking their son TJ out of the country. The next month, he was summoned once again by Edna Birch after she spotted Chas Dingle and Carl King up to no good.
Since then, he’s regularly appeared in Emmerdale to help deal with any villager complaints or crimes, making him one of the ITV soap’s longest-standing recurring characters.
In December last year, PC Swirling arrested Cain Dingle after he collided with Jai Sharma’s car when he rushed back to the hospital to support Moira after his affair with Ruby.
He’s also recently been involved in the open case of Anthony Fox’s “disappearance”, as they’re yet to discover his body after he was murdered. The character has become a staple in the Dales with him fighting tears after finding out that Rishi Sharma died, and showing up to attend Zak Dingle’s funeral.
Andy Moore took on a role in rival soap Coronation Street where he had a short stint as a driver in two episodes. He’s also appeared on The Bill, The Royal, and Fred and Marv.
PC Swirling has regularly featured in Emmerdale since his first appearance in 2004(Image: ITV)
After his recent appearances, fans took to social media to request that he joins the cast list as a main character. On a Reddit thread, u/thundersnow528 asked: “Does anyone else feel really sorry for the guy? You add up all the times he has had to deal the insane actions of the Emmerdale citizens and you just have to wonder why he stays in town.”
u/Sickofchildren joked: “You just know he lost a bet down at the station and is now lumbered with that village indefinitely.” Meanwhile, u/JackDeparture suggested: “I kind of want him to be a regular character in his own right.
“It could lead to some interesting storylines, and him being an officer could lead to some well-needed humour with folks like the Dingles… Police have to live somewhere.”
u/ArchieBrooksIsntDead added: “He is one of my absolute favourite characters! I’d pay good money to watch a Hotten police station spinoff. The detectives there seem to have no brains whatsoever, always arresting the wrong person.”
Emmerdale airs on weekdays at 7:30pm on ITV1 and is available to stream on ITVX.
