Things go wrong for Marlon this Christmas when he finds daughter April gone

Emmerdale star Mark Charnock has admitted to being ‘very upset’ when he read the scripts for his upcoming scenes as his character’s daughter goes missing.

As fans of the ITV soap know, Marlon Dingle isn’t too happy about April Windor’s relationship with the recently returned Ross Barton. But April is clearly drawn to Ross as the last partner of her late mum, Donna.

But there were heartbreaking scenes earlier this month when his illegal boxing involvement saw April kidnapped. Boxing boss Jade thought he had something to do with the missing £10,000 from the previous boxing matching between him and Billy Fletcher that ended up being busted by the police following a tip-off.

Meanwhile, frustrated after her dad Marlon rejects her request to go into town after school, April reluctantly accepts a lift from the seemingly friendly Jade but soon, a video call from Jade to Ross revealed she had kidnapped April and took her to the car park where Donna fell to her death.

Luckily, Mackenzie Boyd and Aaron Dingle came to Ross’ rescue with the former handing over the cash he had left after he stole it in the first place. April was then let go but later, during a conversation with Ross, she discovered how her mum really died. She has since been struggling and not happy with Marlon, she’s been rebelling and drinking alcohol, as well as causing trouble for other characters.

This Christmas, Marlon scrolls through April’s texts and realises she’s been trying to buy cannabis but when confronted, April storms out. Later, Marlon’s astounded to discover Ross leaving Tall Trees and pins Ross against the wall and blames him for April’s recent rebellions. At the end of his tether, Marlon asks a pensive Ross to break off his friendship with April.

Spotting Ross a while later, desperate April tries to open up to him but, with Marlon’s words ringing in his ears, Ross cruelly shuts her down. When April realises that her dad was behind Ross’ outburst, April spirals at the betrayal, leaving Marlon guilty to have made things worse.

April then steals a bottle of wine from the pub but feels rejected when Cathy Hope refuses to drink the wine with her. Soon, drunk April makes a spectacle of herself in front of Bob, Brenda and Wendy and Marlon’s furious at his daughter’s behaviour when she accidentally spills wine over Donna’s memory card and he snaps at his daughter, leaving her more troubled and alone than ever.

On Christmas Day, Marlon’s emotional when he opens a sentimental gift from his daughter. Having let her sleep all morning, Marlon panics when he goes to April’s room and finds that she’s missing. Soon, the search for April is on as Marlon struggles with her disappearance.

Speaking about the latest twist in the storyline, Mark told the Manchester Evening News and other press: “I was very upset reading the scripts. Obviously it’s hopefully going to be a moving story but the scripts were so strong, you could see the writer’s personal investment in a lot of this stuff. I was speaking to the producers and everybody’s like… it’s huge, isn’t it? It’s a huge thing. It’s the most unimaginable thing.

“Horrible, horrible. He goes up – and she’s gone. There’s that moment that I can only imagine, that blank space where she’s supposed to be on that day of all days. It’s not a building horror it’s just like [claps] Full 10. There’s nothing right about that picture, her empty room on that day, no matter what they’ve been through there’s no way that room could or should be empty. And she’s gone.”

He added: “He wonders whether she’s been kidnapped again. Obviously your brain goes everywhere. But that’s as much as I can say right now. He goes to Bob first and goes to see other family members, Ross. There’s an instant little circle of panic that doesn’t help.”

When quizzed on whether the police are involved, Mark teased: “Not at this stage. It escalates, this storyline, so this is just the beginning…”