First look at Zak Dingle’s final scenes as legendary Emmerdale character is laid to rest, 10 months after actor Steve Halliwell’s tragic death

The Dingles have been at the heart of Emmerdale for 30 years. But as our exclusive pictures show, it will be an emotional get together when they are reunited onscreen for one of the soap’s most poignant funerals next week.

For James Hooten, Lisa Riley, Jeff Hordley, Lucy Pargeter and the rest of the clan aren’t just saying goodbye to the legendary patriarch Zak Dingle, they are remembering their friend, the man who brought him to life for 30 years.

Steve Halliwell, was still playing Zak when he died last December at the age of 77, having first joined the Dales in 1994. James, who played Zak’s son Sam for 28 years, found filming the funeral scenes incredibly difficult – especially those in the graveyard, seen here for the first time in our exclusive stills.

Just four months after losing Steve – the man he called a second “father” – James also lost his real dad Kenneth, 81, after a battle with Alzheimer’s Disease and vascular dementia. The double loss was a reminder to James to live life to the full.

He says: “You just never know when this strange rollercoaster of life will end for yourself – and so it’s so important to cherish every day. It has been tough losing both Steve and my dad. In many ways, dad shared a lot of similarities with Zak Dingle. Dad was a man of the land, loved walking and in some respects, more of a Dingle than any of the Dingles!”

James, who played Zak’s son Sam for 28 years, found filming the funeral scenes incredibly difficult – especially those in the graveyard

As for Steve, James has also been trying to focus on their happier times together. “Steve was such a good friend of mine and he was both a father figure and someone to have a lot of fun with,” James recalls. “We shared the same humour and we were often like teenage kids on set. We also had a lot of philosophical conversations together. I’ve got so many happy memories that I will cherish until the end of my own days.”

Given his close bond with Steve and the fact he played one of Zak’s five children, it seems only fitting Sam will play a big role in Zak’s on-screen funeral that will also mark the Dingle family’s 30th anniversary.

Next week viewers will see the Dingles get a shocking phone call telling them Zak has sadly passed away in Scotland. Sam and Cain(Jeff Hordley) head off to bring him back to the Yorkshire Dales for a heartfelt send off. But in true Dingle style, as well as tears, there will also be plenty of nostalgic tales and laughter as the family gather to raise a toast to Zak at the wake afterwards in the Woolpack.

It was all the more emotional as Steve’s family were invited to watch. “It’s a fitting send off and it commemorates the fact Steve was in the show for so long,” says James. “There will be tears but lots of memories are evoked too.”

“What was lovely was his family also came to the filming of Zak’s funeral. But rather than a sad send off, it will be a great coming together of the Dingles. It’s our family’s 30th anniversary of being in the soap. It’s not often the whole Dingle family get together these days, so that was really nice.”

James is incredibly proud of what the Dingle family – which boasts 11 generations – has achieved as a collective over the past three decades – and he admits landing the role of Sam in January 1995 has had a bigger impact on his life than he could ever have imagined.

Indeed, it was on the set of Emmerdale that James met his now fiancée, Nancy, 20 years ago – something he will be forever grateful for. He says: “Landing the role [was] the defining moment of my career. I was only supposed to be in it for eight episodes! I love it because it is such an ensemble cast and there are no egos.

“I met Nancy, my fiancée, on the set of Emmerdale too. It was absolutely fate. She was a dancer for the cruise ships [but] she did a bit of TV extra work when she wasn’t on the ship. She was on the set of Emmerdale for a few days. That’s how we met – and 20 years later, we are still together, engaged for 14 of them, and we now also have two daughters together.”

Like Steve, James also intends to play a Dingle til the end. “As long as Emmerdale and ITV want me to continue with the show, I will continue to do so,” he adds. “I have got no aspiration to leave and if my tenure were to ever come to an end, I think that would mark the end of my acting career. I don’t have the ambition to look elsewhere.”

Not that he’s exactly like his alter ego in real life – although he jokes his fiancée, Nancy, would sometimes prefer it if he were. “My missus wishes I was more like Sam in real life! She probably could control me a little easier!”, he quips.

“I do feel proud of the fact the Dingles are celebrating their 30th anniversary. When they first came into the show, they were very much the outcasts of the village. But the public have really warmed to them.”

Looking back on his own storylines, James is particularly proud Sam married the love of his life, Lydia, in 2020. “She has enabled him to fulfil his potential,” he says. You wonder why James hasn’t made it official with Nancy despite referring to her as ‘the missus’. “No, no we aren’t married yet,” he confirms. “I know we’ve been together for 20 years now but I jokingly say we haven’t figured out if we have found The One yet! We are really happy and we’ve got two daughters together. But, yes, I do think we might get married at some point – absolutely!”

Their two daughters, Lily, 17, and Ava-Rose, eight, aren’t fazed by their famous dad. “They don’t really watch it at home,” he reveals. “People will sometimes say they have seen me but it’s par for the course for them.”

The Dingles get a lot of attention from fans however – including some very creative gifts. “There is always a blanket on the back of the sofa,” he explains, about the Dingles. “So, we do get sent in colourful crochet blankets!”

What he is most proud of, he adds, is how much the public have taken the 52-year-old soap to their hearts. He says: “I do love the job; my co-stars and I love the fact the soap has gone from strength to strength. When you look back to 30 years ago when it was the first soap awards, most soaps pulled up in stretch limousines. Emmerdale arrived in a bus!

“But in the last 10-15 years, we have found ourselves in a very interesting new position, whereby we have started to win a lot of awards. It’s testament to the hard work of everyone on the show and the great working atmosphere.”

Part of that atmosphere was, of course, the fun scenes between Zak and Sam. “I have so many brilliant memories. I used to like the really silly, unbelievable stuff that we did back in the 90s,” says James. “The crying Elvis doll that the Dingles tried to convince people was like a crying Mary Magdalene sort of thing, when they tried to send Butch into orbit…. we always tried to do it with pathos and believability. [But] It used to make us laugh so much that sometimes it became difficult to get through a scene.”

Emmerdale airs every weekday at 7.30pm on ITV1 and STV