Ofcom has been inundated with complaints from ITV fans over a recent episode of Emmerdale which saw a ‘sick’ storyline unfold
ITV Emmerdale has come under fire from viewers, with Ofcom receiving 62 complaints over a recent “sick” storyline involving child abduction and violence. The episode, which aired on December 5, saw newcomer Jade, portrayed by Twinnie-Lee Moore, return to the Dales in search of her missing money.
After an illegal fight between Ross Barton (Mike Pard) and Billy Fletcher (Jay Kontzle), Jade was left furious when she discovered that £10,000 had been stolen. Unbeknownst to Jade and Ross, it was actually Mackenzie Boyd (Lawrence Robb) who had taken the money.
Despite this, Jade blamed Ross and vowed revenge. She and her gang carried out a disturbing act during the episode that sparked complaints.
Events took a shocking turn when Jade and her accomplices kidnapped April Windsor (Amelia Flanagan). In a bid to teach Ross a lesson, Jade had her henchman dangle the teenager from a multi-storey car park in terrifying scenes.
In a cruel twist, it emerged that the chosen location to torture the teen was actually the same place where her mother Donna (Verity Rushworth) died ten years ago, reports the Express.
After Mack handed over the dough to Jade, she was fuming to find out she’d been short-changed by £3,000. In a twist of events, April remained unharmed, yet the crook made more chilling threats – hinting that Ross’s young son Moses might be next for an ‘adventure’ much like April’s.
The storyline has shocked fans, prompting them to file official complaints with Ofcom, while others vented their fury on social media.
One displeased fan posted to X/Twitter: “@emmerdale Absolutely ridiculous. Emmerdale’s writers have lost it. Writing s**te, unrealistic, b****cks just for shock, it’s pathetic.”
“Even in this messed up world, pathetic crooks don’t kidnap kids and threaten to throw them off multistorey car parks for 10 Gs..you insult your viewers..and Yorkshire.”
Another chimed in with a critique of the storyline: “Who’s writing this stuff? First, Tom manipulates two children, and now Jade has a dumbfcuk holding another child off a car park roof. Leave them kids alone. #emmerdale.”
A third viewer remarked on the credibility of the plot: “Why kidnap someone’s child unrelated to the issue, unless the kidnapper wrote the script#Emmerdale,”.
In response to viewers who might find the scenes disturbing, a fourth commented: “#emmerdale If you find it distressing, turn the program off.”
Lastly, another viewer mentioned their personal effort to engage with the show: “Happy Christmas everyone. Before anyone says ‘just turn it off’ I make the effort to watch this pile of crap with my partner, who loves it.”
