Emmerdale star Dominic Brunt teases “interesting” new Paddy story

By Laura Denby

Published: Wednesday, 11 January 2023 at 12:00 am

Emmerdale star Dominic Brunt has promised that an “interesting” new storyline is on the way for his character Paddy Dingle this spring.

Paddy is currently nursing a broken heart after splitting from adulterous wife Chas Dingle (Lucy Pargeter), but it seems that we can expect him to be at the centre of yet another big plot this year.

In an exclusive interview with RadioTimes.com, Brunt revealed: “I’ve got a story that culminates in March sometime, that’s quite interesting as well. I can’t say a single thing about it, but it’s going to be interesting.”

Exactly what this means for beloved village vet Paddy remains to be seen, but recent Emmerdale spoilers have teased that he will begin to feel increasingly isolated from his extended family while the once ousted Chas makes amends with the Dingles.

Could this be a sign of what’s to come? The actor can’t offer any further hints just yet, but he added: “I really like the delicate little dramas and the little explosions that go on between people, and there’s loads of that coming up.”

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Dominic Brunt as Paddy and Lucy Pargeter as Chas in Emmerdale.
ITV

He also gave us an insight into how it felt to play out the big confrontation between Paddy and Chas.

“He’s an everyman’s wet blanket, that’s what he is!” he said of poor Paddy. “He’s a complete drip, [but] he means well. It’s been good to do those dimensions, losing your temper. I very rarely get to lose my temper [as Paddy], so that was great to let loose.

“The reveal of the house was fantastic. The press purposely didn’t say anything. Everybody thought it was going to be on Christmas Day, so actually we pulled that rug out from underneath people’s feet from nowhere. It was a great surprise.”

However, there was one aspect of the showdown that Brunt didn’t enjoy filming. “It was funny because on Twitter, there [were] a lot of people going ‘Oh yeah, Paddy you tell her, she deserved that!’ 

“Well, doing it wasn’t very comfortable because Lucy’s my friend. We work together closely every single day, and I was screaming hot air into her face [at] the top of my lungs and everybody’s going ‘Yeah, well done!’ [but] I don’t think so! It wasn’t the greatest feeling in the world at all – it was quite uncomfortable.”

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A werewolf targets a fictional cast and crew in Brunt’s upcoming film Wolf Manor.
Lightbulb Film Distribution

While we wait to find out how Paddy fares over the course of 2023, Brunt has also been busy working on new horror film Wolf Manor with his wife, Joanne Mitchell. The film sees members of a fictional cast and crew targeted by a deadly werewolf.

Speaking exclusively to RadioTimes.com about Wolf Manor, the actor said: “We’ve got the trilogy; what’s not to like? We’ve got James Fleet, special effects and the werewolf. It’s all one night, there’s 10 deaths to get through. The special effects chap was Shaune Harrison, who did Star Wars and Harry Potter, The Avengers, Sleepy Hollow.”

Asked about delving into the horror genre, he explained: “I really don’t like spiteful horror films and the things where people really, really get hurt. But I quite like being scared. I quite like the jumps and I like the tension in some things.”

There are certainly plenty of jump scares in Wolf Manor, and director Brunt also makes a cameo in the film. 

“It’s the smallest of parts,” he said. “I was trying to do a Ludlow accent! Everyone kept saying, ‘Why are you sounding like a Dubliner?’ I thought it was West Country! I was very cheap, as well!”