The Emmerdale '80s Bus - Part 1

This is a bus with a difference. It travels through time. The Emmerdale '80s bus will drop us at various stops to glimpse life during that decade at the farm and in the village. We begin at December 1984...

Jack is having an affair with Karen Moore, a young auctioneer at Hotten Market. The relationship began when Karen sympathised with him after Emmerdale Farm Ltd decided that his purchase of some pedigree cows had been wrong back in the summer. Even Pat had sided with the others, and Jack had felt suddenly confined by his life at the farm. Ever the free spirit, Jack had kicked back hard, and Karen's sympathy had seemed very attractive. Jack had begun seeing her. By December, he was living with the fact that he was in love with two women.

Matt Skilbeck knew what was happening. He was worried as Christmas was looming and it was to be the first without Grandad Sam Pearson, who had died shortly before. Joe, who was working in France, would be coming back to England for the festivities, but this would be a difficult Christmas for all of them - especially Annie.

 

Being Jack, the author, the thinker, the simple approach of deciding between his wife and Karen was not a path he could easily take. He loved Karen. He loved Pat. He didn't want to hurt either. And yet he was hurting both. Pat had been his youthful lover, the mother of his son. She now represented family and security; Karen was young and free - she represented the unfettered life Jack also wanted to live.

Pat knew what was going on and was devastated. She reflected on what a difference a bit of tinsel made to the parlour at Emmerdale, and, slightly bitter, commented that she had kept a piece for herself. She had relocated to the boxroom as far as sleeping arrangements were concerned.

Over at Home Farm, Alan Turner showed off his policeman's costume for the Beckindale Amateur Players forthcoming production of The Pirates of Penzance. He'd asked Mrs Bates to get some Christmas shopping for him, including a gift for Jill, his wife. Mrs Bates had chosen a pretty nightie for her. She was unaware that Jill and Alan were estranged, but got a glimpse of the sad state of Alan's personal life when he awkwardly confessed that he didn't give his wife such "intimate" presents.

Later, Alan surprised Mrs Bates by presenting the nightie to her as a present. He was sad and awkward; spoke more about the state of his marriage, and said that he wanted to thank Mrs Bates for her nine months of help at NY. Mrs Bates protested, the gift was too expensive, but Alan insisted and quietly retreated, leaving Mrs Bates feeling as sad and as awkward as him.

Young Sam Skilbeck was celebrating his second birthday, and his parents took him out to feed the geese at the farm. Dolly reflected sadly on the harsh realities of farming life - the fate of the geese now Christmas was upon them, and said she thought it would upset Sam if he knew. Matt pointed out that it also upset her - every year the same!

Annie had preparations for Christmas well in hand in the kitchen at Emmerdale Farm, with Sandie as her assistant. Sandie asked if they could make up a parcel for her father, Tom, who was in prison. Annie happily agreed - pies, sausage rolls, etc.

Annie was delighted when Joe phoned. He would soon be with them. She passed on Matt's jovial comment that he owed them eighteen months' worth of milking!

In the parlour, Annie commented to Pat that there had always been laughter in the house when Joe was there. Pat, aware that she hadn't been very jolly recently, apologised for any signs of misery, but Annie hurried to reassure her: she hadn't been getting at anybody.

Over at the Woolpack, Amos Brearly had been treating the villagers to some truly terrible sounds as he practised for his role in The Pirates of Penzance. There was no Mr Wilks on hand to try and keep Mr B under control. Henry was in Italy, attending his daughter Marian's wedding.

Amos commented that the audience at the rehearsal for Pirates had all been very moved by his singing. Mike Conrad retorted that the audience had certainly MOVED when Amos began singing. Amos rejected that - humph! - but was frightened that he was losing his voice. Would everything be all right on the night?

Seth Armstrong was in The Pirates too, of course.

 As a pirate.

Of course!

Mike Conrad was in love with Sandie Merrick. But the feeling wasn't mutual. Mike confided in Walter, telling him he was sure he knew how he felt. Walter silently assured him that he did.

Up in the attic bedroom at Emmerdale Farm, Jack reflected on the tangled state of his love life. He loved Karen. He loved Pat. To Thine Own Self Be True... Pat had been upset when he'd arrived home in the early hours of the morning, having slept with Karen. He'd had to get back because of the milking. On another occasion, when he'd moved to comfort her, she had been furious - he stank of Karen's perfume!

Jack was hurting Pat.

Jack was hurting Karen.

Jack was hurting Annie, and Matt, and everybody who knew at Emmerdale. Sandie Merrick was having to work with Karen at Hotten Market, knowing that she was sleeping with her mother's husband. Jackie didn't know. Jack couldn't bear to contemplate what the knowledge would do to the fragile relationship he had built with his son.

Pat came in to ask if Jack had bought the bracelet they'd decided on for Sandie's Christmas present? He had. They talked. Pat cried, said she missed him so much, couldn't imagine life without him. Did he want her to leave Emmerdale Farm? Jack was shocked - of course not! It was her home. Pat replied that in some ways she'd never felt she really belonged there. It was HIS home. Jack held her close... they kissed... and... the boxroom had no occupant that night.

Anarchistic goof Archie Brooks didn't really want to be a policeman in The Pirates. He insisted on wearing his CND badge on his uniform.

Joe arrived back in Beckindale and took a stroll around the farm, remembering Grandad Pearson.

It was not going to be an easy festive period.

But, of course, he had no idea of just how difficult it was going to be...

Timewarp To 1983: Clive Hornby's Music Choice - Courtesy of Carl Gresham!

Jack Sugden (Clive Hornby) reflects on life at Emmerdale Farm in the 1980s.

I've just been transported back to 1983 to spend some time with the late, much-loved Emmerdale Farm/Emmerdale actor Clive Hornby. Clive played the legendary Jack Sugden, making his debut on 19 February 1980, and was in the show until shortly before his death in 2008.

During that time, the show was transformed, rocketing out of the (by comparison) sleepy 1980s and into the 1990s and early 21st Century, keeping pace with the other English soaps via a thoroughly modern flavour, geared to the evolving tastes of soap fans across the country.

Through all the drama and comedy, there was Clive Hornby as Jack Sugden, providing a lovely thread of continuity back to the old days - as Elizabeth Estensen said in tribute to the character "Always the farmer".

It was an idea of Carl Gresham AKA "The Gresh", a DJ on Pennine Radio in 1983, to make use of his contacts with the stars of Emmerdale Farm and invite six of them into the studio over a period of about two months - to each present an hour of their favourite music. The Gresh put on his producer's hat for the shows, it being his plan not to interview the stars but simply to let them talk, choose their favourite tunes, and then play the music. Judging by the Clive Hornby hour I have just listened to, it made for marvellous radio.

But it's a long way back to 1983, times and technology have changed dramatically, and The Gresh, faced with the old Ampex ten inch tapes he had kept of the shows (he's a self confessed hoarder!) faced some discouragement from those that thought the tapes would be useless now - they would have degenerated, gone "crumply".

The Gresh persevered, and passed the tapes to his archive producer, Dave Perrett, and, after much work, the interviews were transferred to CD and sound as though they were recorded yesterday!

The Clive Hornby show was originally broadcast on Thursday, 10th November, 1983.

It's a lovely listen, an unexpectedly unearthed piece of Emmerdale history - and makes a tremendous tribute to Clive - who tells us a bit about his youth in the 1960s, the decade from which most of his favourite records originate. There's also a chance to hear the Dennisons - the pop group which featured Clive as drummer - and Clive also relates the story of how he became one of the first people ever to hear a certain classic 1960s hit, comes up with a song which captures the complexities of being seventeen years old, and slips in a request for another Emmerdale Farm cast member.

Throughout the hour, Clive comes across as being a thoroughly down to earth and likeable man who would have made a great companion for an evening's chat in the Woolpack Inn, Beckindale - or anywhere else.

If you'd like to hear Clive's musical choice, the show is available on a CD, available from:

PO Box 3. Bradford. West Yorkshire. BD1 4QN

The cost is £5.00 - including postage - and we think it's an absolute bargain. Please make cheques payable to Carl Gresham. We don't usually go in for advertising or selling things at the Bugle, but this CD is, in our opinion, absolutely priceless!

Clive (far left) with his fellow cast members - the folks at Emmerdale Farm - summer 1984.

1980: Joe Goes To NY Estates

Matt, Jack and Joe in the Emmerdale Land Rover, 1980.

When Joe Sugden (Frazer Hines) returned to England from his stay in America with Ed Hathersage in the summer of 1980, he found that Jack (Clive Hornby), who had returned in February, appeared to be settling in at the farm.

The purchase of two Friesian cows by Jack had been agreed with Joe via telephone, but he knew they were something that could not have been afforded when he was farm manager.

Jack had bought them out of own money.

Joe had enjoyed running the farm, but the presence of his brother meant that he was no longer in charge. And Jack had very different approaches to farming and the land: Jack was an emotional idealist, Joe a pragmatic, go-ahead farmer who believed that sentiment should not stand in the way of progress.

After a couple of drinking sessions with NY Estates boss Richard Anstey (Carl Rigg), Joe was amazed when Richard offered him the job of manager of the NY farms in Beckindale.

Joe was tempted: NY was go-ahead, heartlessly so, certain people said, and the job would be a challenge...

It would also be a way of breaking free of the faintly uneasy atmosphere at Emmerdale Farm. Who was in charge? And how long would it be before Joe and Jack fell out? Joe discussed things with Annie (Sheila Mercier) and Jack, and decided to take the job.

Annie would never have dreamt of influencing her son's decision either way, but she found his absence from Emmerdale difficult. As did Sam Pearson (Toke Townley), who was also hurt that Joe had not consulted him. But Joe had not wanted to worry his grandfather about something that may not happen. As it was, he handled things quite badly and Sam was upset.

The house was quiet without Joe, but after a few visits from him, Sam and Annie began to perk up.

Trouble at NY - Sergeant MacArthur (Martin Dale) made his first appearance in December 1980, investigating the theft of Christmas trees from the NY Estates plantation.

Meanwhile, at NY Estates, Joe found the closing months of 1980 were certainly interesting: Jack disagreed with NY's decision to tear out an old hedgerow - which led to heated words with Joe, the Estate workers joined the union and gained a 5% pay rise, and Joe put forward the idea of hormone injection trials for the cattle: twelve steers would be tested, six injected with the hormones and six not, then compared after a six month period. Cowman Daniel Hawkins (Alan Starkey), who had been at Home Farm since the days of the Verney family, disagreed with this "unnatural" idea, but the trials began. Only 1981 would tell whether hormone injections for the NY Estates Beckindale cattle were to be impemented on a permanent basis.

Christmas trees were stolen from the NY plantation, and Joe was nearly run over by the thieves' van - Tom Merrick (Edward Peel) and Derek Warner (Freddie Fletcher) were the bad lads behind the theft.

As 1980 ended, Joe seemed to be settling in at NY - fraught though his first few months had been. He had a finger in two pies, still being on the board of Emmerdale Farm Ltd, and the future promised many more challenges.

In 1989, Joe told his mother that Jack had thrown him off the farm in 1980. This wasn't the absolute truth, but there was no doubt that Jack's return to the farm had seriously put Joe's nose out of joint. It is highly unlikely that Joe's move to NY would have happened had Jack stayed away from Emmerdale.

But for Beckindale the move led to lots of fascinating gossip, and for Emmerdale Farm viewers some highly enjoyable storylines.

1986: Jack Sugden In A Witty TV Times...

This clipping from the TV Times, 27 Sept to Oct 3 1986, makes me smile.

One man went to mow... Jack Sugden (Clive Hornby) deals with whatever crops up in 'Emmerdale Farm'.

Whatever CROPS up, geddit?!!

And what was happening in Beckindale that week?

Well, on Tuesday 30 September we discover:

Joe Sugden makes a big decision about his future, but there could be even bigger decisions ahead for Phil Pearce and Sandie Merrick.

And on 2 October:

Amos believes he is the victim of a gypsy's curse - and Seth Armstrong is more than willing to lend a hand to the supernatural.

Brilliant!

The cast for the week was:

Annie Sugden - Sheila Mercier
Matt Skilbeck - Frederick Pyne
Amos Brearly - Ronald Magill
Henry Wilks - Arthur Pentelow
Jack Sugden - Clive Hornby
Joe Sugden - Frazer Hines
Dolly Skilbeck - Jean Rogers
Sam Skilbeck - Benjamin Whitehead
Jackie Merrick - Ian Sharrock
Sandie Merrick - Jane Hutcheson
Alan Turner - Richard Thorp
Seth Armstrong - Stan Richards
Mrs Bates - Diana Davies
Kathy Bates - Malandra Burrows
Nick Bates - Cy Chadwick
Phil Pearce - Peter Alexander
Eric Pollard - Christopher Chittell
Jock MacDonald - Drew Dawson
Bill Middleton - Johhny Caesar
Gypsy woman - Clare Kelly
Gypsy man - Craig Fairbrass

Matt And Dolly And A Shaggy Dog Story - And Changing Times In Beckindale...

Daily Mirror, December 15, 1983.

Ben belonged to the horrifying Harry Mowlam (Godfrey James) and Matt Skilbeck (Frederick Pyne) snatched him after he witnessed Harry kicking him.

Of course, Harry wasn't having this - Ben was his property - and he wanted him back...

And there was trouble.

But Harry didn't succeed in getting Ben back.

The terrified dog proved a handful - and frightened the wits out of Dolly (Jean Rogers) when she took him some food to the outbuilding. The hairy beast cornered her, snarling most alarmingly...

But all turned out well in the end.

Until 1985. When Harry Mowlam turned his sights on Beckindale again.

And he hadn't forgotten the Skilbecks...

Was Emmerdale Farm a seething hotbed of anger and passion in the 1980s?

No.

But it certainly wasn't as safe as it had once been.

Many of the story-lines revolved around Amos and Mr Wilks (Ronald Magill and Arthur Pentelow) - in their absolutely golden era, Mrs Bates and Mr Turner (Diana Davies and Richard Thorp) in the NY office at Home Farm, Seth Armstrong (Stan Richards) on the cadge or the wind-up, domestic affairs with Matt and Dolly, and the romance between Kathy (Malandra Burrows) and Jackie (Ian Sharrock).

But we also had snarling Tom Merrick (Edward Peel), devious Eric Pollard (Chris Chittell), and, in his early days, awful Alan Turner.

Baddies made their mark on Beckindale, and at least one stuck around.

But the anger and passion were always balanced by beautifully mundane and often comic scenes.

When Derek Warner (Dennis Blanche) almost ran Harry Mowlam over in 1985, and then threatened him with a knife, we were treated to hilarious scenes in the same episode with Alan Turner and the Rev Donald Hinton (Hugh Manning) rehearsing for the Christmas play.

When Jack Sugden (Clive Hornby) was bedding Karen Moore (Annie Hulley) in a hotel room in 1984, the show kept flipping to scenes of Amos and Mr Wilks confronting each other over the breakfast table, or Matt and Jackie dealing with a ram at Emmerdale Farm who was no longer "up to it" and, as Matt said, "ready for the meat pie factory".

The scenes of mating sheep on the farm, and Jack's apparently high-minded affair with Karen, which was simply amounting to humans mating in an adulturous fling, seemed beautifully thought out.

Well, it certainly made me think!

Stability won the day in the Beckindale of the 1980s.

It was more chit-chat and sheep, comedy and everyday drama than anything else.

However, although Beckindale had never been an entirely safe place before the 1980s, there was a feeling that the big bad late twentieth century was brandishing a fist at the village rather more than in the past.

Clive Hornby And Andrew Burt - Not The Same Jack!

Kelly has written:

I've just read on an Emmerdale thread that viewers thought Andrew Burt and Clive Hornby were the same actor when it came to playing Jack Sugden.

Is that true?

No, Kelly. The arrival of Clive Hornby as Jack Sugden was widely publicised in 1980 and fans were fully aware and interested to see the "new Jack". The physical resemblance to Andrew Burt was absolutely deliberate, but the new Jack spoke differently (more down to earth!) and the character of Jack altered considerably in the early Clive Hornby era.

1980: The Merricks Arrive...

The Skipton bus conveyed some passengers of great interest to Beckindale in September 1980...

... it was Pat Merrick and her teenage offspring, Jackie and Sandie. Pat had already paid one visit to Beckindale a month or two earlier, but minus her children. Now she had returned with them and much luggage...

Of course, their arrival did not go unnoticed!

The Merricks had at least one friend in Beckindale - Nellie Ratcliffe who remembered Pat from years before and extended the hand of friendship. She and the kids were welcome to pop into her cottage for a cup of tea any time!

The family was bound for Pat's auntie's house...

Jack Sugden was surprised to see Pat back in the village so soon after her last visit. Was this another visit, he asked?

No, replied Pat - this time she had come back to Beckindale "for keeps".

Annie Sugden told Pat that if there was anything she could do to help, she had only to ask. The folk at Emmerdale Farm had faults like anybody else, but they weren't gossips.

Pat told Annie that she'd cope, but that she'd finished with her husband Tom for good.

Life with Pat's Auntie Elsie was not exactly harmonious. Elsie Harker was used to having her house to herself, and kept it spotlessly clean. Two teenagers around the place, marking her table and playing loud music was not her idea of happiness. And then there was the little matter of Pat's cigarettes - they did smell so!

Pat confided in Nellie Ratcliffe that she needed a job and other accommodation for herself and the kids. Nellie knew that neither would be easy to find, but Pat solved her first problem by landing a job as a waitress at Hotten Market Cafe.

Nellie went to see Richard Anstey at NY Estates about the stone flagged floor in her kitchen. If she had to endure another winter with it she'd catch her death of cold, she told him! Richard promised to get it looked at, then Nellie asked if NY Estates had any other affordable accommodation in the village - for Pat and her family.

As it happened, Richard knew of a caravan on the estate, intended as accommodation for the gamekeeper, but as Seth had a cottage in the village...

Pat was extremely grateful, and although the caravan was cramped and on the grotty side, it was vastly preferable to life with Auntie Elsie's constant harping.

Then, not long before Christmas, Tom Merrick came swanning (or rather sneering!) into The Woolpack, and was soon paying a visit to the caravan.

Pat told him that their marriage was over.

Tom asked her who was taking care of her needs? He'd heard a rumour about Jack Sugden... just like the old days, was it?

Pat told him to leave.

Tom teamed up with Derek Warner to steal Christmas trees from the plantation at NY Estates. The duo were nearly caught by Joe Sugden, and Derek, who was driving, bumped Joe with his van, knocking him flying. Joe was not really injured - just some aches and bruises, but Sandie had seen the occupants of the van and was pretty sure Tom was in the passenger seat...

As Beckindale headed into 1981, it seemed that more troubled times ahead - and that the Merricks' stay in the village was going to be anything but peaceful...

1987: No Nukes In Beckindale...

A public meeting at The Woolpack, chaired by the Rev Donald Hinton (Hugh Manning), Henry Wilks (Arthur Pentelow) and Alan Turner (Richard Thorp) was dominated by the brothers Sugden...

Jack (Clive Hornby) saw the prospect of the nuclear dump as something to fight. There was no question about it:

"If they can prove to us that the ground around here is as solid as they say it is, bring on the nuclear waste!" he sneered.

"We'll all be happy, reason has won the day! Well, try telling that to farmers in the Dales who've got young lambs registering on the gieger counter! Our only course is to fight so that they can't come to Beckindale to talk or to do tests or to do one damn thing! And that's what we've got to believe. Everybody that lives here."

He looked at his brother Joe (Frazer Hines), standing quietly at the bar.

"And that means EVERYBODY!"

Joe pointed out that this was 1987. Did that mean we wanted radiation? Jack fumed.

Joe did not approve of Jack's outlook. He wanted an objective debate about the proposed nuclear waste dump. The "burning haystacks" method of blind resistance Jack favoured struck no sympathetic chord in Joe.

Feelings were running high in in Beckindale, and another public meeting, this time at the village hall and attended by a representative of the nuclear dump backers, took an unexpected turn when a coffin bearing a radiactive warning symbol was carried in.

"You claim that the risks of nuclear waste are no greater than smoking one cigarette a year," said Jackie Merrick (Ian Sharrock) to the nuclear "yes" man.

And cigarette smoke began to rise from a hole in the coffin lid.

And the coffin lid was pushed aside.

And a skeleton emerged.

A skeleton which sounded amazingly like Archie Brooks (Tony Pitts):

"Well, I think I'd rather have one fag a year than your waste on my doorstep!" it said.

Of course, smoking the fag to make this point was no hardship to Archie - a devoted smoker back then.

The 1987 Emmerdale Farm nuclear waste dump story-line was based on a true story, and hailed as a major step forward in the politicisation of soap.

Coming Soon - 1987: A Traumatic Year For Beckindale...

Henry Wilks is horrified to find "No Nukes Here" daubed on the side wall at The Woolpack. Jack Sugden leads opposition to the proposed nuclear dump. Is nuclear waste really only as injurious to health as having one cigarette a year? A skeleton at the village hall states his preference. Alan Turner is featured in The Hotten Courier - but is the photograph what it seems? And Sandie Merrick is terrorised by Eric Pollard...

Remember 1987? If not, let me remind you...

Ever since the term "yuppie" had been coined in America in the early 1980s, the decade seemed to have been set on a chaotic course for 1987. It was the election of Ronald Reagan as US President in November 1980 which had brought about the term a year or two later - and its accompanying ethos.

The yuppie "thing" spread to the UK, and it seemed that by 1987 people were either revelling in dosh, doing quite nicely, or poor as a church mouse (I have to say that my family were in the latter category, but, I must admit, not as poor as in the previous decade). A clamour of voices was raised against the whole yuppie circus.

And then 1987 dawned. A sleek, shoulder-padded beastie. Apparently the summit of Planet 1980s.

But this year was definitely not what it seemed.

This year suddenly turned into something very different indeed, with Black Monday sending shock waves through the financial world in October - and an awe inspiring gale in the same month...

The Times reported on the stock market crash from America:

A black man on a bicycle seized the mood when he shouted at the brokers: "Freedom! The Reagan revolution is over. Death to Yuppies."

A tubby broker bellowed back at him: "Whoever dies with the most toys wins. We start over again tomorrow."

And on the gale in England:

Eighteen people died and hundreds were injured as yesterday's storms, the worst in memory, left a trail of destruction as they cut across southern England.

The year which had seen Margaret Thatcher win her third term in office had suddenly gone completely off its rocker. It screamed and it howled.

And, even in the cosy fictional world of Beckindale, big issues were all the rage as the villagers were faced with the prospect of having a nuclear waste dump sited on nearby Pencross Fell.

And, whilst Nick Bates was caught smoking by his mother, Archie Brooks briefly joined Amos and Mr Wilks at The Woolpack, and Jackie Merrick and Kathy Bates enjoyed their romance, Eric Pollard, removed from his position as manager of Hotten Market, was out to get his revenge on the woman who had caused his downfall - Sandie Merrick.

And he was armed with a poker.

Mad and bad 1987 was here.

We'll be exploring some some of the highs and lows in Beckindale soon.

1980 Emmerdale: Pam St Clement As Mrs Eckersley...

Josh writes:

I'm a huge fan of Pat in EastEnders, and I've heard that Pam St Clement was briefly in Emmerdale in the 80's. Do you know anything about this? She played a woman called Eckersley.

Yes, Josh - Pam St Clement played Mrs Eckersley in Emmerdale Farm, making her debut in episode 561, broadcast in March 1980. She was in the show for five episodes.

Mrs Eckersley was a Beckindale local, and was called into help at Emmerdale Farm when Annie Sugden (Sheila Mercier) and her father, Sam Pearson (Toke Townley), went on a competition-won holiday to Ireland.

She was a capable woman, well able to step into Annie's shoes.

Mrs Eckersley's family consisted of her husband, Harold (Roger Hammond), and teenage daughter, Esmarelda (Debbie Farrington). Esmarelda had written a book and was distressed when her manuscript was rejected by the publishers she'd sent it to.

The newly returned (and recast) Jack Sugden (Clive Hornby), himself a published author, helped Esmarelda through her disappointment.

Locals though they were, once this story-line was complete, the Eckersleys were never seen or heard of in the show again - quite common in those days!

1984: Jack Sugden - Being Dad...

Jackie Merrick (Ian Sharrock) and Jack Sugden (Clive Hornby) - discovered they were father and son in the early 1980s...

It was never going to be easy. When Pat Merrick (Helen Weir) told Jack Sugden that her son, Jackie, was also Jack's son in late 1981, she knew it wasn't going to be easy.

When Jack had left Beckindale in 1964, Pat had discovered she was pregnant. And so she'd married Tom Merrick. She had feelings for Tom, but was it love?

But the idea of being an unwed Mum in Beckindale at that time was unthinkable, and Pat had acted quickly, out of fear for her future and that of her unborn child.

And Tom Merrick believed that Jackie was his son.

And Jackie believed that Tom was his father.

Tom may have had faint suspicions at times, in fact probably more than that (at one point in the dim and distant past Tom had used the idea that Jackie was Jack's son to try a little blackmail), but Tom loved the little lad in his way and, at the end of the day, believed they were kith and kin.

Another child, Sandie, arrived a year or two later, and the Merricks settled down to a rather miserable existence.

Tom was shiftless and sly. And he wasn't above giving the kids and Pat a "good hiding" at times.

In 1980, Pat took her courage in both hands and left Tom.

In 1981, he gave her another "good hiding".

Life in a caravan for Pat and Jackie after their return to Beckindale in 1980.

1980 had also seen Jack Sugden return to his home village and the old chemistry between himself and Pat was re-ignited.

And in 1981 there was talk of marriage.

But there was a curious tension in the relationship, certain things were being left unsaid, and both Jack and Pat knew it.

Then, as preparations for Christmas began, Pat came straight out and told Jack that he was Jackie's father.

And then Jack blurted out the shock news to Jackie, and Jackie went to see Tom in Hotten to get reassurance that what Jack said wasn't true, and realisation hit Tom.

At first, he rejected Jackie.

Jackie was not the most mature of teens, and took this badly, planning to run away, but his position as gamekeeper's assistant at NY Estates enabled Seth Armstrong (Stan Richards) to convince him to stay - at least to work out his notice.

And then Jackie decided to stay on in Beckindale permanently.

Gamekeeper Seth Armstrong (Stan Richards) became fond of Jackie and concerned for his welfare.

Annie Sugden (Sheila Mercier) actually enlisted Tom's help. She desperately wanted her grandson "in the family". Tom's mother had been a friend of Annie's, and Tom liked and respected her.

He told Jackie that not all the Sugdens were bad.

And Sandie (Jane Hutcheson) convinced Jackie to make the run-up to the wedding of Pat and Jack a happy time for their mother.

Edward Peel stepped into the role of Tom Merrick in late 1980, and took the character to new heights of sneering intensity.

In October 1982, Pat and Jack married, and Pat, Sandie and Jackie moved into Emmerdale Farm.

But Jackie, after the briefest of stays and a row with Jack, decided to hole up in the NY Estates caravan the family had lived in since 1980.

And when he was sacked from his job as gamekeeper's assistant, he flew into a drunken tantrum and torched the caravan.

Sandie and Jackie look on aghast as the caravan burns...

The vicar of St Mary's Church, Beckindale, the Rev Donald Hinton, stepped in - offering Jackie accommodation, and to speak up for him in court.

Jackie got a community service order.

He moved back into Emmerdale Farm in 1983, when it was discovered that Sandie was pregnant.

Pat was horrified. History was repeating itself. Sandie was only eighteen. As she told Sandie, despite the fact that people were not supposed to be bothered by pregnancy out of wedlock in the early 1980s, they were.

And single mothers got the "worst end of the world".

Sandie decided to have the baby adopted, and moved up to Scotland to be with Tom for the duration of her pregnancy.

Which left Jackie living at Emmerdale with his real father.

Jack and Jackie bonded a little during 1983.

But they didn't reach a true father-and-son relationship.

And perhaps that was only to be expected.

Jack did not want to do anything to upset his fragile relationship with Jackie, and, as Pat said he was "as soft as butter" with him.

When Jackie bought a motorbike, Pat was worried that he was using it to go out drinking.

Jackie and Jack laughed at her tendency to fret - more like two young lads than father and son.

Jackie was finding growing up difficult: there he was, in his late teens, but still very immature. He could be extremely thoughtless and selfish and his occasional tendency to throw tantrums if people did not see things his way was rather wearing.

But, in 1984, Jack was proud when Jackie managed to deliver his first calf.

Jack, Pat, and Matt and Dolly Skilbeck (Frederick Pyne and Jean Rogers) had gone out to dinner at The Feathers Hotel in Connelton. Back at the farm, a cow had unexpectedly gone into labour, and Jackie had gone smoothly into action, aided by Henry Wilks (Arthur Pentelow) and the Rev Donald Hinton.

Jack was proud of his cows. Since his return in 1980, he'd been building up the Emmerdale herd's Friesian pedigree. He reckoned he should be proud. When he thought back to his father's cattle after the War... well, he reckoned he had cause to be proud.

The Reverend Donald Hinton - a good friend to Jackie.

Jackie was showing more interest in sheep than cows, and Matt was Emmerdale's shepherd. Spending long periods out with the flock and Matt and Nell the sheepdog, Jackie began to confide in Matt about things he felt unable to confide in Jack.

Jack became aware of this, and was hurt. But he said nothing, fearing that he might Jackie drive further away from him if he did.

When the NY Estates bull got out, and did what came naturally with some of Jack's prize Friesians, Jack was furious and blamed Alan Turner (Richard Thorp). Jackie reckoned that he was probably responsible for the bull getting out. He confided in Matt, who advised him to keep quiet - as he wasn't absolutely positive that he was the culprit, surely it wasn't worth the trouble of owning up?

Jackie was nearly certain the incident had been his fault, but didn't trust or feel close enough to Jack to tell him.

Sandie, her baby born and adopted, returned from Scotland for a visit to the farm. Tom (now played by Jack Carr), accompanied her.

Her ex-husband's return threw Pat into a tizzy - what was he up to? Had he returned to England with Sandie simply to ensure that Sandie would go back to to Aberdeen with him? Pat desperately wanted her daughter to live at the farm again.

Jack was hurt that Jackie still referred to Tom as "Dad", but not him.

In fact, Jack bore the brunt of Pat's fears about Tom without being able to express his own concerns a great deal at all.

And he went out of his way to be fair to Tom, not wanting to upset Jackie who still clearly looked up to the man.

Life was often a worry for poor Pat...

Tom still regarded Jackie as his son in many ways, and resented the influence of Jack Sugden in the lad's life.

And then came an opportunity for Tom to "reclaim" Jackie.

Derek Warner, an old pal of Tom's, offered him a part in a terrific money-making venture - poaching fish from the river at NY Estates.

And Tom invited Jackie along for some "fishing".

When Jackie discovered what was going on, he wanted no part in it. Tom, Derek and an associate were using explosives to kill the fish, and then simply scooping them out of the river with nets.

After one session, Jackie had had enough. But Tom sneered at him - would he rather be up at Emmerdale, "philosophising" with Jack Sugden, he asked?

Tom gave some of the trout to Annie Sugden and was invited to partake of the feast at the farm. He thoroughly enjoyed being there, with the "holier than thou" Sugdens, tucking into the stolen trout, when Sergeant MacArthur (Martin Dale) called to inform them of the poaching activities in the district.

The two faces of Tom Merrick in the 1980s, Edward Peel and Jack Carr. Less intense but just as sly, Jack Carr's interpretation of the character ensured that Tom Merrick's visits to Beckindale continued to be a source of trouble to the locals.

Jackie accompanied his "father" on another poaching trip, but left him to it early on.

Tom was furious and almost struck the lad.

Jackie was letting him down in front of his two associates.

But the game was up. Tom and co were apprehended by the police with a van full of stolen trout that night. Seth Armstrong had seen the van heading for the river, and alerted Alan Turner.

It was a good job that Jackie had left the scene of the crime.

Jackie flew into a childish strop with Seth when he discovered that he had "blown the whistle", and lived in fear that the police would soon be arriving at Emmerdale Farm to pick him up.

He told Sandie about his involvement in the fish poaching, but otherwise the family at the farm knew nothing of it.

Until Pat visited Tom at the police station. And he told her that Jackie had nothing to worry about - he and his associates would be keeping the boy's part in the crime quiet.

"You bastard!" said Pat.

And Tom laughed.

During their marriage he had sometimes felt that Pat looked down on him. He hated her deceit over Jackie, hated the way his family had been revealed as a lie in 1981.

And now Pat was up there at Emmerdale with the high-and-mighty Sugdens.

But he could still get at her.

Tom returned to Scotland, on bail, with Sandie - much to Pat's distress.

And Jack got on with the task of trying to build a closer relationship with his son.

One big happy family? The Emmerdale Farm folk in the summer of 1984.