1982: Ashes To Ashes

"Eighteen going on eight," was how my mother once described Jackie Merrick (Ian Sharrock).

It was late 1982 when Jackie Merrick torched the NY Estates caravan where he had lived since 1980.

Jackie was a troubled teen. Fashion-wise he was a disaster in those early years - several comments here have claimed that in real life he would have been ragged unmercifully by his mates for wearing out-dated clothes, and I think they may have a point. Some people have also pointed out that it was easy to see that actor Ian Sharrock was years older than Jackie as no self-respecting teen would have been seen dead looking like that - particularly by millions of people on television!

But in some ways it was fitting. Jackie was not the brightest lad in Beckindale, and since his mother had walked out on his "father", Tom, in 1980, his world had been turned upside-down. Bedding down into a job as Seth Armstrong's assistant at NY Estates was one of the best things to happen when he left school in 1981, but that was threatened when Jack (Clive Hornby) blurted out that he was Jackie's real father later in the year.

The resulting tumult, with Tom Merrick (Edward Peel) also having to come to terms with the fact, spilled over into 1982 and led Jackie to consider running away.

Things settled down, and Sandie (Jane Hutcheson) persuaded Jackie to make the run-up to Pat's wedding to Jack as happy as possible, and to attend the wedding with a smile on his face. Jackie did well, but after the briefest of stays at Emmerdale Farm whilst Pat and Jack enjoyed a couple of days away on their honeymoon, he moved back into the NY caravan that he'd occupied with his mother and half-sister since late 1980. The reason was a falling-out with Jack.

When Jackie turned eighteen in late 1982, Jack bought him a new gadget - a personal stereo. Pat (Helen Weir) thought the gift was a little OTT - they did seem posh and new-fangled in those days. Jackie was actually quite pleased with the gift, but kept a sullen upper lip.

The return of Jackie's old mate, Graham Jelks (Richard Tolan), on leave from the Army, and Graham's attempts to persuade Jackie to enlist, led the lad to the recruiting office.

There had been changes at NY Estates. The arrival of Alan Turner (Richard Thorp) as Beckindale manager in March 1982 had caused various headaches for Jackie. Despite protestations from Jackie's immediate boss, Seth Armstrong (Stan Richards), Alan would insist on Jackie being taken away from his primary tasks to do general labouring whenever the occasion demanded.

Joe Sugden (Frazer Hines), as farm manager, tried to smooth things out, but he was fighting a losing battle with Alan.

The crunch came when a shooting party on NY land, set up to impress a business contact of the company, turned out disappointingly. There were hardly any birds to shoot at. Jackie was in charge of the shoot and, due to his being frequently re-assigned to labouring tasks, plus a tendency to skive off and stand around yakking, had not prepared things properly.

Alan was furious and gave Jackie the sack.

Shortly before this, Jackie had heard he'd been accepted for the Army. Pat was convinced he didn't really want to go, and he certainly didn't seem happy at the prospect.

But then he rarely seemed happy at anything.

Having been sacked by Mr Turner, Jackie bought some beer and got drunk. He ranted to Sandie about the family's changing fortunes since 1980, declared the caravan a dump, and then torched it.

Sandie had been experiencing problems of her own. A couple of dates with the local vet (a man in his mid-20s!) had earned the 17-year-old girl the nickname "randy Sandie" at school. And now Andy Longthorn (Mark Botham) was once again looming large in her life. As the caravan blazed, she could only stare, horrified and scared out of her wits...

And Jackie certainly wasn't going into the Army now. He was in trouble.

Serious trouble.

1980: Introducing The Longthorn Family...

1980 - making plans - Matt Skilbeck (Frederick Pyne), Jack Sugden (Clive Hornby) and Dolly Skilbeck (Jean Rogers).

Jack's return to Emmerdale Farm in February 1980, and Joe's absence in America shortly afterwards, was leading to changes at the farm. Jack was keen to upgrade the cattle herd and add a couple of British Friesians. The rest of the family hesitated: how would Joe react - after all he'd been managing the farm up to now?

Jack's decision to use his own money to pay for the cattle did not ease the uncertainties, but once he'd consulted with Joe on the telephone, and Joe had agreed to the new venture, it was simply a matter of buying the cows.

And the best farmer in Beckindale - and in fact for some miles around - to supply the cows was one Clifford Longthorn, of Lower Hall Farm.

In 1986, Annie commented to Joe that there had been Longthorns in Beckindale before there were Sugdens. But none were seen on-screen until 1980.

Clifford (Jim Barcroft) and Peggy (Dorothy Vernon) Longthorn lived at Lower Hall Farm with their teenage children, Andy (David Clayforth) and Carol (Jane Hollowood).

Andy was a bright, studious lad and in the spring of 1980 knew that a confrontation with his father could no longer be avoided. Clifford took it for granted that Andy would carry on the Longthorn tradition of farming and take over at Lower Hall Farm when he retired. Andy saw his future as doing 'A' Levels, going to university, and then becoming a teacher or something else. He didn't quite know what he wanted to do. But he did know that he didn't want to be a farmer.

Clifford was furious. Both he and his father had been happy with farming, and all his efforts had been for Andy. How dare Andy be so ungrateful?

Peggy told Clifford that when it came to raising the children emotionally, Clifford had always left things to her. Andy had a right to want something different from his father.

Carol Longthorn had her own bombshell to drop. She wanted to go to agricultural college and farm!

Clifford could not comprehend this. When it was pointed out to him that Land Army girls had done a sterling job during the war, he said that had been a "National Emergency". He did not want to negate women's abilities, but some things were "men's work".

Andy met Jack Sugden on a walk one Sunday afternoon and, mindful of Jack's difficult relationship with his own father, confided in him.

Jack met Clifford in The Woolpack and rather poked his nose in - to Clifford's way of thinking - speaking up for Andy and Andy's right to decide his own future.

Clifford was highly annoyed, and pointed out that Jack popped in and out of Beckindale as it suited him and had lost touch with what was important to the local people - and the way they thought. He then stormed out.

Things came to a head unexpectedly a few days later when Clifford was brought from his bed by the sounds of a cow in distress. Cherry was about to calf...

Clifford slipped and fell, hurting his back. He called out and managed to rouse his family from their slumbers. They assisted him to get back to the farmhouse.

In great pain with his back, Clifford asked his family to phone Emmerdale Farm - the Sugdens would help...

... but Carol had other ideas. She had assisted at countless calvings and, with Andy to help, was confident she could deliver this calf.

Clifford appealed to his wife, but Peggy was firmly on Carol's side.

And so the calf was born...

... delivered by Carol...

... with no problems at all.

A day or two later, Clifford commented to Peggy that they had a topsy-turvy pair of kids on their hands. But Peggy was convinced that both Carol and Andy would make them proud.

Within a week or two, Clifford was proudly discussing his son's choice of 'A' Levels with Jack Sugden, now the proud owner of two of Longthorn's finest British Friesians, bought at Hotten Market.

1980-1985 - Changes At Emmerdale Farm...

The folks at Emmerdale Farm in the summer of 1984.

The first half of the '80s saw tremendous change at Emmerdale Farm, with Jack returning from his travels in 1980, and then marrying Pat Merrick in 1982. This meant that Pat and her daughter Sandie moved into the farmhouse. Young Jackie Merrick rebelled against the notion that Jack was his biological father and didn't settle at the farm. The hot-headed lad landed himself in quite a lot of bother, finally ending up living under the watchful eye of the Reverend Donald Hinton at St Mary's Vicarage.

When sister Sandie announced she was pregnant in 1983, Jackie moved into Emmerdale to keep an eye on her - but shortly afterwards she decamped, joining her father Tom in Aberdeen.

Andy Longthorn, the father of Sandie's baby, was beaten up by Jackie Merrick.

Jackie stayed on, working out his difficulties with Jack.

Sandie returned to the farm after the birth of her baby daughter, which she had had adopted.

Seth Armstrong became a very good friend to young Jackie.

Pat found it difficult to settle to a farming way of life at first, but she was soon wading in, helping out in the fields and keeping a pet goat, Annabelle, which wreaked havoc at the farm and in the village.

Jack was getting into a bit of a muddle with the financial side of things, so Annie asked Henry Wilks to take on the role he'd originally envisaged for himself when Emmerdale Farm Ltd was formed - financial manager. Henry agreed.

Why Jack strayed with Karen Moore from Hotten Market was not easy to explain. He'd set himself against the family with an extragavant purchase of cattle to upgrade his Freisian herd, and Karen lent a sympathetic ear to his problems. And one thing led to another...

Finally, Pat followed Jack to Karen's flat and told him: go home with her or never see her again.

Jack went home with Pat.

Joe meanwhile took up a new career at NY Estates in 1980. But life became increasingly fraught under boss Alan Turner, who arrived in 1982. Romance with vicar's daughter Barbara Peters in 1983 brightened things for Joe, but the problems with Alan were not going away. Finally, Joe took up an offer from NY's managing director, Christopher Meadows, to work at the company's beef operation in France. He hoped to make a fresh start there with Barbara, but she broke off their relationship and went to London. Joe left England but would return to live in Beckindale later in the decade.

Poor Joe - romantic good fortune was never his.

For the Skilbecks, there was one tragedy and two happy events: Dolly suffered a miscarriage in 1980, but, happily, a son, Samuel David, was born to the couple in 1982. The Skilbeck family moved into a two-bedroomed extension at Emmerdale.

The Christening of Samuel David Skilbeck in 1983.

Sam Pearson was aging but agile for almost half of the 1980s. His vegetable plot continued to flourish, he enjoyed a gossip with Amos or a spot of competition with Seth and continued to uphold his Christian way of life.

The era held its sorrows and upsets for Sam - he was greatly distressed by Sandie's pregnancy "out of wedlock", and his grandson Joe's affair with Barbara Peters, the Reverend Hinton's married daughter. Sam and the modern world had been at odds for a long time.

But there were many happy times - including a luxury cruise with daughter Annie which he won in a competition.

Sam died in late November 1984. He retired to bed after a very happy evening - an evening of triumph, which saw his pumpkin win first prize at the annual village show.

The next morning, Annie took him a cup of tea up to his bedroom to find he'd passed away in the night. Sam's loss was keenly felt at Emmerdale Farm and in the village of Beckindale.

As the new year of 1985 dawned, the Sugdens and Skilbecks could only wonder what the second half of the decade held in store for them...