Emmerdale legend’s exit ‘exposed’ 39 years after debut as fans express concern
Emmerdale fans believe they’ve exposed a legend’s exit, 39 years after their debut.
Eric Pollard (Chris Chittell) has been a staple on the long-running ITV soap since 1986, and has faced a number of challenges in recent months.
At the end of last year, his relationship with Brenda Walker (Lesley Dunlop) came to an end, after Eric drained her life savings on a failed crypto venture. Brenda later left the village to go on a worldwide cruise with Cathy Hope (Gabrielle Dowling).
In June, Eric’s health took a decline when he had a nasty fall at home. He was admitted to hospital, with Kerry Wyatt (Laura Norton) trying to organise a carer for him when he returned home.
After a failed trial with a carer that Eric deemed unsuitable, the ITV stalwart reluctantly agreed to let Kerry care for him if he paid her.
Eric Pollard is a fan-favourite Emmerdale character(Image: ITV)
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To make matters worse, Eric soon received a sad update from Brenda on his 80th birthday.
“Well, it would have been [nice] if a Dear John letter hadn’t been attached as well. She’s not coming back,” Eric revealed.
“She’s rediscovered herself, new lease of life and unfortunately, I’m not included in it. And who can blame her after the way that I’ve treated her so badly. Thank you, Brenda, for letting me know on my birthday.
Eric later shared that he hoped Brenda would find happiness because “she deserves it”.
Now, several Emmerdale fans have been left concerned for the soap’s longest-serving star after not seeing him on screen for several months. Many viewers have since taken to social media to express their worry.
ITV viewers have shared their concern for Eric(Image: ITV)
“Can someone refresh me on what’s happened to Eric Pollard?” one person wrote on a Facebook fan page.
Another added: “Ikr I’ve been wondering where he’s been lately, hopefully his Parkinson’s hasn’t got worse,” while a third said: “Omg I hope he’s not leaving!”
A fourth viewer echoed the sentiment, saying: “Yeah no one has seen him for ages. He better not leave like Brenda did,” with another similarly sharing: “I’m concerned we’ll next see him in a hospital bed.”
Eric isn’t the only long-running character “missing” from the ITV soap at the moment, as fans have recently noticed that Cain Dingle (Jeff Hordley) hasn’t appeared on screen in a while.
Cain was last shown on October 22 when he helped Liam Cavanagh (Jonny McPherson) encourage the locals to get their prostate checked following the GP’s recent cancer scare.