Emmerdale Spoilers – Belle and Piper set for emotional reunion

Next week on Emmerdale, Belle gets a Christmas miracle as she’s reunited with her beloved dog Piper.

After a rollercoaster year, things are finally looking up for Belle Dingle (Eden Taylor-Draper) as a Christmas Day miracle occurs.

Last Christmas almost seems a lifetime ago, when Belle made a romantic proposal to boyfriend Tom King (James Chase) with the help of his childhood heroes Torvill and Dean.

The pair were married in February, but it was mere hours before Tom started to show his true colours, leaving Belle to sleep on the sofa in tears on their wedding night.

Several months of misery followed for Belle as Tom subjected her to both physical and mental abuse.

When Belle eventually found the courage to leave Tom, his manipulation tactics reached a whole new level as he deliberately ran over Belle’s beloved dog Piper (Minnie). Claiming that she had escaped and run out in front of his car, Tom rushed Piper into the vets to perform surgery, but later told Belle that she hadn’t survived.

However, after Belle lay Piper’s casket in a grave behind Wishing Well Cottage, it was revealed that Tom had in fact faked Piper’s death, and was seen handing the dog over to an unsuspecting couple outside their home.

In the wake of Tom’s trial, Belle suddenly comes to the realisation that she never actually saw Piper’s body. Tom had handed over the wicker casket, but she had never looked inside.

“She never really saw what actually happened,” Eden Taylor-Draper told EverySoap and other media at a press event last month. “She was just told, and she can’t get it out of her head. Tom’s obviously lied about so much. So she just thinks ‘We never actually saw the evidence, yes we buried a casket but who knows what’s in there?’”

Stood by Piper’s grave with Vinny (Bradley Johnson), Belle voices her suspicions that Tom may have lied about Piper’s death, and suggests there’s only one way to find out for sure. Belle asks Vinny to get a shovel.

Unearthing the casket, Belle and Vinny prepare to open it.

“She’s determined to open it and Vinny’s like, ‘You don’t know what’s going to be under here, this could be horrific,” Eden continues.

“She opens it and there’s literally just one brick in there, which is grim. It’s such a mixture of emotions, but I think the main thing is “Okay, she’s out there, I’m going to find her!”

Knowing that Piper is microchipped, Belle heads to the vets to ask Rhona (Zoe Henry) if there’s any way of tracking her down, but she explains that there’s nothing that’s come up on the system. They will be alerted if Piper is taken to a vets, but until then there’s no way of knowing where she is.

Longing to find her companion, Belle even considers visiting Tom in prison to confront him.

“She kind of feels like that’s the only way she’s going to get answers. She knows she’s probably going to be lied to, and probably it’s nothing she can rely on, but she’s desperate. That’s why Vinnie and Gabby (Rosie Bentham) are like, you’re not doing that, we will help you.”

Thankfully, Vinny and Gabby’s search soon proves fruitful…

Christmas Day starts out quiet at Wishing Well, being the first since the family lost patriarch Zak (Steve Halliwell). It’s particularly poignant for Belle considering the day also marks her 26th birthday.

“It is a different Christmas, the Dingles aren’t heavily featured, and it’s just Belle and Vinny at home,” Eden explains. “All the Dingles are off doing things at different people’s houses, some have gone to Mill Cottage or wherever, so they’re scattered around a bit more this year.”

“Belle and Vinnie are just reflecting on the year, and she obviously can’t believe that it’s her first year without both parents.”

Taking a moment to herself, Belle heads out to Zak’s grave with a beer in hand for her dad.

But as she mourns her loss, she’s suddenly overwhelmed with joy when Piper bounds up to her!

“You just see Piper running up with a bow on,” Eden shares. “And it’s so cute. Vinny and Gabby track down and get in touch with the people who Tom gave Piper to and explain the situation.
And they’re were like, ‘Yeah, that is your dog, and we’re really sorry for what she’s been through’. So they just bring her back to me on Christmas morning.”

Whilst Piper’s return and Tom’s imprisonment will hopefully bring some form of closure to that chapter of Belle’s life, Eden explains that the story will still continue to have repercussions for some time.

“I don’t think there’ll be an end point to that journey or that healing,” she continues. “Speaking to the producers and the research team, everyone’s so passionate that this story doesn’t end when this side of the story ends. There’s a whole other world to explore with it. And I guess this is the side that you don’t often see, the aftermath and the healing. So I’m really proud that that’s something they’re so focused on getting right as well.”

“For Belle to go and speak to women’s refuges, or however she deals with it, I think that’ll be great to show. It’s a bit like her psychosis, that’s always going to be a part of her. This will hopefully become a strength, instead of it being something that she feels is holding her back.”

“100%, I think Piper will be a part of that journey. When they were in the cottage, I spoke to the writers about it at the time and they said in certain situations like this, it’s often when something else is put in danger, that’s when the victim feels they need to do something. It’s not about themselves necessarily.”

“So when Piper was tied up outside, that’s when Belle was like, that’s enough now. So, yeah, Piper is everything to her. And, you know, I do think in a way she’s saved her from this situation. She’s kind of like her little therapy dog throughout all of it.”

Eden was also delighted to be reunited with 9-year-old co-star Minnie, who was sat alongside her as she spoke to us, after a long time of uncertainty as to whether Piper would return.

“It was only around three months ago that I got told she was coming back at Christmas,” Eden shares. “But yeah, there was a period where it was just like, ‘Is she going to come back? Is she not?’”

“She’s so chill,” Eden continues. “Sometimes we’d literally be with her seven till seven every day, and she’d just wander on set like it was her home because it was so natural. And her continuity is amazing!”

Having already starred in the likes of Gangs of London, The Syndicate, Biff & Chip, and The Bay, tempting back a seasoned pro such as Minnie comes at a price however, as her rider is now laid bare.

“My hand will now stink of raw chicken,” Eden laughs. “She loves chicken… likes cheese, likes butter…”

“Treats are pretty much always natural food,” Minnie’s owner Eryl adds. “She gets paid as she does the job, as opposed to getting her salary at the end of the month. So she does a good job, she gets a treat. She knows it’s coming!“