Natalie J Robb has let slip on what's going to happen next for her character Moira Dingle in Emmerdale after a shock brain tumour diagnosis throws her life into chaos.
ITV soap bosses have dropped the bombshell that fans will be treated to a special episode centred on Moira's surgery aftermath, and a peek into how her other half, bad boy Cain Dingle (played by Jeff Hordley), copes while he's off the rails with worry.
The episode will flip the script and show Cain's day in reverse, kicking off with his bro Caleb Milligan (William Ash) finding him in a right state. Riddled with anxiety over Moira's health scare, Cain, all alone and stewing in his worries, is found battling his demons in the garage, unable to handle what might be if he loses his missus.
When Natalie was having a chat with the press about getting thrown into this intense storyline, she revealed: "I was really excited. Everyone goes 'Were you worried they are going to kill you off? ' but she [producer] kind of assured me of that straight away. When people decide to do that for you, that's in the lap of the Gods and there's nothing you can do about it.
"I was excited because it's been a while I had a story and I have to say the feedback I've had on social media, and the amount of people that are going through this in real life, is extraordinary. I had no idea."
Turns out this storyline's hitting close to home for viewers, with Natalie sharing some heartfelt encounters: "I've been at award ceremonies and people have come up to me and said 'I've had my tumour removed' and showed me the scars. It was a privilege and honour to get that responsibility.
"The one thing I did want to make sure was the research and speaking to a neurologist so we got everything right because people do go through it."
Natalie, who first appeared as Moira in 2009, hinted at what viewers can anticipate in future episodes: "There's still some things to come and Moira still has to go through some treatment afterwards as well so we don't know if everything is going to be hunky dory."
Emmerdale airs weeknights on ITV1 at 7.30pm and available to stream from 7am on ITVX
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