Emmerdale fans were left devastated by the shock death of Dawn Taylor, dampening the Bank Holiday weekend for many. The iconic ITV soap aired a dramatic, action-packed episode on Sunday that saw devastating consequences from a fatal car accident that happened in the dales earlier in the week.
Wedding marquee crash leads to tragedy
Fans watched in horror this week when Jimmy King, played by Nick Miles, lost control of his car, ploughing it into the wedding marquee of Dawn Taylor, played by Olivia Bromley, and Joe Tate, played by Ned Porteous. Viewers were already grieving when Jimmy died following the accident, while other characters remained in peril.
On Sunday, fans watched Dawn die in a shock twist, leaving Joe devastated as he was forced to bid goodbye to his would-be wife. Dawn, played by Olivia since 2018, was a favourite character for many, who are now inconsolable over her loss.
Social media reaction to Dawn's exit
Social media has been in uproar over Dawn's death. One devastated fan wrote on X: "Oh #emmerdale so sad" alongside two crying face emojis. Another typed: "Tonight's episode of Emmerdale is an emotional one. And that's all am gonna say #Emmerdale."
Others were saddened to see Joe left emotionally fraught as he was forced to bid Dawn farewell. One fan wrote: "I’m not a Joe fan by any means but no one deserves to grieve the love of their life, I don’t think I have enough tissues in the house for today’s episode #emmerdale." Another typed: "Dawn and Joe were such a pretty couple, will genuinely miss their good looks gracing the village. Glad we keep sexy Joe able bodied and ready for revenge tho #Emmerdale."
Fans angered by early ITVX release
Other Emmerdale fans were angered over show bosses' decision to kill off a beloved character. One wrote: "Emmerdale… today you have wronged me…" Many others were further angered by the fact ITV allowed the episode to air via ITVX early, as it meant they saw the news of Dawn's departure ahead of time. One aggrieved soap fan wrote on X: "@emmerdale can you please stop releasing soaps on ITV X the spoilers are everywhere!"
Dawn's exit rumoured for months
Dawn's exit had been rumoured for months, with The Sun previously revealing back in March that she was due to exit the show after eight years. A source said at the time: "Olivia [Bromley] is adored by everyone at Emmerdale so the decision to axe her has not gone down well at all."
"She’s a popular member of the cast and if they can get rid of Olivia then the feeling is virtually no-one is safe. Olivia understood their decision and is preparing to film her exit in the coming months."
On Friday, Nick Miles broke his silence on being written out of the show after the death of his character, Jimmy, aired. He told The Metro: "I had about three months’ notice that Jimmy would be leaving. But for about three months before, I was having weird nightmares about Jimmy’s death."
He added: "I’ve had typical actor dreams about not knowing my lines or being in the wrong scenes before, but I’ve not had nightmares about death! The one that kept recurring was being stabbed in the chest by Nicola. It was very strange."
