Emmerdale fans have been left feeling divided over a "change" in Ruby Miligan after she's made it her mission for her and Caleb to build an empire.
Beth Cordingly made her Emmerdale debut as Ruby two years ago in January 2024. She was introduced as Caleb Miligan's wife, who had joined the ITV soap two years prior as Cain Dingle's long-lost brother.
Ruby entered the village as a fiery character, quick to put others in their place if needs be. However, things soon shifted for the villager as 2024 came to a close and her estranged father Anthony Fox arrived in the village with Ruby and Caleb's daughter Steph Miligan.
Ruby's backstory and recent return
While appearing uncomfortable around her father, harrowing flashbacks later showed that Ruby had been the victim of abuse at the hands of Anthony.
In episodes which followed, Anthony died after being beaten up by Aaron Dingle before Ruby stopped him from breathing by covering his mouth. Although they swore to keep his death a secret, Steph soon learned the truth - and also that Anthony was her biological father.
Since then, Ruby hasn't been as present in the Dales until recently when she decided to con Jimmy King into trusting her and Caleb so she could help her husband "get his edge back".
Jimmy and Nicola discover the B&B is in financial distress, pinning their hopes on a new haulage deal. Unbeknownst to them, Ruby orchestrates a robbery of Jimmy's shipment to force him to sell the business, enlisting Kev to steal a van for the heist.
While the plan succeeds in destabilising Jimmy, Kev is furious to find the stolen loot is only nappies. The situation turns when Ruby puts Kev in his place, revealing she possesses footage of him attacking Billy. Later, Kev smashes Caleb's laptop, destroying any evidence of his crimes.
Fan reactions divided
Now, Emmerdale viewers have been left feeling divided over Ruby's new storyline as she's been branded a "villain". On a Reddit thread, u/typicalbobcat1088 wrote: "Caleb has always been a snake but they did really develop Ruby during the Anthony story. She now feels like a completely different person right now. It's not even regression. She has no reason to do this to Jimmy really."
On X (formerly known as Twitter), @herokenflatt added: "Caleb and Ruby have become the top villains in #emmerdale" as @jfoxleybrookesx wrote: "I used to really like caleb and ruby but how they are treating billy is horrible".
Meanwhile, @ryansoapking25 penned: "Loved the Ruby and Caleb content recently!" and @thetatedynasty added: "'We can get serious with the haulage and start building up our little empire' Hello Ruby Miligan-Tate!"
Emmerdale airs on weeknights at 8pm on ITV1 and is available to stream on ITVX and YouTube from 7am.
