Emmerdale viewers have been left in tears as Joe Tate agreed to have his baby adopted, leading to the double departure of two central characters from the ITV soap.
This week, Graham Foster (Andrew Scarborough) had been attempting to persuade Joe Tate (Ned Porteous) against having his newborn son adopted. On Wednesday (September 30), he went as far as showing an old recording of Dawn Taylor (Olivia Bromley) to remind Joe of their shared excitement about parenthood, though the tactic proved unsuccessful.
Graham's ultimatum
Graham adopted a more confrontational strategy and branded Joe "spineless" for abandoning baby Tate, prompting Joe to strike him across the face. The pair subsequently visited the premature infant at the hospital, where Joe instructed Graham to arrange the adoption.
At that point, Graham issued his ultimate ultimatum, informing Joe that should he assist with baby Tate's adoption, it would mark the final favour he performed for him, and he would depart from his life permanently thereafter.
Kim's heartbreak
During Thursday's (October 1) episode in the Dales, Home Farm owner Kim (Claire King) was thrilled to see Joe return from the hospital with his baby son and assumed he had reconsidered his decision. Kim immediately embraced her grandmother role and made plans to purchase baby necessities and prepare the nursery for the new addition.
However, her happiness proved fleeting when Joe confirmed the infant would be adopted and was merely visiting to allow Kim a final farewell. The revelation left Kim utterly heartbroken, but further distressing news followed as Graham also confirmed his departure. She pleaded with Graham to stay, but he understood he had to honour his part of the arrangement.
Viewer reaction
Graham and Kim acknowledged that Joe would come to regret his decision to relinquish his son, and Graham also requested that Kim monitor troubled Joe during his absence. Shortly afterward, in a deeply poignant scene, Graham departed Home Farm carrying baby Tate, informing everyone he would hand the child to social services ahead of the adoption.
Emmerdale viewers were moved to tears by the dual departure and Kim's emotional response. Taking to X, one viewer posted: "Watching Kim in tonight's episode reminded us of Kim losing her beloved David in 1996. The heartbreak was so raw for her! Emmerdale."
A second declared: "Oh my gosh, Kim's scenes today in #emmerdale (heartbreaking) Claire King is truly an amazing actress". A third added: "Gutted for Kim when passing the baby to Graham! Hate Joe #Emmerdale."
"Kim and Graham making me sad at this hour? What is going on (crying face emoji)", admitted one viewer. "You'll certainly need a tissue or two for today's episode (crying face) Claire, Andrew and Ned were fantastic #Emmerdale", commented another. Emmerdale airs weekdays on ITV and ITVX.
