Emmerdale has confirmed that Samson Dingle (Sam Hall) is preparing for his release from prison. On Tuesday's (October 14) episode of the ITV soap, farmer Sam Dingle (James Hooton) made a surprise announcement about his son, Samson, as Vinny (Bradley Johnson) joins him in prison.
Vinny was sent to prison for 10 years after pleading guilty to death by dangerous driving following a fatal car crash that killed Jimmy King (Nick Miles) and Dawn Fletcher (Olivia Bromley). After his first night behind bars, Mandy Dingle (Lisa Riley) was informed that Vinny's time in prison has got off to a terrible start, as he's already been attacked by one of the inmates.
Release news and family reaction
The jail reassured Mandy that Vinny is recovering well after the incident, but she fretted that he simply won't be able to cope behind bars in the long term. "At least Samson is there helping him from now on", Belle (Eden Taylor-Draper) reassured Mandy, before she was dealt another crushing blow.
Sam confirmed that Samson and Vinny were not in the same part of the prison, meaning he has limited protection. "He's on a different wing, he said he's going to ask around and see if he can find someone to keep an eye out for him", Sam explained before his wife Lydia (Karen Blick) chipped in: "He's had his release date through, and he's going to be coming home in a couple of weeks."
The news left Mandy feeling emotional as she admitted she was jealous of Samson's release. Later, Sam and Lydia expressed their joy over Samson's homecoming. "I can't believe he's going to be home soon," Sam exclaimed as Lydia suggested they celebrate the news with a trip to the pub. However, the happy couple did suggest that Moira Dingle (Natalie J Robb) would not be happy with Samson returning home and living under the same roof as him at Wishing Well Cottage.
Why Samson was jailed
Samson's downfall began after he became friends with troublemaker Josh Cope (Osian Morgan) in 2024. In a harrowing plot, Josh targeted Moira's son Matty Barton (Ash Palmisciano) with transphobic abuse during a night at The Hide before the situation turned violent.
After the pair went back inside, Josh demanded money from the till while Matty was holding a kitchen knife. Josh then shoved Samson towards Matty, causing Samson to be accidentally stabbed. Rather than explain what had really happened, Samson backed Josh's false account and told police that Matty had attacked him deliberately, but the lie had serious consequences. Matty was charged over the stabbing and remanded in custody, where he became increasingly frightened for his safety as a transgender man.
Confession and sentencing
In a huge betrayal of the Dingle family, Samson stuck to his story despite pressure from family members to come clean. It was Samson's step-mum, Lydia, who eventually realised he was lying after seeing him with Josh and hearing how badly Matty was struggling in prison. After weeks of deceit, Samson finally came clean, admitted to his family that Matty's version of events was true, and confessed everything to the police. Matty was freed from prison, leaving Samson to face the law over his actions, as his relationship with Josh also collapsed.
In August 2024, Samson finally stood up to his former friend but assaulted him and was later arrested while in The Woolpack. The following day, he was sentenced to four years behind bars for obstruction of justice after falsely claiming Matty had deliberately stabbed him in an attempt to protect his friend Josh.
Samson's final scenes saw his dad, Sam, share an emotional goodbye with him before he was taken away to prison. Samson said: "I'm really sorry I let you down, Dad. I've been a rubbish son, haven't I?" Sam tried to reassure him, "If you keep your head down, you could be out in two years for good behaviour." An exact date for Samson's release has not yet been confirmed by the ITV soap. Emmerdale airs weekdays on ITV and ITVX.
