Emmerdale airs shock death for Ethan Anderson as broken Charles vows revenge

Before his court hearing for dangerous driving, Ethan tried to confront Ruby about her plot with Rose, but she covered up in front of her husband Caleb Milligan (William Ash).

Ethan confided in his father Charles (Kevin Mathurin), without giving him the names of the people involved, and Charles advised Ethan to tell the truth.

Ethan left Dawn a voicemail asking her to speak properly, before sharing a heart-to-heart with Charles about recent events, the prospect of Ethan going to prison and how much they meant to each other.

More like this

Charles continued the conversation as he headed to the kitchen to iron his shirt, but in the other room, Ethan suddenly grabbed his head and collapsed to the floor.

Attempting CPR and calling an ambulance, Charles was beside himself until his partner, Doctor Manpreet Sharma (Rebecca Sarker), arrived and took over, desperately trying to resuscitate Ethan without success.

The villagers saw Ethan being taken into an ambulance, while Charles and Manpreet followed them to the hospital. At Home Farm, Dawn heard the news and felt terrible for not responding to Ethan’s previous message.

With Ruby behind the hit-and-run against Ethan as revenge for leaving her son Nicky (Lewis Cope) for dead, she seemed worried about the consequences of this latest development.

Ethan’s grandmother Claudette (Flo Wilson) spoke with Ruby while she waited for news, until Charles and Manpreet arrived home to deliver the news of Ethan’s death.

A broken Claudette struggled to stay on her feet, while Charles insisted that whoever mowed down Ethan was responsible for his death. He vowed to make them pay, as Ruby struggled with her guilt. Will Charles discover his crime?

Speaking about the loss of Charles, actor Mathurin described the connection between his alter ego and his beloved Ethan: “Charles lost his one and only constant, his son, who was always in his life. When the others came and went, Ethan was always there. So now Charles has to deal with a life without Ethan, which is devastating.

“(Of all Charles’ losses), this will be the hardest because Charles raised Ethan alone, and Charles and Ethan have always been together. They have been the central unit of the Anderson family, so Ethan’s departure is a necessity. It’s going to be devastating for Charles to face.”

Meanwhile, Mathurin was saddened to no longer work with his co-star Emile John, who he believes is destined for a successful career.

“It was devastating to learn of Emile’s departure. We joined the show together and we bonded straight away,” he revealed. “He was incredible as my son, and he is a good friend, a brother, and we had some great times, laughs and tears together.

“It’s been an incredible journey, and it’s going to be so weird not having him sitting next to me in the dressing room, belly laughing. He has an incredible energy to have on set, and he’s an actor bright, and the future is very bright for this talented guy, so I wish him all the best.”

Ethan first appeared in Emmerdale in 2021 and was the victim of a stop and search when drugs were planted on him. Ethan was also the victim of a homophobic attack, reunited with his estranged mother and sister he never knew existed, and was often there to give unpaid advice to residents in his capacity as a lawyer.

Learn more:

Emmerdale airs Monday to Friday at 7:30 p.m. on ITV1. Stream on ITVX.
Check out more of our Soaps coverage or visit our TV guide and streaming guide to find out what’s on. To hear more about TV’s biggest stars, listen to The Radio Times podcast.