Emmerdale fans have expressed confusion over the return of Tina Dingle and are wondering why she was recast for such a short stint.
Following actor Steve Halliwell’s death in 2023, Emmerdale decided to do an on screen funeral for his character Zak Dingle. This took place last year and it was announced that Tina Dingle would return, now played by Samantha Power.
Given the original Tina was so iconic, fans are now wondering what the point in recasting her was if she was hardly going to feature.
Tina Dingle returns to Emmerdale
It was announced last year that the character of Tina Dingle would be returning to the Dales for Zak’s funeral – albeit looking a little different.
Sam Power made her first appearance as Tina in October on the day of Zak’s funeral. She did not get a warm reception – made even worse when she insulted her family one by one.
The new Tina didn’t go down well with some viewers either, with some complaining that Tina must have had had a personality transplant.
Tina stuck around for a short time, long enough for it to be revealed that she was actually Vinny’s biological mum, not Mandy Dingle.
Vinny gave Tina a choice, leave with £50k or stay and try and be a proper mum. Tina typically chose the money, but unfortunately for her the whole thing had been a trick – there was no money.
Vinny kicked his mum out. But before leaving, she shared that she had other children. However, Tina hasn’t been seen since and Vinny hasn’t met his siblings. Some fans have speculated that Tina will return for Vinny and Gabby’s wedding, but there has been no confirmation of that theory.
Emmerdale fans question where Tina Dingle has gone
Samantha Power previously shared that her stint as Tina Dingle would be a short one. But that hasn’t stopped fans from questioning where she has gone.
Writing on X, one fan posted a picture of Tina and wrote: “I think about her everyday. where did she go? we need her back.”
A second fan replied to the post, wondering why they would recast such an iconic character for such a short stint. They said: “I can’t actually believe they recast a character after nearly 30 years for THAT.”
A third fan agreed, calling the recast “weird” and asking “what was the point?”
Will we see Tina again?
