The Dingles have been part of the Emmerdale furniture for 30 years and are one of TV’s most iconic families. But it’s fair to say, they’re not the best behaved bunch, with many serving time in prison.
Following on from Tom King‘s snide comment that prison is a ‘rite of passage for the Dingle men,’ we take a look back at all the Dingles who have spent time behind bars.
Emmerdale Dingles in prison: Cain Dingle
Resident bad boy Cain has spent less time in jail than he perhaps should have.
However, he has served jail time. Most recently, he spent time behind bars for a crime he didn’t even commit. After son Kyle shot Al Chapman, Cain decided to take the rapt.
Cain admitted that the thought of doing 20 years in prison was killing him. Fortunately, Kyle decided to come clean and all charges were eventually dropped.
Sam Dingle
When he arrived in the Dales, Sam Dingle had just been released from a young offenders institute. He obviously hadn’t learnt his lesson though as he continued to get involved in his family’s dodgy schemes.
One such scheme saw him take part in an armed robbery with his uncle Albert in 1998. They were caught and served time in prison. Sam was released after two years.
However, that wasn’t the only time he spent time in jail. He served another short stint behind bars for accidentally knocking over Edna Birch in 2004.
Charity Dingle
Charity has been in prison on more than one occasion. In 2004, she was sentenced to life in prison after Zoe Tate testified in court that Charity had killed Chris Tate.
The truth was that Chris had ended his own life. After Charity gave birth to Chris’s baby while behind bars, Zoe struck a deal with her – she wanted custody of Noah in return for handing the police evidence that Chris ended his own life.
Charity was acquitted and released from jail and was eventually reunited with her son.
In 2015, to fit in with Emma Atkins’ maternity leave, Charity was sent to prison for two years for perverting the course of justice. She was released just over a year later.
Emmerdale Dingles in prison: Marlon Dingle
In 2020, poor Marlon was arrested and charged for the murder of Graham Foster.
Eventually, Marlon was made a free man as the truth came out about who really killed Graham – Pierce Harris.
Lisa Dingle
One Dingle you wouldn’t expect to have served time in prison is devoted mum and wife Lisa.
But back in 2010 she was arrested for punching a policeman and was sentenced to three months imprisonment.
Belle Dingle sent to prison
Zak and Lisa’s daughter Belle famously ended up behind bars after accidentally killing her best friend, Gemma Andrews.
Belle and Gemma had been involved in an argument over a boy they both liked. After Gemma slapped Belle, Belle retaliated by pushing Gemma to the ground. Gemma hit her head on a rock and later died from the injuries.
Belle was remorseful for her actions and won an appeal reducing her sentence from three years to just one.
Emmerdale Dingles in prison: Aaron Dingle
Another member of the Dingle family who has often flirted on the wrong side of the law is Aaron. He was eventually sentenced to 1 year in prison in 2017 for the brutal attack on Kasim Sabet.
He struggled behind bars and one particular scene where Aaron faced homophobia from fellow inmates sparked hundreds of complaints from viewers.
Aaron was released after just a few months but he struggled with his demons following the violent and psychological abuse he suffered while inside.
Noah Dingle
Back in 2022, Noah was sentenced to three months in jail for stalking and spying on ex-girlfriend Chloe Harris.
Noah installed a tracker onto Chloe’s phone, installed microphones in her house and used a drone to spy on her while she was sleeping.
He served around half his time before being released for good behaviour. Upon his release, he shunned his mum Charity due to her being the one to report him to the police – which is usually a big Dingle no no.
Samson Dingle currently in prison
Sam’s son Samson is currently behind bars after he was sentenced to four years earlier in 2024.
Samson made the mistake of teaming up with local thug Josh Cope. The pair of them carried out a robbery at The Hide. Samson ended up being accidentally stabbed in the scuffle, but lied that waiter Matty Barton had done it on purpose.
Matty was subsequently jailed for the crime, before Samson eventually came clean and faced the music.
Other Dingles who have misbehaved
Debbie Dingle has come close to jail on numerous occasions. She was originally arrested over the murder of Shane Doyle, before Jasmine Thomas handed herself in. In 2018, Debbie was arrested again for her part in the acid attack that scarred Ross Barton, but she was found not guilty in court.
Earlier this year, Tina Dingle returned to the Dales for the first time in nearly 30 years. It was soon revealed that she was wearing an ankle tag, meaning she’d recently been released from prison. Though it’s unknown for what.
Back in the 1970s, Cain, Caleb and Chas’s mum Faith Dingle served a short stint behind bars and actually gave birth to son Caleb while in prison.
Read more: Who’s leaving Emmerdale? All the cast exits, arrivals and returns
Emmerdale usually airs weeknights on ITV at 7.30pm, with an early release on ITVX at 7am.
Classic Emmerdale usually airs every weekday on ITV3 at 6am and 6.30am, plus 1.40pm and 2.10pm.
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