William Ash confirms big change made to Emmerdale storyline which left unfinished business
Caleb Milligan (William Ash) is one of the possible culprits in upcoming Emmerdale episodes when Ethan Anderson (Emile John) is the victim of a hit-and-run.
Ethan has previously admitted to being the person who was driving when the car crashed and Nicky Miligan (Lewis Cope) was left fighting for his life.
Although it was an accident, Ethan left the scene after seeing that Moira Dingle (Natalie J. Robb) had arrived and would look after Nicky, because he was worried about going to prison due to being over the alcohol limit.
For Nicky’s parents, Caleb and Ruby Fox-Miligan (Beth Cordingly), Ethan’s actions were unforgivable and they, along with Caleb’s brother Cain Dingle (Jeff Hordley), vowed revenge.
‘I think in this instance, in terms of motivation for Caleb, it’s all there right in front of him, what has happened,’ William Ash explained of the hit-and-run. ‘There’s no grey areas at all with it, it’s like he’s in the wrong, this guy. So I think either of us could have done it, or any of the three of us. It’s totally motivated.’
Will said he was very much enjoyed playing this current storyline and working alongside his co-star, Beth Cordingly.
‘It’s great to play. I enjoy working with Beth a lot,’ he said.
‘They’ve written really well for us, I think, so there’s loads of levels to it and loads of layers to peel back. It’s quite a complicated relationship. It’s been through a lot in the past, I think, which is good for us because we can kind of mine that all the time. It’s been really good fun, we’ve had some great stories so far.’
When Ruby first arrived she was very quickly shocked to discover that Caleb was having an affair with Tracy Robinson (Amy Walsh), and Will confirmed that Caleb’s feelings for Tracy had been genuine – and he thought that the relationship with Ruby was ‘dead in the water.’
‘When Caleb got with Leyla (Roxy Shahidi) I had to play the truth of that relationship that he was invested with Leyla because it wasn’t really written that he had Ruby on the go, for want of a better phrase, at the same time,’ he said.
‘He was saying to Nicky that he was separated because Nicky very much wanted them to get back together.
‘He did fall for Tracy and that was a big thing. It wasn’t just a fling, something genuinely happened there. Even though it’s hard to judge with Caleb because I think he’s got a problem, being abandoned as a kid, trying to form emotional ties like that, but I think he did fall for Tracy.’
He also said that the storyline was something he’d been keen to revisit at some point.
‘For us, as conflict, I think it will always be percolating in some way. It would be nice if that happened, just for us to play,’ he speculated.
Another huge story that Will would like to explore further is the dispute between him and Kim Tate (Claire King).
When Caleb first came to the village it was to seek revenge against Kim, who he blamed for the death of his father, Frank Tate (Norman Bowler).
Over many weeks Caleb manoeuvred to take all of Kim’s money and assets from her. He was so ruthless in this aim that he even forced his gay son Nicky to pretend to be in love with Gabby Thomas (Rosie Bentham) as part of the plan.
Kim found out about his scheme and put an end to it. Since then, Caleb has been more focused on establishing a relationship with his brother and sister, Cain and Chas (Lucy Pargeter), and the rest of his Dingle family.
The feud with Kim has been put on a back-burner.
Will would love to see this story come to the foreground again – especially as Caleb now has an ally.
‘I think with Caleb and Kim it does feel like there’s unfinished business,’ he stated. ‘He’s so bitter about what she did in the past and I don’t think that’s been put to bed. I think Ruby would be on my side!’
