Emmerdale's Bob Hope faces a difficult situation this fortnight as he realises that his partner Brenda Walker is the mystery thief at the café.

Bob uncovers the truth after setting up a hidden camera to catch out the mystery culprit, but a defensive Brenda (Lesley Dunlop) doesn't take kindly to being confronted over her petty crimes.

Here, Tony Audenshaw - who plays Bob - chats about the relationship crisis for his character.

How does Bob react when he realises that Brenda is the one stealing things?
"Bob is shocked and angry when he finds out that Brenda is the one stealing stuff. She is the last person that he expects it to be, and he is a bit in denial himself because he thinks that Ruby and Ali have cooked up a plan. Until he sees it with his own eyes, he doesn't believe that it is Brenda. When he does, he has that awful sinking feeling and is like, 'Oh no, how could I not know?'

"Bob is absolutely mortified that he ever blamed Ruby for stealing, which he should be because of course it wasn't her and she said it wasn't and he didn't believe her. He also cannot believe that Brenda has been lying about it after they promised to have no more lies after the tumour.

"Not only that, Brenda knew it wasn't Ruby and didn't come clean. So Bob has got all this going on - how's he going to build bridges with Ruby? How on earth is he going to talk to Brenda about this?"

Does Bob confront Brenda?
"Bob knows that he has to talk to Brenda about it, but it is such a difficult thing to do and he doesn't really know how to drop the subject in - how do you do it? How do you say, 'Look, have you been stealing things?' Of course he owes it to Ruby to clear it up to clear her name, but he is really, really worried about what to say."

When Bob does, how does Brenda react?
"When Bob does accuse Brenda of stealing, she denies it and says 'How could you say that I would do something like that?' She doesn't really own up to it - what happens is that he has set up this hidden camera in a ketchup box. He has caught her stealing a customer's scarf and she doesn't even know about the hidden camera so he says, 'Look, I've caught you, I have evidence of you. Me and Ruby have seen this evidence of you stealing'. Brenda just says, 'How can you set up a camera without my knowledge? That's really out of order.'"

Bob accuses Brenda of stealing Alicia's necklace
© ITV
Bob confronts Brenda

How worried are they both about Brenda's health?
"Bob can't understand why she is stealing - he doesn't get why she is doing it. The only explanation that he can think of is that the last time she was acting weird was when she had a brain tumour, so he starts to think that maybe the tumour could be making her steal again.

"He thinks there is no way that a woman like Brenda would steal. It just doesn't make sense as it is totally against how he thought she would behave, so it must be something strange going on."

Does Bob tell anyone about Brenda's guilt?
"Bob isn't really forced to tell other people that Brenda is a thief. Obviously Ruby had to know and he had to tell Harriet, as Harriet helped him set the camera up in the first place. He also feels that he has to open up and tell Dan that Brenda has been stealing and he can't work out why she is doing it.

"Of course, Dan being Dan, he has to tell Kerry and that opens up a whole new experience because Kerry has this great idea that she will take Brenda shopping. They go shopping and because Kerry herself used to steal, she thinks that she will be able to help Brenda because she will see the signs."

How does Bob feel about Kerry's involvement?
"Bob thinks it is the worst idea in the world! He thinks any of Kerry's ideas stink - they are all bad. Obviously this one is terrible, because Brenda has gone off the loop because Ruby knows, so she doesn't want anyone else knowing. So Kerry takes Brenda out and Brenda doesn't realise that she knows."

Bob later hears that Brenda and Kerry have been arrested for stealing and Kerry has been forced to take the rap for it. How does he react?
"At first Bob is not sure if Kerry has done it herself or not, but then it becomes clear that actually Brenda has not only stolen something but she has ditched her mate in it and blamed Kerry. The consequences for Kerry could be serious, because she has previous convictions. She might go into prison, whereas Brenda would be let off.

"Bob says, 'Look you have got to sort this out, you can't do this to your friend. You have to go to the police station and tell them what's gone on and deal with the consequences!' More people are going to know, but that is the price that Brenda has got to pay - it has got to come to an end."

Kerry and Brenda's shopping trip takes a turn for the worse
© ITV
Kerry and Brenda's shopping trip goes wrong

Does Bob consider getting Brenda professional help?
"Harriet has already offered. Harriet seems to think it's something to do with the grief of losing Gennie. Bob can't understand this, as he seemed to get through the grief of losing Dawn. He says, 'I can do that without going nicking things' so it doesn't make sense to him why she is stealing.

"But because Harriet is a grievance counsellor, he has got to trust her and think that there might be something in it, but Brenda won't have it. She will not believe that it is anything to do with her grief and Gennie, so he has to try to convince her that is the case. Brenda says a lot of upsetting things to Bob, which make her realise that maybe she has got to see sense."

How far do you think Brenda would have to go for Bob not to stand by her?
"I think if Brenda continued stealing and not getting help, then you have got problems in a relationship. It is the constant lying that is more of a problem, because the stealing is less of a problem. The problem is being in a relationship with someone who is lying to you all the time - he is not going to stand for that for too long.

"If it is the tumour, then fair enough he will be there for her. It is cleared up soon that it isn't the tumour, so Brenda has got to change her behaviour or the relationship is gone, it's as simple as that. Bob can't understand why she is doing it, maybe with more understanding he would see but you don't know."

How have you felt about portraying the storyline?
"It is always great and always a treat working with Lesley Dunlop as she is a fantastic actor and we get on dead well. Lesley has been on the telly for years and I am so lucky that the people I get to work with are just really, really good, it makes it so much easier! They're brilliant."

Brenda returns to the village but realises she is not in the clear when Dan and Bob learn what has happened.
© ITV
Brenda comes under fire

What do Emmerdale fans talk to you about if they see you out and about?
"They say, 'Where's the twins? The mystery twins, where are those twins?!' They are turning up every now and again, the twins. It is difficult to work it out strategically, and they have a lot of sleepovers and that sort of thing.

"People talk about all sorts of people on the show. It's always a good gauge on how the show is doing when people come up. We had 'Poor old Sam Dingle' a few weeks ago. You get all that and that's really good because you know the stories are really working."

Are you looking forward to Verity Rushworth returning as Bob's stepdaughter Donna?
"Really looking forward to her coming back!"

Has Bob been in contact with Donna?
"We have got to learn that - I don't know if Bob has seen Donna in the time since Viv died. I know that it was written that she was at Viv's funeral a few years ago, but I don't know if they have had any contact since. We will find out I assume.

"Verity is great to have around, - she is wonderful. I have seen her in shows, I have seen her in Hairspray and The Sound of Music and you just feel so proud. She is not my real daughter in any sense, a stepdaughter on the show but you just feel so proud! It's going to be great having her back."