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Thread: Diane Sugden (Elizabeth Estensen)

  1. #21
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    is she leaving?

  2. #22
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    i think diane does get close to eric soon

  3. #23
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    Keep it in the family

  4. #24
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    Emmerdale's Diane Sugden fears that she may have contracted HIV next week after she spends the night with Eric Pollard.

    Diane is full of regret after she has a surprise one-night stand with Eric (Chris Chittell) following his split from her sister Val. However, Diane's guilt later turns to horror when Victoria tells her about Val's HIV scare…

    Here, Elizabeth Estensen - who plays Diane - chats about her character's concerning discovery.

    How would you describe Diane's attitude towards Val at the moment?
    "Diane thinks that Val is having an affair. She thinks that reflects Val's general behaviour and that she hasn't really improved with age. Diane also thinks that Val doesn't really appreciate her marriage - she doesn't really appreciate what she's got. Diane's view is that it's frivolous of Val to be engaging in this affair and behaving like a teenager."

    Doesn't Diane notice that Val isn't herself?
    "Val is not herself, but she's regularly not herself. She overreacts to things and she's a drama queen as far as Diane is concerned. Diane can see that Val is obviously abject with something - whether it's grief, regret, love - she simply doesn't know. But Diane thinks that Val is being self-indulgent.

    "I'm not sure that Diane sees it runs deeper. She's convinced that Val is having an affair and she's acting out because of some aspect of this affair, which is only known to Val. So it's frustrating for Diane more than anything - she's certainly not sympathetic at this point.

    "But in a way for Diane nothing has fundamentally changed. Val is just turning another point in her life into a crisis, which as far as Diane is concerned she regularly likes to do!"


    © ITV
    Eric and Diane

    Why does Diane offer Pollard a shoulder to cry on?
    "It's a gradual process. Diane feels sorry for him and she is used to Val's behaviour. She gradually feels more and more sorry for Pollard, who is clearly hugely attached to Val. I think Diane is impressed that Val has made this connection. At one point she says to Val, 'I used to think he wasn't good enough for you. Actually it's the other way around. You're not good enough for him'.

    "Diane has got more used to Pollard over time. She's grown affectionate towards him, but not in a sexual way at all, just as a brother-in-law. She sees him regularly and there's a familiarity."

    Why do Diane and Pollard end up sleeping together?
    "As far as Diane is concerned, until this happens it's not even in the equation. For the story it's very important, because it adds another dimension to it - that Diane feels that she's been exposed. So obviously that can only happen if she sleeps with Pollard. And it does happen.

    "They have too much to drink, one thing leads to another and they head upstairs. But then quickly the next day, they both can hardly remember anything and they both want to gloss over it. They're absolutely regretful."


    © ITV
    Eric and Diane's mistake

    Tell us the moment that Diane finds out from Victoria what's really going on.
    "She notices Victoria defending Val. Diane is like, 'Why do you want to keep defending her? She's behaving appallingly'. But Victoria says, 'She's going to leave now, she's absolutely going to leave'. Diane thinks, 'Oh Christ, she's found out about Pollard and me'.

    "Then Diane questions Victoria more closely. It comes like such a complete shock when Victoria tells her the truth. It reverberates round her head and she can't take it in. Diane is just rocked."

    Are the implications immediately clear to Diane over what this could mean?
    "Well it doesn't take long for her to put two and two together, because this night with Pollard is also at the forefront of her mind. The issue of contagion arrives quite quickly in her mind I think."

    Can Diane hide that from Victoria?
    "Victoria assumes that all her horror is on behalf of Val, because it's shocking anyway. But the further implication is even more shocking and personal for Diane, who now knows she has to keep this completely secret and then also help her sister."

    How much does Diane reveal when she goes to comfort Val?
    "Diane wants to comfort Val. Obviously feeding into everything she feels for Val is this guilt, this terrible guilt that's gnawing away at her. She doesn't quite know where to put it. Diane doesn't tell Val about that because she's got too much to deal with. Diane has got to make it seem as if all of her own actions are to do with Val's situation.

    "But deep down Diane is very concerned. She's probably more concerned about herself at the moment than she is with Val, because she needs to get that sorted out instantly and she doesn't know how to go about it."


    © ITV
    Val pours her heart out to Diane

    What happens when Diane seeks help at a clinic?
    "Diane is terribly embarrassed, but she puts on a bit of bravado and says, 'I really need to see somebody'. Then she lies at the clinic. The doctor says, 'There's this treatment, post-exposure prophylaxis, PEP'. It's fairly recent - I was reading about it. There are things to consider, mainly that it doesn't always work. But if it is to work, you have to start the course of treatment preferably within 24 hours of exposure, that's ideal, but certainly within 72 hours. After that the window of opportunity is gone. So therefore Diane lies.

    "Also remember Diane's history - she's had bowel cancer. She had chemo for that, but also the side effects of this drug treatment are to do with the way that your colon operates. Diane had a stone reversal so she asks, 'Will this affect me, because I've had this in the past?' The doctor says, 'No it won't affect it, but there are side effects'. Diane lies and says she's definitely been exposed, and she embarks on this course of treatment."

    How do you feel about Emmerdale exploring the issue of HIV?
    "When Kate, our producer, told me I got riveted by the story. It's unquestionably a very good story, because it takes you somewhere where you absolutely don't expect. Also in the past in soaps, HIV has been a young, sexually active, usually gay man. That's still partly a lot of people's perception of HIV, but apparently - according to statistics - it's spreading into the heterosexual world.

    "Older women who are no longer worried about pregnancy may not think it's going to enter their world at all, partly because it is so unlikely, and yet it's becoming more likely. Also, just from the point of view of preaching safe sex - it's essential for everybody, all the time, however old, young, gender. It's only the tip of the iceberg of things."


    © ITV
    Diane visits the doctor

    How will this experience affect Diane?
    "I don't think it will fundamentally change her, but it will add to her experience of life. It will change Val more, I think, because Val is so open and un-self-conscious about her sexuality in every way. I suppose for her, that's got to change.

    "Diane has become more entrenched in being a widow. She might make remarks but she's not sexually active - aside from that one bleak night. I don't know that it will change her hugely, but it's bound to increase her understanding of the problem."
    Love many, trust few, always paddle your own canoe

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  6. #25
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    It really looks to me as if Diane is going to get a major Emmerdale storyline really soon. Spoilers confirm that Chas does stab Diane, there is no doubt on this. Maybe Doug and Diane return home early late one night from holiday and Chas doesn't expect them (why should she, Diane and Chas parted on bad terms earlier)?. History shows that Diane was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2004. Just maybe hospital tests for knife damage to her abdomen/colon and later blood tests/colonoscopy indicate that Diane's bowel cancer has returned?

    Diane Sugden (Formerly Blackstock, nee Lambert), character summary
    >
    Born: 21st June 1947 (68yo)
    First appearance: 23 November 1999
    Residence: The Woolpack
    Sibling: Val Pollard (sister)
    Spouses: Rodney Blackstock (1966-1974), Jack Sugden (2004-2009)
    Children: Bernice Blackstock (1968), Robert Sugden (step-son), Andy Sugden (step-son, formerly Hopwood, adopted by Jack and Sarah Sugden in 1997)
    Grandchildren: Gabby Thomas, Diane
    Nephews/Nieces: Paul Lambert, Sharon Lambert
    Occupations: Barmaid (1965–), Pub landlady (1999–), Businesswoman (1999–)
    Acted by: Elizabeth I. Estensen (1999-, 66yo, DOB 10/08/49)

    Diane is introduced in 1999 as the mother of Bernice Blackstock (Samantha Giles), the manageress of The Woolpack public house. Diane raised Bernice alone after her unreliable husband Rodney Blackstock (Patrick Mower) left her. Unbeknown to Diane, Rodney had also had an affair with her younger sister Val, resulting in Val's pregnancy and the birth of a son, Paul (Matthew Bose).

    Diane struggled to raise Bernice alone, and by her own admission was a far from perfect mother. However, Diane cares deeply for her daughter, and is a key source of support when Bernice's engagement to Gavin Ferris (Robert Beck) collapses. After initially only coming to Emmerdale to attend Bernice's wedding, Diane decides to stay and take Gavin's place as Bernice's business partner, with the two buying The Woolpack together.

    Storylines

    1999—

    Diane offers comfort to Jack Sugden (Clive Hornby) who had been through difficult times, following his discovery that his wife, Sarah Sugden (Alyson Spiro), has cheated on him. They kiss but decided to be friends. They remain close for a number of years. Rodney reappears in Diane and Bernice's lives after abandoning them. Bernice forgives Rodney but Diane is more hesitant. There is still a spark between Diane and Rodney and the two spend a night together but Diane calls things off. After failed relationships with builder Jerry "Mack" MacKinley (Rob Dixon) and Alan Turner (Richard Thorp) in 2003, Diane and Jack reunite and started considering life together. When Diane decides to join Bernice in Brighton, Jack proposes in an attempt to get her to stay.

    Diane is horrified to discover she has colon cancer (2004). She goes to Scarborough with Rodney, trying to come to terms with the news. Rodney does not know about her illness and Val assumes they were having an affair. Upon finding out Diane is ill, Rodney ends things with Val, begging Diane to give their relationship another chance. However, she rejects him and soon begins planning her wedding to Jack. They marry on 21 September 2004, when Jack's daughter Victoria (Hannah Midgley; Isabel Hodgins) tells the congregation about Diane's illness. After the ceremony, Val tells Rodney that he has fathered her son, Paul. Horrified by Val's selfishness, Diane disowns her and is given the all-clear early in the New Year.

    Diane struggles to cope with Jack's children, at the detriment to her health. In 2006, she becomes a victim of the Kings River Showhome explosion, but makes a full recovery (albeit with a "Live for the Moment" outlook on life). Diane falls for Billy Hopwood (David Crellin) and they begin an emotional affair. She and Jack try to work through their problems but end up separating. However they grew closer following Andy's conviction for manslaughter and whilst Jack was in Spain, Diane received a text mentioning patching things up on his return. While Jack is away, Diane takes over looking after the family and rebuilds bridges. She is appalled when Andy is discovered to be beating his wife, Jo but helps him when he suffers a breakdown. Diane is devastated when Jack dies in February 2009. She is comforted by a letter he had written before his death, letting her know how much he loved her.

    Diane tries to move on with her life, but struggles. Val, after receiving an offer for the pub from Maisie Wylde (Alice Coulthard), tries to convince Diane she is too depressed to stay on as owner and should sell up. When Diane learns of Val's scheme, she shocks her by pretending she plans to sell to Rodney and Nicola. She then chased Val out of the pub with a water squirter. Sandy Thomas (Freddie Jones), who constantly argues with his son Ashley (John Middleton), asks if he could move into The Woolpack. Diane agreed. Douglas Potts (Duncan Preston) helps Sandy move in, and after a few drinks, Diane impulsively kisses him. She realises she needs to sort herself out, and leaves to visit Bernice, Louise Appleton (Emily Symons) and Paul, respectively. On her return she discovers Daz has left, and Andy has given custody of his daughter Sarah to Debbie Dingle (Charley Webb) and is on the verge of a breakdown. Following another fall out with her Val, Diane realises that they can no longer work together and she uses the inheritance left to her by Jack to buy Val out, making her the sole owner of The Woolpack Inn.

    Charlie Haynes (George Costigan), an old friend of Rodney's, wins Diane's heart. Their relationship gets off to a good start, and Charlie whisks Diane away on romantic holidays, and away to France, even taking Victoria along so she can brush up on her French. On this trip Diane opens up to Charlie and tells him about her cancer. However, their happiness comes to a halt as Charlie reveals to Diane he was suffering from an inoperable brain tumour, meaning he will die and does not have long left. Making the most of their time left, Charlie and Diane decide to move to France, with Diane deciding to sell The Woolpack. On the night of her leaving party, Charlie leaves to inform his daughter of his illness. The next day, a worried Rodney phones the hospital, only to find there are no records of Charlie or his doctor ever being at the hospital, and Rodney and Doug find Charlie's shop had never been used. Diane and Val go to France, only to find the Charlie's chateau is in fact, someone else's and the owner has never heard of Charlie. Diane then realises she has been conned and is left devastated. Val then comforts Diane as she bursts into tears.

    Doug offers Diane his life savings, which she tearfully accepts, much to the annoyance of Doug's daughter, Laurel, who then goes on to warn Diane it is only a loan, and she must pay Doug back as soon as she can. Diane hopes that she may now have a future for Doug, but he reconciles with estranged wife, Hilary (Paula Wilcox), and leaves in early 2011 to travel the world with her, leaving Diane once again heartbroken. The following year, Diane tries to sell the pub, wanting a fresh start and finding it an increasing struggle running the place on her own, but unable to find a buyer for the whole business, she settles for Chas Dingle (Lucy Pargeter) buying a stake in the Woolpack and becoming her new business partner. Diane and Chas' friendship and partnership becomes strained in 2012 after the revelation of Chas' affair with Cameron Murray (Dominic Power). Diane is touched when Andy and Debbie name their newborn son after Jack. Bernice returns before Christmas after her marriage falls apart and Diane departs shortly after Bernice returns and travels to Brighton to look after her daughter, Dee-Dee. Diane returns in early June, to say she wants to go live with Dee-Dee in Brisbane, and wants to sell her share on The Woolpack. In October 2013, Diane, along with many other villagers including Bernice and Nicola, is held hostage in The Woolpack by Cameron, who has escaped from prison. He orders for Diane to look out of the window, but she shouts to help, so he pulls her away, causing her to fall over and hit her head on a table. She sustains a cut to the head, and is later released by Cameron.

    Diane has sex with Eric Pollard (Chris Chittell), Val's husband. Victoria reveals that Val is HIV positive. Diane goes to a clinic that day, lying that she has been exposed to HIV post exposure treatment to combat the virus. Diane later reveals the truth and Val humiliates the pair by revealing their one-night stand.

    Val and Diane are caught up in a helicopter crash and they are trapped together in a house of mirrors, Diane escapes, Val however doesn't and is killed by a piece of glass. Before Val's death, she and Diane were able to reunite as sisters and Val's last words to Diane were that she loved her. Diane is comforted by Victoria Sugden and David Metcalfe.

    Sources:
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diane_Sugden
    http://emmerdalepastpresent.wikia.com/wiki/Diane_Sugden
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Estensen
    Last edited by Telly Watcher; 14-11-2015 at 13:41.

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  8. #26
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    was thinking she could need a kidney from stabbing

  9. #27
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    There's a lot of secrecy at the moment surrounding Diane's upcoming medical problems. Spoiler photos show Chas stabbed Diane on the left side of her abdomen with descriptions saying the stomach was stabbed.

    Soaplife says:
    >
    DOUBLE SHOCK FOR DIANE!
    She's going to find out that her stab wound isn't her only medical emergency...

    Diane's stab wound demands instant surgery, which is bad enough... but, sadly, that's not all that her doctors - or Diane - have to worry about this fortnight...

    'The doctors tell Doug there were complications,' says our Emmerdale insider. 'And, when Diane comes round, she gets some news that worries her whole family.'

    We don't want to give away too much, but we can reveal that Diane needs more surgery and even more treatment after that.

    Can Diane ever fully recover? Or is her injury the beginning of her end?
    >
    Soaplife, 21 Nov-4 Dec 2015

    Inside Soap (21-27 Nov 2015) says for Friday 27th November ""Devastated Diane is given some life-changing news."

    Maybe Diane has to have some of her stomach removed (so she may have similar effects as fitting a gastric band). That area of the abdomen is close to the spleen and pancreas, also the large intestine, maybe the top of the left kidney too. When the stomach is punctured, its contents (food, acid, enzymes, etc) leak into the abdominal cavity so there is the chance of infection (peritonitis, sepsis, etc). The same thing happens when the large intestine is punctured but infection is more likely then. It could also be that one or more organs (spleen, pancreas, kidney) was damaged by the knife or infected and may need later removal when it fails (so need future drugs, dialysis,etc?). Any intestinal examination could show up a number of illnesses, such as cancer, Irritable Bowel Disease (IBD), diverticulitis, etc. We know from history that Diane had colon cancer in 2004 and had chemotherapy for this. She's also had "stone reversal" (I think this is a kidney treatment involving drugs to dissolve the stone, but maybe surgery is used too?).

    Whatever Diane's medical problem is, it sounds serious and I'm sure that the storyliners will pick at least one big fairly common medical condition to use for upcoming episodes, the only question is which one(s).
    Last edited by Telly Watcher; 18-11-2015 at 09:58.

  10. #28
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    don't forget Diane has previously had and been treated for bowel cancer? She had a colostomy at one point during the treatment

    has the cancer returned?

  11. #29
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    Quote Originally Posted by sarah c View Post
    don't forget Diane has previously had and been treated for bowel cancer? She had a colostomy at one point during the treatment

    has the cancer returned?
    seems to be back, stabbing could have now saved her life if she isn't dying

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  13. #30
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    Quote Originally Posted by sarah c View Post
    don't forget Diane has previously had and been treated for bowel cancer? She had a colostomy at one point during the treatment

    has the cancer returned?
    seems to be back, stabbing could have now saved her life if she isn't dying

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