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The Emmerdale Ashley plot has been praised many times, but as this is – sadly – my final chance to say a few words on it, I’m going to take it. Told over time, with a character we have known for two decades, the slow fading away of Ashley and the effect on his family has been heartbreaking. But as with all life, there have been moments of joy, and amazing displays of human strength. Right at the front of this are John Middleton and Charlotte Bellamy. I’ve spent some time with both of them – and though I’d never be so presumptuous as to call them friends, I certainly know them as people. But once they’re on screen, all they are to me are Laurel and Ashley – their performances are just sublime. If someone ever tries to tell you soap is a less worthy form of TV, they are wrong. This is a story that only a soap as good as Emmerdale could tell so truthfully and so beautifully. Steven Murphy, Editor editor@insidesoap.co.uk

“Soap is not a less worthy form of TV”