Cain takes on DI Malone
As Cain takes on dodgy DI Malone, Emmerdale star Jeff Hordley joins us to celebrate his two decades on the soap…
There’s a big milestone coming up in Emmerdale this month, as actor Jeff Hordley celebrates 20 years on our screens as Cain Dingle! The past two decades have been full of drama for the village’s undisputed biggest bad boy – so it’s only fitting that, on the eve of this impressive anniversary, Cain is finally back to his bad best as he takes on corrupt cop DI Malone…
“It’s good to see Cain get his old DNA back,” grins Jeff, who made his first appearance in Emmerdale on 30 March 2000. “He’s finally met his match! It’s great to have somebody to bounce off, because Cain has not been in situations like this for a while. We’ve been filming in some great locations, and there’s been a lot of Mexican stand-offs – a lot of me and Mark [Womack, who plays DI Malone] getting one up on each other, and it’s really fun. Mark’s fantastic, he just gives it to you with both barrels!”
Cain first encountered dodgy detective Malone in the aftermath of Nate’s shooting, when it turned out the gun used could be traced back to the cop. Malone now has Cain, Will and Billy running around doing his dirty work for him – which clearly doesn’t sit well with Cain.
“Cain has come across people like Malone before, so he’s experienced with this kind of individual,” explains Jeff. “But he does realise the potential of Malone to make things really difficult for him – and the more he gets involved down the line, his hands become tied. Each time he thinks he’s getting rid of Malone, Malone comes back at him.
“It’s like two fighters slugging it out,” continues the star. “Once Cain thinks, ‘I can deal with this’, Malone comes back and there’s another hurdle to jump.”
But it’s not just Cain who wants rid of Malone. With Will and Billy also caught up in the police officer’s web of corruption, they’re looking to Cain to find a permanent solution. And that’s a lot of pressure on Cain’s shoulders.
“Cain realises that Will is in too deep,” confirms Jeff. “He knows he has to take this on board on behalf of Will and Billy, he has to do everything to be able to make things better. He doesn’t think they’re incompetent as such, but he knows they’re unable to deal with it.
“Plus, Cain is protecting his garage, because he doesn’t want drugs there,” adds the actor. “And he’s protecting the scrapyard because that’s Aaron’s place. So he’s definitely looking out for his own.”
It seems as if Cain has found a way to dispose of Malone for good this week, after the shady detective asks him and Billy to get rid of a car…
“Cain’s trying to stay one step ahead of Malone, and almost play him at his own game,” reveals Jeff. “Cain and Billy get to the scrapyard, and Malone says he’s got a job for them to pick up this car. So they go, and when they open the boot they see blood inside – and that’s when the plan formulates for Cain to double-cross Malone.”
Whether Cain will really be able to pull the wool over Malone’s eyes remains to be seen. But Jeff is enjoying throwing himself into this plot, and working with some new sparring partners to boot.
“It’s great acting with Mark, he’s very professional and good fun to work with,” shares the star. “Likewise with Dean [Andrews, who plays Will] and Jay [Kontzle, aka Billy]. Dean’s such an experienced actor – he has a good CV behind him and it’s brilliant to work with him. And Jay’s just great too – we’ve been having a lot of fun, all of us together, being involved in this storyline!”