Shock arrest!
Innocent Lydia Dingle is accused of running a pension scam…
It’s all going so well for Lydia this week, who’s encouraged to apply for a job at a local school on the back of her success in helping and counselling grieving Vinny.
Mandy and Sam work hard to boost her confidence, assuring qualified Lydia she’s born to be a counsellor.
‘People trust her – there’s an innocence to Lydia,’ says
Karen Blick, who plays her.
‘If someone confides in
Lydia she takes that really seriously. She cares about others – she’s been through a lot herself.’
In the cafe, Lydia fights her nerves and logs on to a video interview, noticing a lot of strange pop-ups on her laptop.
‘The interview goes really well,’ reveals Karen. ‘Like many women, she has huge imposter syndrome even though she’s a qualified counsellor. This job is a massive step up from a cleaning business.’
Shortly afterwards, however, a police officer arrives and punctures Lydia’s happy moment by arresting her on suspicion of running a pension scam!
‘The police have tracked the scam to her laptop and to her online identity,’ says Karen. ‘It’s the first she’s heard of it – she hasn’t done anything.’
Suspicion
As terrified Lydia is taken away, gossip starts up and the furious Dingles rally…
‘Lydia doesn’t cope with everyone thinking the worst,’ adds Karen. ‘Her reputation is important – she doesn’t want to be seen to have done something she hasn’t. There’s fear, too, because she could go to prison for this.’