Emma Barton is a fictional character of the British soap opera Emmerdale. She started out as an anti-villain in 2015 and 2016 before later becoming the main antagonist in 2017, specifically after she caused the events of the "Hotton Bypass Crash" scenario. In doing so, Emma killed her estranged husband James Barton and later went on to accidentally murder their youngest son Finn Barton before she was later killed-off by her nemesis Moira Barton in a storyline dubbed "Who Killed Emma Barton?".
She was portrayed by Gillian Kearney.
Biography[]
2015[]
Emma Barton first came to the village when her youngster son Finn tracked her down. He visited her in secret and they later met up with her two eldest sons Pete and Ross Barton. This happens after Ross gets into a fight and is injured while Pete and Finn watch on in a bar. Emma comes over to help Ross and is shocked when she recognizes her sons. Finn invites Emma back to the village. Ross tells her that her estranged husband and his father James Barton had sex with family relative Moira Barton (Natalie J. Robb) before she left. James is defensive and accidentally reveals that Adam Barton is his son. Emma blames James for losing her family, but when he reminds her that the real reason she left was because she tried to kill Ross when he was a child. Emma asks if James has told their sons the truth and he tells her he has not. Emma leaves and Pete later tells James that she returned once before, but he sent her away. Emma returns to the village and Ross and Finn try to persuade her to stay. She tries to talk to Pete, but he reveals that he knows what she did and will not forgive her. Emma befriends James' partner Chas Dingle (Lucy Pargeter), but remains hostile towards Moira. When Finn babysits Debbie Dingle's son, Emma comes over and Finn leaves her alone for a few minutes. When Pete learns this, he runs into the house and tells Emma to leave.
During an argument with James, Emma lashes out at him, causing a pallet to crash down on James and pin him under the load. Emma checks James to see if he is breathing and hesitates before calling an ambulance. Emma is defensive when Pete questions her about the accident. Pete tells Emma that he will keep her secret and she can stay in the village.
2016[]
In October 2016, Emma later discovers that James had a one-night stand with Moira (who had recently lost her daughter Holly) and secretly retaliates by mentally torturing him at their new home. When all is discovered, a argument between the two leads to James knocking out Emma before she regains conscious and confronts him at the motorway. She ends up shoving James down into the motorway, critically injuring and subsequently causing a massive car crash that leads some drivers dead whilst all characters inadvertently caught in the scene are injured, though all nevertheless survive. James is taken to hospital, where Emma confronts him with a secret intention to pull the plug on his oxygen tank. She changes her mind though and ends up forgiving James before pleading with him to survive so their tenuous relationship can be given another chance. Those words, however, were unfortunately her last words to James when he suddenly dies after unexpectedly succumbing to his deteriorated condition, devastating Emma and his sons, thus making her a murderer as she was the one who shoved him down into the motorway earlier on. She later attends to his funeral along with her sons and many others; including Moira and her son Adam (who was unknowingly another son of James following his previously late affair with Moira).
2017[]
Emma's role as the show's main antagonist as the central plot of the 2017 stint. Though she desperately covered up James' murder for nearly 10 months, he secret was finally exposed when her son Finn discovered the truth. His attempts to expose this to Pete and Ross resulted in Emma unintentionally shooting him, thus leading to his subsequently passing in front of his brothers. This revelation led to Pete and Ross separately confronting upon discovering her role in the deaths of James and Finn, which each ended with the brothers disowning their mother for her crimes. Emma, who was at the viaduct afterwards, was later spotted by her adversarial rival Moira Barton - who initially pleaded with Emma to come back to Emmerdale. However, Emma instigated an argument between them regarding the deaths of James and Finn before culminating that Moira was - incorrectly - to blame for the previous death of her daughter Holly. This deliberately prompted Moira to push Emma off the cliff, whereupon the latter subsequently died of her injuries - thus granting Emma her comeuppance at last. On the day of Emma's funeral - just months after an investigation was launched on the day of Finn's funeral - the truth had came out on the show when Moira secretly confessed to Cain.
Trivia[]
- Gillian Kearney (the actress who played Emma Barton) was nominated for "Villain of the Year" at the 2017 and 2018 British Soap Awards respectively; she lost on both occasions.
[]
Soap Opera Villains |
EastEnders Aaron | Abi | Abs | Adam | Ahmet | Alanagh | Alan | Alex | Alfie | Al | Ali | Johnny Allen | Ruby Allen | Allen's unnamed henchmen | DCI Alsworth | Andy | Angel | Anne | Anton | Ashton's unnamed father | Gray Atkins | Wilfred Atkins | Jeff Atkinson | Simon Atmore | Tom Bailey | Keegan Baker | Sadie Banks | Barnsey Barnes | Adam Bateman | Terry Bates | Viv Bates | Bobby Beale | Cindy Beale | Ian Beale | Lucy Beale | Steven Beale | Polly Becker | Sid Bello | Beresford | Biggie | Bijan | Unnamed blackmailer | Oz Bolat | Abi Branning | Derek Branning | Max Branning | Suzy Branning | Mr Bremner | Dougie Briggs | Kim Brooks | James Willmott-Brown | Hugo Browning | Luke Browning | Elliot Brownlow | Bruno | Unnamed businessman | Unnamed bully | Bunhead | Bunty | Alison Burgess | Frank Butcher | Janine Butcher | Lewis Butler | Frankie Byrne | Cahill | Cahill's unnamed hitman | Sarah Cairns | Cal | Edwin Caldecott | Campbell | Camillo | Carlos | Carter | Tony Cattani | Alfie Chapman | Cal Childs | Chris | Little Chris | Marcus Christie | Christos | Matt Clarkson | Pastor Clayton | Clem | Clive | Cliff | Cody | Richard Cole | Vincent Collins | Reiss Colwell | Preston Cooper | Corley | Charles Cotton | Dotty Cotton | Nick Cotton | Tom Cotton | Jason Cox | Stella Crawford | Neil Crossley | Vic Crusher | Jack Dalton | Dalton's Unnamed Henchman | Danny | Darien | Daryl | Dave | Davey | David | Debra Dean | Dee | Derek | Derrick | Alexandra D'Costa | Madison Drake | Craig Dixon | Dermott Dolan | Don | Dougie | Roxy Drake | Juliette Dubois | Marcus Duffy | Victor Duke | Saskia Duncan | Dylan | Eddie | Tom Eden | Erica | Craig Erskine | Nigel Fenshaw | Ferne | Frankie Finnerty | Jono Finnerty | Lee Finnerty | Ann Fletcher | Ross Fletcher | Flo | Pauline Fowler | Jackie Ford | Gray Foster | Joanne Francis | Frank | Franks | Frankie | Vinnie Franks | Fraser | Freddie | Mitch Gannon | Gary | Gates | Dorian Gates | George | Sandy Gibson | Vanessa Gold | Graeme | Tommy Grant | Rob Grayson | Camilla Greenwood | Ranveer Gulati | Ravi Gulati | Gummy | Vincent Le Haine | Danny Hardcastle | Hardcastle's unnamed henchman | Cody Harris | Johnny Harris | Harti | Theo Hawthorne | Heavy | Christine Hewitt | Greg Hewitt | John Hewland | Nina Hewland | Henry | Jonno Highway | Stuart Highway | Nick Holland | Howard | Claudette Hubbard | Vincent Hubbard | Angel Hudson | Hudson's unnamed henchman | Neil Hughes | Andy Hunter | Hunter's unnamed henchmen | Isaacs | JJ | Matthew Jackson | Jacs | Jake | James | Jason James | Kevin James | Sam James | Jason | Jerry | Jez | Jimmy | John | Ernie Johnson | Jordan Johnson | Lucas Johnson | Vince Johnson | Jordan | Joseph | Kane | Aflie Kane | Charlie Keating | Samantha Keeble | Keith | Kelly | Ray Kelly | Stuart Kendle | Kerry | Kevin | Yusef Khan | Leo King | Tony King | Eddie Knight | Kylie | Kyle | Johnny Lee | Leigh | Lenny | Lenney | Katy Lewis | Lillan | Lisha | Bob Lister | Logan | Donna Ludlow | Joe Macer | Tosh Mackintosh | Aidan Maguire | Ciara Maguire | Maguire's unnamed henchman | Caleb Malone | Manpreet | Gregory Mantel | Marco | Mark | Joseph Marks | Jill Marsden | Nyangi Marwa | Billy Mason | Henry Mason | Steve Masters | Maty | Matty | Bird Meadows | Trent Meadows | Mervyn | Demetrius Michaledes | Mickey | Midge | Mike | Mikey | Alan Mills | Milo | Archie Mitchell | Ben Mitchell | Billy Mitchell | Carla Mitchell | Eric Mitchell | Glenda Mitchell | Grant Mitchell | Harry Mitchell | Phil Mitchell | Phillip Mitchell | Teddy Mitchell | Aaron Monroe | Danny Moon | Jake Moon | Michael Moon | Tommy Moon | Trevor Morgan | Geoff Morton | Spike Murphy | Nathan | Neil | Neill | Glenn Neyland | Nick | Ellie Nixon | Ollie | Mehmet Osman | Barbara Owen | Hunter Owen | Jackie Owen | Mel Owen | Steve Owen | Oxley | Annie Palmer | George Palmer | Nish Panesar | Suki Panesar | Vinny Panesar | Apostolos Papadopolous | Roger Peel | Danny Pennant | Pete | Petey | George Peters | Fraser Philips | Andy Pickton | Frankie Pierre | Piers | Pogo | Johnny Price | Queenie Price | Ellis Prince | Reg Priest | Unnamed police officer | Unnamed prisoner | Annie Pritchard | Martinia Quinn | Jagger Rawley | Garry Rawlings | Ray | Raymond | Terry Raymond | Raz | Stix Redman | Mike Rendon | Rennie | Renzo | Dennis Rickman | Denny Rickman Jr. | Ricky | Felix Riley | Robert | Darren Roberts | Ron | Willy Roper | Rowly | Eddie Royle | Mandy Salter | Sam Saungers | Stas Saunders | Charlie Savage | Jesper Scanlon | Sean | Qadim Shah | Shane | Gavin Sharp | Shayne | Fraser Shelton | Jan Sherwood | Aleks Shirovs | Shiv | Si | Sia | Sid | Simmo | Lydia Simmonds | Simon | Paul Skeggs | Dougie Slade | Bev Slater | Harry Slater | Hayley Slater | Sean Slater | Alexa Smith | Babe Smith | Trevor Smith | Damion Spinks | Nikki Spraggan | TJ Spraggan | Spud | Connor Stanley | Evie Steele | Keith Steer | Lorraine Stevens | Mark Stone | Richie Stringer | Richie Stringer's Unnamed Henchman | Dan Sullivan | Gavin Sullivan | Mike Swann | Becca Swanson | Ross Swindeon | Tasha | Keanu Taylor | Mrs Taylor | Ray Taylor | Tayo | Tegs Teague | Tina Teague | Tessa | Tez | DI Steve Thompson | Tommy | Rob Topp | Timmy Tropics | Queenie Trott | Michaela Turnbull | Owen Turner | Tyler | Clare Tyler | Jonah Tyler | Liam Tyler | Unnamed abusive father | Unnamed Thief | John Valecue | Aubrey Valentine | Richard Vance | Vicki | Vicky | Vince | Vincent | Mr. Vinnicombe | Vinnie | Vix | Keeley Wainwright | Waldoch | Chinese Walter | Donny Ward | Unnamed Prison Warden | Warren | Mr. Waters | George Watson | Chrissie Watts | Den Watts | Adam White | Carl White | Nora White | Brian Wicks | David Wicks | Dean Wicks | Gareth Wiley | Wilf | Rob Wilkins | Brad Williams | Nathan Williams | Jack Woodman | Harry Woodward | May Wright | Mr. X | Mr. Y | Unnamed Youth | Daniel Zappieri | Ziggy
|