There’s a chill in the Yorkshire air, and it isn’t just the fickle British summer weather. Next week on Emmerdale, a new presence arrives in the Dales, and if you thought Kim Tate was the only woman you didn’t want to cross, think again. Enter Celia—a name you’ll soon be whispering with a mixture of awe and dread. She’s enigmatic, commanding, and just a little bit dangerous. And she’s about to turn Moira’s world, and possibly the entire village, upside down.
If you’re not already clutching your pearls, you will be by the end of next week. Because Celia—brought to life by the formidable Jaye Griffiths, a face familiar to millions from her unforgettable stints on The Bill, Casualty, and Doctors—wastes absolutely no time making her mark. In fact, if the Dales had a Richter scale, you’d see the needle jump the moment she strides onto the screen, big stick in hand, eyes as sharp as a hawk’s, and a presence that could stop a charging bull in its tracks.
But who is Celia, really? That’s the question on everyone’s lips, and the answer, for now, is deliciously unclear. What we do know is that she’s taken over the farm next to Moira’s beloved Butler’s, and she’s got a proposition for her cash-strapped neighbour that’s as loaded as a double-barrel shotgun. From the very first moment, it’s clear: Celia is not here to make friends. She’s here to get what she wants, and she doesn’t care whose toes she tramples—or whose lives she upends—in the process.
Jaye Griffiths herself is clearly relishing every second in Celia’s skin. When we caught up with her, she was positively buzzing with excitement. “It’s rare you get to play women who don’t conform or care,” she says, eyes twinkling with mischief. “Celia is unapologetic; she truly does not understand why people would be any other way, or why you should worry what others think of you. When she wants something, she can read her fellow humans and know exactly what to say to elicit how to get it.”
And get it she does—or at least, she tries. Her very first scene sets the tone for what’s to come: Celia marches onto Moira’s land, big stick swinging, and offers her a price to rent two fields. The catch? The offer is laughably low, and Celia knows it. But she also knows Moira is desperate for cash. It’s a classic power play, a test of wills, and for a moment, you can almost see the sparks flying between these two fierce women.
Moira, to her credit, stands her ground. She says no—a word Celia is not used to hearing, and one that instantly lands Moira at the top of Celia’s mental hit list. “When they do, Celia immediately thinks: ‘Now you’re on my list…’” Jaye laughs. “You really don’t want to be on Celia’s list, but Moira is at the top of it. And other names have been added subsequently…”
It’s a tantalising hint at the trouble to come. Because Celia is not the type to lick her wounds and slink away. No, she’s the sort of woman who thrives on conflict, who sees every ‘no’ as a challenge, every rival as a puzzle to be solved—or a threat to be eliminated. She’s a master manipulator, a woman who can twist reality to suit her needs and leave you questioning your own sanity.
And nowhere is that more apparent than in her jaw-dropping involvement in one of the most shocking moments Emmerdale has seen in months: the savage dog attack on poor Paddy Dingle.
If you’ve ever wondered what it would look like if a Hitchcock villain walked into a rural soap, Celia’s your answer. The scene is set: Paddy, ever the animal lover, finds himself on the wrong end of Celia’s large, beautiful Alsatian. But this is no playful nip. The attack is brutal—so savage, in fact, that it ruptures an artery. In any other village, this would be front-page news for weeks. In Emmerdale, it’s just another day at the office—except this time, the villain isn’t hiding behind a polite smile. She’s standing right in front of you, daring you to call her out.
And Celia’s response? Chilling in its audacity. She denies she even owns a dog—this, despite the fact that half the village has seen her walking the beast. But Celia isn’t interested in facts. She’s interested in control. “If she says it enough times, Paddy will start to doubt his own sanity—that’s how she works,” Jaye explains. “She reframes reality to shut you down. Celia contradicts herself and forgets which lies she’s told people so nothing is ever her fault. It’s incredibly difficult to argue with. As a skillset that is almost admirable!”
It’s this psychological warfare that makes Celia such a terrifying—and fascinating—addition to the Emmerdale roster. She doesn’t just break the rules; she rewrites them as she goes, leaving everyone around her scrambling to keep up. She’s the sort of character who could walk into a room and have everyone questioning their own memories by the time she leaves.
But it’s not just her mind games that make Celia a force to be reckoned with. There’s a physicality to her performance, a sense that she could swing that big stick and do some real damage if she wanted to. She’s not afraid to get her hands dirty, and she’s certainly not afraid to get in people’s faces. Whether she’s locking horns with Moira or gaslighting poor Paddy, Celia is always in control—or at least, she wants you to think she is.
And what of the villagers? How will they react to this new threat in their midst? If history is any guide, Emmerdale has never been short on formidable women, but Celia is a different breed altogether. She doesn’t want your friendship, your sympathy, or your forgiveness. She wants your fear, your respect, and—most of all—your compliance.
Already, the rumour mill is churning. Who is Celia, really? What brought her to the Dales? What secrets is she hiding behind that steely gaze and those carefully chosen words? And perhaps most importantly: just how far is she willing to go to get what she wants?
For Jaye Griffiths, it’s a dream role—one that allows her to flex every acting muscle she’s got. “She’s a joy to play,” Jaye admits. “There’s a freedom in playing someone who doesn’t care about the consequences. Celia is always ten steps ahead of everyone else, and she’s not afraid to show it.”
But even Jaye admits there’s a darkness to the character that’s hard to shake off. “There are moments where even I have to remind myself that it’s just a role,” she says, half-joking. “She’s so manipulative, so ruthless—it’s almost scary how easy it is to slip into that mindset.”
And yet, there’s something undeniably magnetic about Celia. She’s the villain you love to hate, the woman you can’t tear your eyes away from, even as she wreaks havoc on everyone around her. She’s a reminder that, in Emmerdale, nobody is ever truly safe, and the next big drama is always lurking just around the corner.
As the dust settles from Paddy’s attack and the villagers begin to piece together what really happened, one thing is certain: Celia’s arrival has changed the game. Moira, once the undisputed queen of Butler’s, now finds herself locked in a battle of wills with a woman who plays by her own rules. Paddy, still reeling from the attack, must confront the possibility that the truth may never come out—and that he may never feel safe in his own village again.
And as for Celia? She’s just getting started. With each passing day, she adds new names to her list, new rivals to outwit, new secrets to uncover and exploit. She’s a storm in human form, and Emmerdale may never be the same.
So buckle up, soap fans. The Dales have a new villain, and she’s not here to play nice. Whether you’re cheering her on or hiding behind the sofa, one thing’s for sure: you won’t want to miss a single moment of Celia’s reign of terror. Because in Emmerdale, as in life, it’s always the quiet ones you have to watch out for—and Celia is anything but quiet.
As the credits roll and the theme tune plays, viewers across the country will be left with one burning question: just how far will Celia go? If her first week is anything to go by, the answer is simple—there are no limits. And that, dear reader, is what makes her the most thrilling, chilling, and unmissable addition to Emmerdale in years.