Diane Sugden
| Diane Sugden | |||||||||||||||||
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| Emmerdale character | |||||||||||||||||
 Diane in 2009 | |||||||||||||||||
| Portrayed by | Elizabeth Estensen | ||||||||||||||||
| Duration | 1999— | ||||||||||||||||
| First appearance | 23 November 1999 | ||||||||||||||||
| Classification | Present; regular | ||||||||||||||||
| Created by | Kieran Roberts | ||||||||||||||||
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Diane Sugden (née Lambert, previously Blackstock) is a fictional character on the ITV soap opera Emmerdale. She is portrayed by Elizabeth Estensen.
Backstory
Diane is the mother of Bernice Blackstock and owns the Woolpack pub. Until 2009, she and her younger sister, Val, co-owned the pub.
Diane was married to Rodney Blackstock and they had Bernice. However, Rodney left, following two affairs, including one with her sister Val, which resulted in Val giving birth to Paul. She serves as a regular protagonist of the soap.
Storylines
1999—
Jack Sugden had been through tough times, following his discovery that his wife, Sarah, had cheated on him. Diane gave him a shoulder to cry on. They kissed but decided to be friends. That changed when in 2001, Jack clearly needed her in his life, at a time when Diane's past was rapidly catching up with her.
After being AWOL for 26 years, her ex-husband Rodney Blackstock turned up, causing problems between Diane and Bernice. Although her daughter accepted Rodney, Diane was more hesitant; however, it was clear that a spark still existed between them. This was confirmed when they spent a night together, followed by Diane's decision that it would be the last time they would behave like a married couple.
After a brief relationship with builder Mack, and a failed romance with Alan Turner in 2003, Diane and Jack got back together and started considering life together.
It was evident that Diane was missing Bernice, who had moved to Brighton. Diane decided to go and live with her, which took Jack by surprise and resulted in him proposing in a desperate attempt to make her stay. Diane accepted and Val arrived at their engagement party.
In 2004, Diane was horrified to discover she had colon cancer. She went to Scarborough with Rodney, trying to come to terms with the news. Rodney did not know about her illness and Val assumed they were having an affair. Upon finding out Diane was ill, Rodney ended things with Val, begging Diane to give their relationship another chance. She rejected him and, soon began planning her wedding to Jack.
Diane and Jack ran the gauntlet of emotions of their wedding day, held on 21 September 2004, when Victoria told the congregation about Diane's condition.[1] After the ceremony, Val told Rodney that he had fathered her son Paul. Horrified by Val's selfishness, Diane disowned her and the only ray of light was when she got the all clear in early 2005.
The new Sugden matriarch had trouble coping with the problems Jack's children had as they didn't help her recovery from cancer. When Andy and Daz fell out, Jack and Diane picked up the pieces. Unfortunately Diane didn’t have the strength to take on a troubled teenager and although trying to be supportive, Diane insisted Daz return to living with Andy. Although she felt guilty, she knew it was the right decision. Daz, however, decided to return to his mother.
More recently, Diane tried to cope with Victoria’s teenage rebellion whilst keeping the Woolpack running smoothly. In 2006, she was a victim of the Kings' River Show Home explosion, but made a full recovery.
In 2007, Diane had feelings for Billy Hopwood. She and Jack tried to work through their problems but separated. However they grew closer following Andy's conviction and whilst Jack was in Spain, Diane received a text mentioning patching things up on his return.
With Jack in Spain, Diane tried to take over looking after the family. She has successfully rebuilt bridges with Victoria, Andy and Daz. However, things didn't last when it was revealed in late 2008 that Andy had been abusing wife Jo, Diane was originally very shocked and angry at him but has recently tried being his mother by allowing him to live at the Woolpack with her and Victoria.
In December 2008 she spent two weeks visiting Bernice, leaving the care of Victoria, Daz and Andy to Val. She returned on around the 10th and was forced to join the choir by Val.
Diane was devastated in February 2009 when her beloved husband Jack died. Jack had been ill for some time and hadn't wanted to tell her. Her only comfort was a letter he'd written before his death, letting her know how much he loved her.
Diane tried to move on with her life, but had more down days than up. Val, after receiving an offer for the pub from Maisie Wylde, tried to convince Diane she was too depressed to stay on as owner and should sell up. When Diane learned of Val's scheme, she shocked her by pretending she was planning to sell to Rodney and Nicola. She then chased Val out of the pub with a water squirter.
Sandy Thomas, who was constantly feuding with his son Ashley, asked if he could move into the Woolpack. Diane agreed. Douglas Potts helped Sandy move in, and after a few drinks, Diane impulsively kissed him. She realised she needed to sort herself out, and left on an open-ended trip to see Bernice, then Louise and Paul. She returned from her travels on Tuesday 9 June 2009 to sort out a lot; Daz left in her absence, Andy gave his daughter Sarah to Debbie Dingle and is on the verge of a breakdown.
Following another fall out with her Val, Diane realises that they can no longer work together. Diane uses the inheritance left to her by Jack to buy Val out, making her the sole owner of The Woolpack Inn.
Diane's heart was won over by Rodney's old friend Charlie Haynes. Their relationship got off to a good start, and Charlie was whisking Diane away on romantic holidays, and away to France, even taking Victoria along so she could brush up on her French.On this trip Diane really opened up to Charlie and told him all about her cancer. However, their happiness came to a halt as Charlie revealed to Diane he was sufferting from a brain tumour and it was inoperable, meaning he was going to die and didn't have long left. Making the most of their time left, Charlie and Diane decided to move to France, with Diane deciding to sell the Woolpack. On the night of her leaving party, Charlie left to inform his daughter of his illness, that was the last time Diane was to ever see Charlie again. The next day, a worried Rodney phoned the hospital to find there was no records of Charlie or his doctor ever being at the hospital, and Rodney and Doug found Charlie's shop had never been used. Seeing as there was only one solution to find out exactly what was going on, Diane and Val went to France, only to find the chateau Charlie had said was his, was, in fact, someone else's and the owner had never heard of Charlie. It was too late for Diane to do anything, she had given her loan to Charlie (which she had taken out to pay for France, while the sale of the pub went through) and he was gone. Diane was left heartbroken and penniless, she now has nothing. Charlie was last seen on screen scamming another poor unsuspecting victim. In 2010, Doug offers Diane his life savings, which she tearfully accepts, much to the annoyance of Doug's daughter, Laurel, who then goes on to warn Diane it is only a loan, and she must pay Doug back as soon as she can.