Emmerdale's Lydia burns her clothes after changing her mind about reporting rape

Lydia Dingle (Karen Blick) attempted to carry on as normal after being raped in Emmerdale.

The beloved character was attacked by Craig (Ben Addis) in last night’s (September 5) episode of the ITV soap. Craig and Lydia grew up together in a children’s home and after reconnecting, Craig said that he had very strong feelings for Lydia.

Lydia didn’t feel the same and reminded Craig that she’s married and has a son, but Craig ignored what she was saying and raped her.

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In tonight’s episode, Lydia was distant but tried her best to remain her usual self in front of her friends and family.

She headed to work at Home Farm, but Kim (Claire King) immediately picked up on something not being right when Lydia nearly made a mistake with the cleaning.

Kim encouraged Lydia to sit down and for a moment, it looked as though she was going to tell her friend about the attack.

Lydia then changed her mind and told Kim that she’s had a lot going on with Dan (Liam Fox) leaving and Craig coming back into her life and is more than likely just a bit tired.

As the day continued, Lydia decided to book a taxi to Hotten Police Station, but she was interrupted when Sam (James Hooton) returned home, explained that he had spent time with Craig and thinks he’s a nice man.

After dashing out of the house, we found Lydia walking in the woods. She then opened a bag and tipped the contents out.

On the floor were the clothes Lydia wore yesterday before and after she was raped, which means Craig’s DNA would be on them.

Lydia then chose to pour liquid over the clothes and set them on fire.

What came next was truly devastating. Lydia let out an animalistic scream and burst into tears, her whole world crumbling around her – and she feels she cannot tell anyone what’s going on.

‘That’s important because so many women do do that and the impacts can be wide-ranging for families, for individuals,’ Karen Blick said, discussing why Lydia chose to not go to the police.

‘As soon as I played the scenes I completely understood why she did not go to the police. I had a real empathy, sympathy, understanding for her behaviour. She feels guilty, she feels ashamed, she feels that it’s somehow her fault, she has put herself in that situation – which is completely incorrect.

You can find information and support surrounding sexual violence and abuse here.

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