Emmerdale's Karen Blick admits tears as she reveals how Zak Dingle will be paid tribute to after co-star's death

Emmerdale star Karen Blick says she was left in tears when she read for the first time how the show will pay tribute to late co-star Steve Halliwell. The actor, famed for playing Zak Dingle in the ITV soap tragically died in December 2023, aged 77.

A statement issued on December 15 confirmed Steve had passed away at home while surrounded by his family after 29 years of service in Emmerdale.

The soap emotionally said of Steve at the time: "Steve will forever be synonymous with Emmerdale. The proud defender and head of the Dingle family. Heart and humour in all he did, it has been and always will be impossible not to smile when you think of him."

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Zak has continued to be mentioned in Emmerdale, with Belle recently planning to escape to Scotland from her abusive husband Tom King to where he is said to be living with Debbie Dingle. But Emmerdale's newest producer Sophie Roper confirmed that there will be difficult scenes ahead of the iconic family as they say goodbye to Zak.

Speaking to the Manchester Evening News, Sophie, who is now working alongside fellow producer Laura Shaw, said: "The Dingles have been at the heart of our show for 30 years now and will continue to be so. As many of you know, we lost Steve recently so we're going to be marking Zak's passing in the coming months with a Dingle funeral."

She added: "It's very difficult for a lot of people who work on the show and for a lot of our viewers who have grown and loved Zak for many, many years. But there will be a hugely fitting tribute to such an iconic character coming up."

Now, Karen, who plays Lydia Dingle in the long-running soap, has told the Manchester Evening News at the