Emmerdale star returning to soap for tense bullying storyline as she breaks silence

The Emmerdale star made her debut on the ITV soap last year but now she’s returning for an extended run, and her Dales character will be exposed as a workplace bully

An Emmerdale character is returning to the Dales.

Caroline Harker made her debut on the ITV soap as Doctor Todd back in January 2025. But she’s reprising her Emmerdale role in a tense new storyline exploring workplace bullying and power dynamics.

The star of shows like A Touch of Frost, Midsomer Murders is returning for an extended run as Doctor Todd, boss to trainee doctor Jacob Sugden (Joe Warren Plant). She’ll come down hard on the enthusiastic trainee.

While Jacob is a bright and ambitious young doctor, his professional world is about to become a battleground. This February, Emmerdale will shine a spotlight on the troubling reality of workplace bullying as Doctor Todd returns with a vengeance, quick to find fault and relentlessly criticises Sugden.

The storyline will delve into Jacob’s struggle to manage his work-life balance under the immense pressure of his overbearing boss. The stakes are raised further when Doctor Todd installs herself in the village, blurring the lines between Jacob’s professional and private life.

Speaking about her return, Caroline Harker commented: “I’m delighted to be back at Emmerdale for a longer stint playing Doctor Todd.

“She’s a complex character and from what I’ve been told so far, quite a tricky one for Jacob to navigate. Workplace bullying is commonplace, and it will be interesting to see it brought to our screens in a serial drama such as Emmerdale.”

Emmerdale Producers Laura Shaw added: “We are looking forward to seeing the machinations of someone like Caitlin Todd, and it’s not just at the hospital where she will start to make an impression.

“Caroline is a fabulous actor and brings such great experience to this role – we can’t wait for her to play out what we have planned for the character.”

it’s not Harker’s first soap role, as she played Alicia Davenport in Coronation Street back in 2012. She also appeared on the BBC’s medical soap Doctors and Holby City.

Emmerdale airs weekday nights at 8pm on ITV1 and STV as part of ITV’s new ‘soap power hour’ scheduling pattern for Coronation Street and Emmerdale. Episodes are also available for streaming from 7am on ITVX and STVPlayer.

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