Moira Barton is in for another huge shock in Emmerdale when she hears that her son Matty, who used to be her daughter Hannah, has been brutally attacked.
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In fact, the attack is so vicious poor Matty ends up in hospital and Moira rushes over to pay him a visit. But after her recent rejection of her transgender son, will she be welcome?
In a word, no. Despite getting to the hospital as fast as she can, it seems like Moira may as well have saved her bus fare because Matty makes it quite obvious that he doesn’t want her there.
But Moira persists and grills Matty, asking him if he got attacked because he’s transgender.
Matty is defensive and tells Moira it was nothing to do with that, but is he being honest with his mum?
Moira tries hard to connect with Matty who’s clearly still hurt from Moira telling him to leave Butlers Farm last time they saw each other.
She laid into him, telling him to go because he only thinks of himself and that Hannah was a sweet girl who would never put her family through what Matty had.
She even cruelly told him that she didn’t recognise her own child, leaving Emmerdale viewers stunned at her cold attitude towards her own flesh and blood.
But Moira believes she can make amends and keeps trying to bond with Matty.
It finally looks like she’s making some headway with him and she heads home, pleased that there seems to be something left of their old relationship.
When she arrives at the hospital to see Matty the next day though, she’s left reeling when the nurse tells her that he’s discharged himself.
Is their relationship actually damaged beyond repair?
Emmerdale viewers were shocked and heartbroken when Moira Barton recently rejected her son Matty.
He returned home after several years away and, during that time, had transitioned from female Hannah to male Matty.
Although Moira recognised her child straight away, she couldn’t accept him and threw him out of the house – leaving Matty and viewers upset.
Last month Matty returned to the village in a bid to retrieve his birth certificate.
Not feeling ready to reveal everything to his mum, however, he broke into the house and was caught by stepdad Cain.
Ash Palmisciano, who has joined the ITV soap as Matty, told Digital Spy: “She greets him with, ‘Hannah, what have you done?’.
“She’s really confused. She can’t really work out what’s happened. She knows her child looks different, and she’s completely baffled.”
Many fans felt uncomfortable as they watched Moira continue to use the name Hannah and eventually turned her son away, saying that he would confuse little brother Isaac.
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Ash explains her shock, adding: “It is the first time they’ve spoken in five years. It’s all shock, it’s all high emotion.”
But he’s hopeful that Matty and Moira will be able to resolve their issues.
“Obviously I really hope that they do,” he said. “I think it would be a beautiful story if they did.
“I am about for a bit, but let’s just say it’s not an overnight thing. It’s not easy.”
Newcomer Ash is Emmerdale’s first regular transgender cast member.
Do you think Moira has burned her bridges with Matty? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix and let us know what you think!
Emmerdale airs week nights on ITV. Times may vary due to the World Cup.