Aaron Dingle is throwing himself a massive pity party in this evening’s episode of Emmerdale, deciding to head off into the sunset after finding out about mum Chas’s breast cancer diagnosis.
Tormented Aaron storms off into the night – pursued by new bestie Mackenzie Boyd – while back at the pub, Chas and Charity have a heart-t0-heart about what the future holds for the family.
It’s fair to say Aaron has suffered much tragedy during his life. From losing several boyfriends, to his sister Liv and his gran Faith, there’s only so much one man can take.
Will he end up losing Chas too? And will that be because he can’t bring himself to reconnect with his own mum?
And just who were the people Aaron has loved and lost?
![Jackson Walsh [Marc Silcock] tells Hazel Rhodes [Pauline Quirke] and Aaron Livesy [Danny Miller] the time has come for him to take his own life](https://cdn.entertainmentdaily.com/2024/01/30123614/shutterstock_editorial_1687280ax-400x318.jpg)
Aaron’s first love Jackson Walsh in Emmerdale
Jackson was Aaron’s first true love. The pair met at a gay bar in Hotten but at the time Aaron was still struggling with his sexuality. It took a few false starts for them to properly get together. In fact, things went very wrong early on when Aaron – fearing Jackson was about to out him to the village – punched him and got charged with assault.
When they eventually got together properly, Jackson was still a step ahead. He told Aaron he loved him and he was saddened when Aaron didn’t say it back.
Jackson drove off, upset. But tragedy struck when he tried to answer his phone and crashed. He eventually got stuck on a railway line and was horribly injured when a train hit a van which then smashed into his car.
Poor Jackson was rushed to hospital where he was given the devastating news that he was paralysed from the neck down.
He and Aaron broke up briefly but reconciled and pledged their love for one another.
Things weren’t easy for Jackson, though, and he made the difficult decision to end his life – telling Aaron the news via his video diary. Reluctantly, Aaron and Jackson’s mum, Hazel, agreed to help. Hazel brought the drugs to Jackson, but couldn’t give them to her son. So instead, Aaron was the one who handed them over. Jackson took the pills and passed away.
In another video message, played at his funeral, he told the mourners that his death was his own choice. That meant Aaron and Hazel didn’t get into trouble for it.
Robert Sugden – the one true love of Aaron in Emmerdale
Ah the big one! Robert and Aaron fell in love creating a whole new nickname – Robron – and legions of fans.
At first, their relationship was horribly toxic. Robert was engaged to Chrissie White and he ended up killing his sister-in-law Katie on his own wedding day.
But after Robert was shot by Ross Barton, he began to change as a person. He supported Aaron as he dealt with his sexual abuse from his dad as a child, stood by him during the trial, and helped him get to know half-sister Liv Flaherty.
Though the pair still had their ups and downs – not least Robert becoming a dad to little Seb after a one-night stand with Rebecca White – they married and settled down.
But their life together came to an end when Robert’s sister Victoria was raped by Lee Posner after a night out. Robert attacked her rapist, who died. He was sentenced to 14 years in prison for the crime in 2019 and divorced Aaron from behind bars to ‘set him free’. Lee’s brother Luke later confessed that he also attacked Lee on the same day he died, and Victoria thought that would be enough to see Robert free.
But sadly, Rob decided not to pursue the case and he’s still in prison.
Ben Tucker – the school friend turned lover
Back in late 2020, Aaron’s broken heart began to heal when he met Ben Tucker. At first, things weren’t great between them. It turned out they’d gone to school together where Aaron had bullied Ben and waged a campaign of homophobic abuse against him.
But Ben forgave his former bully and the pair started a romance.
Liv – Aaron’s sister – caused a few troubles for the couple. Ben’s dad was an alcoholic and when Liv was struggling with drink, Ben didn’t want to be around her.
And the romance ended in tragedy when Ben became a victim of Emmerdale serial killer Meena.
Emmerdale: Aaron Dingle’s gran Faith
Aaron’s gran Faith was a larger than life character who had a rollercoaster relationship with her kids, Cain and Chas, but actually a pretty good one with grandson Aaron.
Faith was very supportive of Aaron, enjoyed his company and most importantly, didn’t stand for his nonsense when he was being grumpy and unpleasant!
Aaron was devastated when Faith’s breast cancer came back and she passed away in 2022.
Liv Dingle – Aaron’s sister
Aaron adored his little sister Liv Flaherty – who later became Liv Dingle when she married Vinny – and thought the world of her. But this was another relationship that ended in tragedy.
During the storm in the Emmerdale 50th anniversary week, Chas was arranging a secret liaison with lover Al Chapman when she was injured in the high winds.
Paddy asked Liv to look after daughter Eve while he went to find Chas at hospital. But as they made their way through the village, a caravan came flying towards them – swept away in the raging winds – and trapped Liv against the wall.
When paramedics arrived they found that the caravan was the only thing keeping Liv alive and she would die.
In heartbreaking scenes, Aaron and Vinny said their goodbyes. Liv died with her husband by her side on October 16 2022 – just a week after Faith Dingle also passed away.
Can Aaron make peace with mum Chas and start to rebuild his life in Emmerdale despite all these heartbreaking losses? Let’s hope so!
Read more: Who’s leaving Emmerdale in 2024?
Emmerdale usually airs weeknights at 7.30pm on ITV, with an hour episode on Thursdays.
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