Shadrach Dingle is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera, Emmerdale. Shadrach Dingle was played by Andy Devine whose character debuted during 2674th episode of Emmerdale which aired on 30 March 2000. Since early 2010, the character appeared occasionally on an episodic basis after Devine felt he could not keep up with the busy schedule. The character, who had alcohol-induced liver disease, was killed off on 23 July 2010 after collapsing into a river and drowning whilst attempting to retrieve some beer cans. He was written out of the show due to the actor's retirement at age 68. Shadrach made an unannounced return in a flashback to Cain's childhood on 17 November 2017.
Casting
In 2010, it was announced that Andy Devine had reduced his number of appearances in the serial after feeling that he could not keep up with the busy schedule at his age (67), but he agreed to appear on an episodic basis returning for key storylines and episodes. On June 20, it was revealed that the character of Shadrach would be killed off on his birthday, reportedly devastating Devine. A friend of the actor said, "Andy thought he would be able to come back every now and then, so to find out that Shadrach will leave Emmerdale in a body bag was a big disappointment." A spokesperson for the soap said "Shadrach will be leaving the village on his birthday but how he goes remains to be seen. However, it’s not one to be missed."
Development
Shadrach's main character traits were uselessness, laziness, selfishness, hypocrisy and a dependency on alcohol, although he occasionally surprised his family with sensitivity or support. This was shown when he helped Donal escape from the grasp of the games.
Storylines
2000–2005
Shadrach first appeared at his nephew Butch's (Paul Loughran) funeral and was so drunk that he fell asleep in church – infuriating his brother, Zak (Steve Halliwell) who was grieving for his son. Zak did not lash out because he believed that he owed Shadrach. When they were younger, Zak had an affair with Shadrach's wife, Faith (Gillian Jephcott). Unknown to them, this resulted in the birth of Cain Dingle (Jeff Hordley). Cain had thought Shadrach was his father and after the truth was revealed, he was shocked to discover the man who'd brought him up was his uncle.
The Dingles weathered this crisis, but when Zak went to South America in search of the Dingle fortune, Shadrach begged Zak's wife, Lisa (Jane Cox), to take him in. Sticking to the Dingle code of loyalty, Lisa agreed, and Shadrach spent the next few months trying to seduce her. Order was restored when Zak returned but Shadrach's behaviour continued to provoke disgust among his family and their neighbours alike. A life of heavy drinking took a toll on Shadrach and his daughter, Chastity (Lucy Pargeter), worried that her father would die of alcoholism-related illnesses. Attempting to wean him off alcohol, Chas bet Zak and Shadrach that they could not stay dry for a month. Shadrach was unable to do so and spent the time, attempting to get his hands on booze. Shadrach's best friend, Fat Pedro, never appeared on screen but often provided horse race betting tips which always lost money.
2006–2010
On 26 August 2007, Shadrach was in the church vestry as he was drinking the communion wine but unaware that heavily pregnant Laurel Thomas (Charlotte Bellamy) was also in the church, fast asleep. Emily Kirk (Kate McGregor) had locked the doors, unaware that they were there when he and Laurel realised that she was in labour. Shadrach rang the church bells to alert the village and supported Laurel until help arrived. After Daniel was born, Shadrach showed him more love than he had any of the Dingle children and was over the moon when Laurel asked him to be godfather. Shadrach adored his godson, surprising everybody who knew him; he gave Daniel presents and promised to do things with him when he was older. However, Daniel died of sudden infant death syndrome, devastating Shadrach. Shadrach initially blamed himself, thinking that the alcohol fumes he had breathed on Daniel killed him but, supported by Laurel and Diane Sugden (Elizabeth Estensen), he stopped blaming himself. Despite Daniel's death, Shadrach was still loving to him, visiting his grave with flowers and one of his great-nephew, Samson's, old teddy bears to keep Daniel company.