Emmerdale: Noah Dingle, Charity Dingle and Chris Tate dying comp image
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Emmerdale’s Chris Tate: Horror accident, failed marriages & suicide

Charity's ex had a really nasty streak

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Chris Tate in Emmerdale was the bad-tempered ex-husband of Charity Dingle. He was dad to Noah Tate and Joseph Tate, son to Frank (and stepson to Kim) Tate, and brother to Zoe.

He framed Charity for his own murder and sent her to prison in revenge for her cheating on him with Cain Dingle.

Emmerdale: Zoe and Chris Tate pose looking concerned and serious
Zoe and Chris were brother and sister (Credit: ITV/Shutterstock)

Who played Chris Tate in Emmerdale?

Chris was played by actor Peter Amory. He was in more than 1000 episodes of Emmerdale in his time on the show!

Peter went on to appear in Casualty, Heartbeat and The Royal among others.

Peter was married to Claire King – who played his stepmum Kim Tate – for 10 years. The pair split in 2004 but remain good friends.

Nice guy Chris Tate

When he first arrived in Emmerdale, Chris was much more pleasant and even, occasionally, kind-hearted than he ended up.

However, he did have a temper and worried he’d inherited his dad’s tendency to lash out.

He got close to Kathy Merrick and the pair eventually tied the knot. But their marriage hit a snag when Chris lied to Kathy about remortgaging their cottage to get one over on his dad.

Kathy started an affair with wine merchant Josh Lewis and planned to leave Chris forever.

Kathy Tate sits by the hospital bed of her husband Chris, after the Beckindale plane crash
Kathy had been planning to leave Chris when he was injured (Credit: ITV/Shutterstock)

The Beckindale plane crash

On 30 December 1993, Kathy was getting ready to run off with Josh, while Chris went for a night out in Skilbeck, and then went to the Woolpack for a drink.

He was in the pub when a plane crashed into the village. Because everyone thought he was in Skilbeck, Chris remained trapped in the rubble for some time and when he was eventually rescued, he had suffered devastating spinal injuries.

Chris was left paraplegic, in a wheelchair. Kathy stayed with him but he resented her and knew she was only staying out of duty.

Rachel Hughes and Chris Tate get married in
Rachel and Chris got married but their marriage didn’t last long (Credit: ITV/YouTube)

Chris Tate and Rachel Hughes get married in Emmerdale

Chris started a romance with Kathy’s friend Rachel Hughes – she and Chris bonded after the crash because Rachel lost her brother Mark in the disaster.

Kathy divorced Chris when she found out about the affair. Rachel got pregnant and gave birth to a baby boy she named Joseph, and the couple got married, though their marriage didn’t last long.

Manipulative Chris

After his second divorce, Chris became even more resentful and manipulative. He threw his whole focus into making his business a success and stopped caring about who he hurt along the way.

When Butch Dingle was killed in a bus crash with one of Chris’s lorries, the village was devastated and Chris was blamed for the accident.

Kathy tried to force Tate Haulage to take responsibility but Chris managed to wriggle out of it.

But at a public meeting Chris ended up punching Cain Dingle, starting a long-lasting feud.

Charity Dingle in a dark red dress with and Chris Tate on their wedding day in Emmerdale
Charity and Chris got married (Credit: ITV/Shutterstock)

Chris and Charity

Chris started a romance with Charity Dingle. His sister Zoe was horrified and tried to break them up but she ended up falling for Charity instead!

She and Charity had an affair, but when Charity called it off, Zoe became obsessive and her mental health later began to suffer.

She tried to blackmail Charity but she called her ex’s bluff and told Chris everything.

He forgave her and the pair got married.

Charity supported Chris through Zoe’s diagnosis with schizophrenia, but when her daughter Debbie came back into her life, Chris was shocked to discover Debbie’s dad was Cain.

And he was even more shocked when he found out Charity had rekindled her romance with her volatile ex!

Chris threw Charity out – but he wasn’t finished!

Emmerdale's Charity grabs Chris crying as he lies dead on the floor
Chris framed Charity for his murder! (Credit: ITV/Shutterstock)

Chris frames Charity for his own murder!

When Chris was diagnosed with a fatal brain tumour, he set about taking terrible revenge.

He started spending all his money to make sure Charity was left with nothing.

He said his goodbyes to his family, and then he poisoned himself, making it look as though Charity had done it!

Charity found out she was pregnant after Chris died, so he never knew he had another son – Noah.

Noah never knew his dad, but looked like he was set to be a chip off the old block when he started stalking Chloe Harris.

However, a stint inside and a new relationship with Amelia Spencer has seen him turn over a new leaf.

But with the Tate blood still running through his veins, is it time Noah embodied his father again?

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Emmerdale usually airs weeknights at 7.30pm on ITV, with an hour episode on Thursdays.

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Kerry Barrett
Freelance Soap Writer