Emmerdale’s Sam Dingle, played by James Hooton, has been a staple on the ITV soap since 1995
Emmerdale recently celebrated 30 years of the Dingle family after the iconic household first made their debut back in 1994.
One member of the Dingle family, Sam Dingle, has been a staple on the ITV soap since 1995. Sam has been part of several huge storylines over the years including the death of his wife, Alice Dingle, and the almost deadly cow stampede during the ITV soap’s 50th anniversary.
Sam, played by James Hooton, is now happily married to Lydia Dingle, played by Karen Blick. Sam’s son, Samson Dingle, who he welcomed with late wife Alice, left the village in 2024.
Sam also has granddaughter, Esther, who Samson welcomed with Amelia Spencer in 2022. During last year’s festive episodes, both Amelia and Esther left for pastures new.
Nottingham actor James Hooton, 52, has played the role of Sam since 1995 but what do we know about the soap star away from the ITV soap?
Career before Emmerdale
Prior to landing his big Emmerdale role, James appeared in the likes of Heartbeat, Peak Practice and The Bill.
Earlier this year, James was congratulated by his co-stars after he announced that he had been acting on the ITV soap for 30 years.
Taking to his Instagram account, James posted a picture of himself captioned: “Today marks my 30th anniversary on Emmerdale! Jan 10th 1995 was my first scene in Esholt village with Steve Halliwell (Zak) and Paul Loughran (Butch).”
In July 2024, the star appeared on ITV’s Loose Women to discuss his future on the show, insisting: “As long as they’ll have me I’ll stay there!”
Real voice
Fans of Emmerdale are used to hearing Sam with a thick Yorkshire accent so many were surprised to learn it wasn’t the actor’s actual accent.
The soap’s Instagram page once shared behind-the-scenes clips which featured James – who is originally from Carlton, Nottinghamshire.
One fan said: “Love sam and it’s so weird to hear him speak when out of character.” Another shocked viewer added: “James’ accent never fails to surprise me”, while a third penned: “An absolutely brilliant actor.”
Meanwhile, during a recent Loose Women interview, James left host Coleen Nolan speechless with his ‘real voice’.
Coleen, 60, said: “It’s funny because the first time you came on the show [Loose Women] as you’re such an iconic character in Emmerdale, and then the first time you came on the show, you spoke like that and I was like: ‘Oh, he’s not really him!'”
Coronation Street link
James is part of the upcoming Emmerdale and Coronation Street crossover episode, Corriedale. Both ITV soaps have filmed four scenes where one Emmerdale character interacts and meets a character from Coronation Street.
However, only one scene will air and viewers get to pick which soap duo they want to see interact. James has filmed with Coronation Street’s Andy Whyment who has played Kirk Sutherland since 2000.
Taking to Instagram, James shared a snap with Andy, 44, writing: “Sam Dingle, Kirk Sutherland and peanut the dog! It was great working on a scene with Andy Whyment on Friday!
“4 scenes were shot with 4 cross over Corrie/Emmerdale duos and there’s a viewer vote coming soon to determine which scene makes it into the crossover episode.
“Billed “the meeting of two brain cells”, our scene was a lighthearted meeting of two characters that aren’t renowned for their mental acuity. It was an honour to have the opportunity to film this scene and I hope it makes the crossover episode.”
Responding in the comments, Andy penned: “Really enjoyed working with you mate, it would be nice if our scene got put in to the episode but if not at least we were one of the four scenes shot.”
Family and hobbies
When he’s not at work, James spends quality time with his partner Nancy Lucas and their two children, Ava-Rose and Lily. When he’s not with his family, the actor is busy improving his already impressive rock-climbing skills – which explains why the star has an incredible physique at 52-years-old.
Emmerdale continues on weeknights at 7.30pm on ITV and ITV X.
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