HOTTEST NEWS TODAY!!! The great escape! Bear risks everything to get away from Celia in Emmerdale
Not many people could keep a bear in captivity. Especially not professional wrestler and epic fusion of man and beard Bear Wolf (Joshua Richards). But that’s exactly what the evil Celia Daniels (Jaye Griffiths) has done.
Ever since the shocking reveal that Bear has been forced into Celia’s twisted domestic slavery business, Emmerdale viewers have been screaming at the TVs for the fan favourite to escape.
And after the tragic death of Anya (Ali Al-Shabibi), another captive who Bear has grown close with, he finally has a chance for freedom…
‘I think Bear is going through a very difficult time in his life’ shares actor Joshua Richards.
‘I think he’s possibly confused, not very well and probably drug-addled and not knowing exactly where or what he’s doing.’ This is due to Celia’s drug dealing son Ray (Joe Absolom), who’s brainwashed a vulnerable Bear into trusting him. ‘Because he’s taken himself away from the love of his son and his family, Bear feels somewhere within him, somewhat rejected. Ray is a surrogate son for him.’
But Ray’s spell could be about to break when Bear discovers that he dumped Anya’s body in the feed shed.
Furious, Bear demands answers. Although the slimy drug dealer talks himself out of trouble, Bear insists on a funeral for Anya to pay his last respects to his dear friend. Surprisingly, Celia agrees. Is this a rare moment of humanity for the scariest farmer in Yorkshire? No such luck.
Under cover of night, Celia and Ray gather Bear, Simo and Mick for a makeshift funeral in Butler’s field, where they plan to bury Anya. But audiences will be left disgusted by Celia’s cruelty as she orders Bear to dig his friend’s grave. ’I think for Bear it must have been a very poignant and difficult thing to do’, confides Joshua. ‘But of course he wanted to do right by her and show some kind of respect.’
The terrifying ordeal is too much for prisoners Simo and Mick, who decide to tell Bear about their escape plan. Will it work?
Joshua Richards explains that Bear doesn’t exactly have a friendly relationship with his fellow prisoners ‘ It’s not friendly but it’s not antagonistic because I don’t think he’s antagonistic towards anybody at this stage. He’s somewhat lost and adrift. He’s not really in anybody’s club or team apart from, maybe, Ray.’
The escape plan leaves Bear grappling with an impossible dilemma. He’s desperate to see his son Paddy (Dominic Brunt again), and honour Anya’s dying wish and take care of her daughter in the village.
But Joshua Richards shares some insight into Ray’s indoctrination. ‘It’s like giving a dog treats. It’s very clever manipulation and very insidious, that you can bit by bit instil in somebody that you’re needed by the for their very existence. Ray is very successful at doing that because he has a natural charm and he has an ability to get under people’s skin.’