Isabel Hodgins, who portrays Victoria Sugden in Emmerdale, has confirmed her return to the ITV soap later this year, thrilling fans who have missed the character.
Hodgins began maternity leave in December 2025, with Victoria’s final scenes airing in February 2026. The departure followed a dramatic storyline centered on Victoria’s confrontation with her villainous brother, John, played by Oliver Farnworth.
Victoria’s Intense Exit Storyline
John’s crimes included murdering Nate Robinson (Jurell Carter) and holding Mackenzie Boyd (Lawrence Robb) captive. He also plunged off a cliff with his husband, Aaron Dingle (Danny Miller). John reappeared in the village in December 2025, leading to a fatal clash with Victoria during the Home Farm events.
Joe Tate (Ned Porteous) secretly recorded the incident and used the video to blackmail Victoria and her brother Robert (Ryan Hawley) into surrendering their family farm shares. Robert planted fake documents at Butler’s Farm, resulting in Moira Dingle (Natalie J Robb) facing unjust jail time.
Overwhelmed by the fallout and village scrutiny, Victoria chose to move to Portugal with her son Harry (Adam Pryor) to join Diane Sugden (Elizabeth Estensen).
Life Off-Screen and Return Tease
During her break, Hodgins and husband Adam Whitehead welcomed daughter Georgie Grace in February. The couple shares updates on social media, including a recent TikTok video of them dancing while Georgie napped. The caption noted: “POV: Georgie sleeps for 10 minutes so we do our first TikTok dance. The concentration on Adam’s face 😂.”
Fans flooded the comments with return questions, prompting the 32-year-old actress to reply: “Later this year.” Responses poured in, with one fan stating, “Can’t wait we miss you,” and another adding, “Hope the little one is well.”
Reflecting on her exit, Hodgins shared: “I thought I would be really emotional when I filmed my final scenes. Emmerdale is all I have ever known. But pregnancy does funny things to you and the truth is, I felt ready not to have to film on Emmerdale! I live in Manchester and I’ve been driving over to Leeds to film. By the end, I felt exhausted and I knew it was time to have a rest before the baby arrives.”
Other Cast Updates and Dales Drama
Hodgins joins Amy Walsh (Tracy Robinson), who is also on maternity leave after giving birth. Recent episodes feature Charity Dingle (Emma Atkins) delivering her granddaughter Leyla in a hospital lift. Tensions rise as Dr. Caitlin Todd (Caroline Harker) discovers Sarah (Katie Hill) and Jacob Sugden’s (Joe-Warren Plant) baby belongs to Charity and Ross Barton (Michael Parr).
Emmerdale airs weeknights at 7:30pm on ITV1.
