Jack Sugden

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Jack Sugden is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the British soap opera Emmerdale.

He debuted in the show's very first episode dated 16th October 1972 and became one of the show's central protagonists up until 21st February 2008 when he initially went on a temporarily hiatus, only to later get killed-off in 2009 following the death of portrayer Clive Hornby earlier on.

The character was portrayed by Clive Hornby after being originally played by Andrew Burt.

Biography[]

Jack Sugden was born at Emmerdale Farm on 28th November 1947. For decades he grew up with his family and became a hard-working farmer who later married a woman named Sarah and they conceived two children - Robert in 1986 and Victoria in 1994. He also had another son called Jackie Merrick from another relationship, but tragically Jackie committed suicide in 1989.

Years later, Jack got acquainted with a boy named Andy and adopted him as his son after the latter's biological father Billy Hopwood proved to be unlawfully distrusted. So much so that Billy and Jack clashed over Andy's upbringing and eventually Jack got custody of Andy after Billy is jailed for the murder of shopkeeper Vic Windsor. By then, Jack had befriended fellow farmers Ned Glover and Zak Dingle before becoming sworn enemies with Frank Tate as well as having a quarrel with the latter's son Chris Tate.

In 2000, Jack's long-lasting marriage with Sarah ended after she cheated on him with their young lodger named Ritchie Carter. It was after Jack discovered the affair that he broke up with Sarah and a bitter custody battle between them ensured, during which Jack had financial problems. To help his father, Andy set fire to the barn for insurance money. But tragedy struck when Sarah unwittingly slept in a barn and was killed, subsequent to which Jack covered up the crime that would remain undiscovered for many years.

After Sarah's death, Jack found himself dealing with a sibling rivalry between Andy and Robert as they fought for the affections of his future daughter-in-law Katie Addyman. The situation escalated when Katie married Andy only to end up having an affair with Robert that lasted for months. But by then Jack had found happiness with landlady Diane and they got married not long after she survived a cancer scare. But then Billy resurfaced and he seduced Diane up to the point where they had a dalliance, only for Jack to eventually discover the betrayal. It was then Andy confessed to the shooting and was imprisoned, much to Jack's sadness. But luckily for him Andy was released months later for good behaviour and Jack attended his wedding before leaving the village to look after his mother Annie.

However, in 2009, Jack suffered a heart attack off-screen and he died. His funeral took place in February 2009 and he was last seen as a ghost watching his family scatter his ashes and vowing to honour his legacy.

Trivia[]

Clive Hornby (the actor who played Jack Sugden) won the "Hero of the Year" category at the 2001 British Soap Awards ceremony.

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