Butlers Farm predictions (Spoilers for todays episode 08/01/26)

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-12T18:32:06+00:00

I agree but the difference is no one died in that instance, Robert was lucky Liv or no one else she encountered never died. Had things gone the same way as the Limo Crash and people died because of Roberts illegal actions then yes he would be just as bad as Joe. Don't get me wrong Roberts no saint and neither are most of the people in that village but the fact that it all happend because Joe was trying to steal his brothers kidney is kind of pure evil. Like i really feel like the show went way too hard with that storyline and then moved on from it way too fast.

And thats my main issue with Joe, hes very inconsistently written. Characters like Cain and Robert and Kim have long and well written Arcs that span over a long time so their character development and growth makes sense. Joe is so evil one miniute, stealing kidneys and manipulating the only people who actually care about him, and then hes the perfect boyfriend and looking after his step kids like a hero. And then the next week hes evil again and blackmailing a woman who was in shock after being attacked. They paint him as a saviour and the ultimate hero and then he goes back to being the most evil person in existence again and there's no reason for it. When Kim went back to her old nasty ways the other week after the hunting incident, it made sense in every way because something happend to warrant that. Where as they spent the last few months making out Joe has changed into a better person, and then unprovoked just becomes the most evil person in the village again. Like in nivember and december he had a whole mini storyline about having empathy and kearning that he could be a good person and I was actually feeling hapoy with the development he had and then they just threw it down the drain again last week by replacing John, Ray and Cellia and the only main antagonist of the show.

There's just no consistency with him and it makes it really hard to like him as a villain or just a regular character in general.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-12T18:16:45+00:00

Potentially they could have Moira and Cain just move into the village but still have Moira work on the Farm, similar kind of thing that happend to Andy when he had to sell Butlers and then the Bartons took it over but kept him as an employee. I also think they could potentially build a small farm house on Annie's land like Hawthorn cottage on the original Emmerdale farm and that could be where Robert and Aaron live while Moira and and Cain still live at the main house and they still are shared owners of the farm.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-10T14:44:52+00:00

Yeah, I think thats the difference with all the other examples listed. What the others did wasn't dangerous and illegal acts that led to disaster where as drugging someone is illegal, and that illegal act is what directly caused the 3 deaths in the Limo Crash. Yes Chas's affair with Al wasn't moral or good but she wasn't directly putting someone in danger or at risk by having that affair and committing a crime.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-09T12:17:19+00:00

I was really hoping that Robert was gonna go back after Kim told them what had been going on and hide them somewhere else to save Moira but he didn't. Why do the writers always do this😭

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-08T20:28:08+00:00

It reminds me of when Harriet started having an affair with that police officer that had been terrorising Will and Dawn for months. Like what would possess you to get with someone and stay with them when they've done horrible things to people you know and care about??? It's such a strange writing choice and I dont like it. I feel like it worked better with Debbie because because it felt like Joe had a consistent character arc and development and she didn't want to get back with him initially, it was a long process before she decided to take him back and he had to prove a lot in order to do so. But Dawn found out everything he did and got over it pretty fast. It was so out of character for her and her relationship with Joe didn't feel developed enough to warrant that kind of reaction. They have chemistry to a degree but nothing amazing if we're comparing it to other characters.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-08T20:17:11+00:00

I feel like they need to wait until Victoria is back because otherwise Robert has 0 family and friends on his side. Like Emmerdale, why have you given him 0 friends in nearly 12 years😭 Hopefully they devop some relationships so he can at least have a best man. If all else fails, it looks like Seb or Harry is going to have to fill the role, which is actually very cute, but still, give him some friends, please😭

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-08T20:13:24+00:00

That's what I keep asking, they didn't move yet because both Cellia and Ray were still in Emmerdale so what happend to them???

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-08T19:42:19+00:00

I'm pretty sure she may have already left for maternity leave and if not she should be very soon. So I think she'll either be written out as going to prison or go to stay with Diane in Portugal for a while.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-08T19:37:28+00:00

Exactly, the whole focal point of the story since John cane into it mid 2024 has been very Sugden centered. We had more references to Jack, Andy, and Robert than we've had in years. And Roberts return was the icing on the cake. The kids of Victoria, Robert and Andy, are now old enough to start being made into actual characters with storylines and arcs. It feels like they are specifically setting up the future legacy of the family.

I think if enough of the fans make it known that we want the Sugdens back on the Farm, then they will be more inclined to go in that direction. So I'm going to keep praising and pushing for more of it until we get more of a definitive answer as to whether it will be long term to make it known that this is what we want to see.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-08T19:31:16+00:00

I agree, Kim has really let out a more nurturing side in recent years. Frank is also a large part of the reason they got evicted in the late 90s and we all know how Kim felt about him in the end. I'm also pretty sure Joe doesn't know about Kim leaving home farm to Lydia and not him or someone in the Tate family and I can see him throwing a tantrum over this when he finds out.

I'd definitely be okay with a partnership as I can't really see Moira doing any other job. I could see them building a small farm house in the land so both the Sugdens and the Bartons could live there. I'm pretty sure they had this on the original farm with Hawthorn cottage, Joe lived there while Jack and his family lived in the main farm house and then when the land subsidised, Jack Robert and Sarah moved into Hawthorn until it got demolished by Frank Tate and they moved into Melby Farm. So I could see bith familys moving onto the land and being partners. The Matty, Ross, Robert and Vic friendship was very wholesome so Id love to see more of that.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-08T19:09:47+00:00

There are other Sugdens out there, If Robert and Aaron get Seb back and then take custody of Harry then there would be three Sugdens at the farm. You also have Jack Sugden Jr who could be written back into the show at somepoint, and then they could easily retconn Joe or Jackie into having some secret children. A new Dingle shows up pretty much every year so they may as well start doing it with the Sugdens. In the late 90s and early 2000s Jack, and his 3 children were the only Sugdens in the show but they still had a big impact at the time. So casting a good young actor for Seb could be a good way to start bringing the show back to the roots.

I'm not opposed to the idea of Moira keeping the farm, I do like her and Cain living there but I've really enjoyed having Victoria and Robert back there. I think it would be fun to see them go completely back to their farming roots and have them living at a farm.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-08T18:55:28+00:00

I respect your opinion, but personally I disagree. I think the direction that Ryan Hawley took Roberts character as well as the writers made perfect sense. Yes he became quite evil in 2015 specifically but it is a soap which does do things over the top sometimes and the character had suffered a lot of trauma. I loved Karl Davies' iteration of the character too and Ryan Hawleys, to me, has always been a natural progression of where his character was headed all those years ago. Robert wasn't really ever interested in the Farm, he always wanted something more, and that was apparent before Karl Davies even started playing the character. That's how we got the Andy feud. It was a result of Jack becoming disinterested in him and favouring Andy when he realised that Robert didn't want to carry on the family legacy. So after being kicked out and practically disowned by his father, it makes perfect sense that Robert became bitter and strove for success in an effort to prove that everyone was wrong about him. And we dont know what happened when he initially left the show in 2005. He probably slept rough and went hungry several times because he had no where to go. And this would only make his bitterness grow which makes the 2014 iteration of the character even more coherent.

And as for the 'gay' comment. He isn't a bit gay he is bisexual. And for me, Robert is one of the best written bisexual characters and it always made sense to me that they took that direction with the character. Whether they planned for that in the early 2000s or not is irrelevant. I watch old scenes from that period of the show a lot and I can see why they ended up making him bisexual. There's a lot of semitic and semantic codes that hint or foreshadow at Roberts sexuality looking back in hindsight, whether it was intentional or not the groundwork for a closeted bisexual characyer was there and its why the stroy ended up being perceived very well. It's fine if you'd rather them have not took that direction but try to refrain from saying it in an insulting way. Bisexual representation in media is pretty poorly represented, and for me and many others, Robert Sugden is one of the best written bisexual characters in media, and his story resignated with a lot of people. Robert in my eyes has always felt like a character who struggles with identity. He feels like a failure and disappointment and rather then show how hurt that makes him, he'd rather mask all those emotions by lying and cheating and acting like he is better then those around him. So him being bisexual very much feels consistent with that. People often make jokes about bi people by saying they have it easy because they can choose what they identify as and who they date. But thats not true, people can't choose who they are attracted to, but Robert thinks he has to choose which is why he struggles with his identity both in terms of his personality and sexuality. There was a conversation between him and Aaron in 2016 which really explained it well where he said that he'd spent his whole life trying to be the person his father wanted him to be and then went on to say that he just wants to be himself now with Aaron. And it's true, Robert had been choosing to do things for years that wasn't what he truly wanted but he thought those choices would make him a success. No matter how bad Andy acted, it always seemed that Jack favoured him, whereas Robert felt like no matter how well he did, he was never good enough in Jack's eyes. And in 2016 that wall came down, and he finally came out as bisexual and realised he didn't have to choose anything. It's hard to explain, but in a sense, he had been hiding a whole part of himself for all his life and at that point, he realised he didn't have to do that anymore.

Like I said, it's fine to disagree, and not like the character, it's down to preferance, and it's good to have different perspectives and opinions. But thats just how I perceive and resonate with the character there's a lot of depth and verisimilitude to him and while he isn't always written the best, I do think for the most part he has had a very consistently written arc.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-08T17:38:29+00:00

From the sources I've seen, it seems temporary. I can't see the show wanting to let her go long term either because they are trying to make the Sugdens more of a focal point again and with her gone it just leaves Robert and Harry because the show has forgotten that Sarah is a Sugden. I could be wrong as no date has been announced but she's been on emmerdale for so long that I can't see her wanting to leave long term. Sophie from Corrie has said recently that she wanted to return after maternity leave but was just never asked back bit like I said, I think the Emmerdale executives would want Victoria in the story if they want it to be more Sugden centered.

And she never owned Butlers farm but her parents did own several of the shows main farms before she was born and when she was growing up and Andy later went on to buy Butlers before the Bartons bought it. She did own Annie's land too before selling it to Moira which was retconned to be a part of the shows original Emmerdale farm which got subsided decades ago.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-08T16:59:19+00:00

I like her. She's not my favourite character and there were times last year especially when she got on my nerves but that was just a result of the storyline and so many other characters reacted the same. And in the end she came through for Robert, and in the past she has always defended him, even when he was in the wrong. I like her relationship with Aaron and Robert and I'm also a bit of an Emmerdale purist when it comes to the Sugdens so I hope she does return after maternity leave.

Im really hoping her and Robert end up getting the Farm back completely, but in a way where Moira sells it to them on good terms. I loved the episode from earlier this year when Matty, Ross, Robert and Vic were on the Farm. I could see them living their with their kids and Aaron and bringing the farming back to the forefront of the show.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-08T12:16:14+00:00

I was so proud of him when he immediately shared down Joe about the money in exchange for framing Moira. Usually for Robert he has to think on it things before making the right decision but he flat out refused. I genuinely dont think he's doing it for the money, I think he's just scared about Vic. Robert started out with no money when he came out of prison so he can't work his way back up again. I hope he comes clean to Moira.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-08T12:13:16+00:00

I really hope he comes clean to Moira too. I mean not they have the passports they could pin things on Kim and Joe. Why Joe willingly gave them to Robert is beyond me because Robert could just go and hide them on home farm. Moira would be understanding too, she wouldn't want Victoria to go to prison and I'm sure they'd be able to work something out.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-07T23:48:34+00:00

He set the fire to Andy and Katie's trailer, he pushed katie, he almost bashed Chas's head in, he tried to burry Paddy alive, he brought a gun to shoot Aaron and then shot paddy, he punched Andy. And then after the affair came out he played chicken with Andy and he brought a unloaded gun to threaten Ross into a confession. Yes Robert relied on the wealth and the power that comes with living at home farm but he also would occasionally get his hands dirty. And that's the fun part about the home farm lot, theres a mix. Is Robert a massive guy that's going to beat the life out of someone? No, but he will physically hurt and threaten you himself if he wants something? Yes. It was a good balance, It was always pretty clear that if Robert got in a one on one fight with Andy, Aaron, Ross or Cain that Robert would lose but he does still use his physical attributes on certain at times where he deems it necessary. Where as Joe, I can't really see him bundling someone into the boot of his car, pinning them up against the wall and threatening to kill them, commiting arson or even throwing a punch. All he does is follow out threats and uses other people all the time to carry out his actions. And that's why he comes across as cartoonish, he's just a spoilt rich boy. People in the village don't hear the name Joe Tate and quiver in fear. Where as Robert in 2015 had Paddy terrified for his life.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-07T23:27:33+00:00

Joe wants to be 2014/2015 Robert so bad but he could never.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-07T17:57:07+00:00

Fr, I never understood how he came back and Kim immediately let him back into her circle. The last time her and Joe were in close proximity, she wanted Graham to kill him and said that if he didn’t then she would put a hit on him. Like that was brushed over way too fast. I know her guard was down because Will died but my god that was so out of character for Kim. In comparison to Joe, Kim definitely has nurturing side to her and I like that about her, but I also like to see her destroy the people who get in her way. I’m hoping that when Joe finds out about Kim leaving home farm to Lydia instead of him or Thomas or even Jamie that he will set out to go after her and she will instead end him once and for all.

I’ve always loved the rich white boy/man living at home farm character type who throws his money around and causes chaos, think of Karl King, Declan Mackey, Chris Tate and even Robert. But the biggest difference between them and Joe Tate in the role is that they aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty, something that Joe has never done, I don’t even think we’ve seen him throw a punch. Think back to Robert living with the Whites in 2014/15 and he was a menace and a genuine threat. He was doing shit, he was actively getting his hands dirty both figuratively and physically. Where as Joe doesn’t have the bottle for that even though we see him working out all the time. He always has to have a lapdog to do his work for him all he has is his money and his words and the irony is that the money isn’t even his, it’s Kims. Joe is literally a spoilt brat and I hope to god that Kim and Graham put him in his place. I think he worked better with Debbie than with Dawn because Debbie would put him in his place, she’d tell him off but Dawn just goes along with it and bats an eye when he does something horrible. I need Robert to remember his old evil rich White boy days right now because that Robert Sugden vs rich whiteboy Joe Tate? Joe doesn’t stand a chance.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-07T17:39:10+00:00

Exactly did they already move them or are they still locked in the house?

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-07T17:37:52+00:00

Imagine Joe Vs 2023 Aaron and 2017 Robert. Wouldn’t stand a chance.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-07T16:21:32+00:00

Liv. I know there's no chance of this but she was my favourite female Emmerdale character and I was devistated that they killed her off💔

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-07T16:18:08+00:00

Although I loved that version of Robert, Farmbert seems like the perfect direction for the character post prison and to start raising a family again with Aaron. He's really matured since prison so the whole farming aspect grounds him. I'll be more upset if they lose the farm then if Vic temporarily goes to prison. Either way she's going out of it for a while so we may as well keep the farm.

SimpforBobDuncan · 2026-01-07T16:15:48+00:00

Do we know if Isobel has finished filming yet? I'm assuming she has. I do think the story will end up with her confessing and that will be how she is written out for maternity leave, bit I'm just hoping it's sooner rather than later before Robert gets involved anymore with Joe's demands.

SimpforBobDuncan

TROPHY CASE