Emmerdale’s Belle star totally unrecognisable in first ever soap appearance aged seven

This week’s episodes of Emmerdale had fans on their feet cheering as fan-favourite Belle Dingle, portrayed by Eden Taylor-Draper, announced her departure from her oppressive hubby Tom King.

Having joined the soap as a child star at just seven years old, Eden’s debut was in October 2005, and she’s since been at the heart of dramatic storylines. Her iconic character, Belle, first appeared sharing the screen with Steve Halliwell, who brought to life her on-screen father Zak Dingle until his poignant exit last year.

A flashback to 2005 shows feisty Belle facing repercussions for causing chaos at school when she starts a fight, subsequently getting a harsh talking-to from her dad.

Perched in the Dingles’ trusty van, a fiery Belle vents about a bully taunting her at school, angrily saying: “She kept calling me! She keeps coming up behind me and pulling my hair going, ‘Ding dong’ like it’s supposed to be funny!”

Her dad Zak cautions her, gruffly reminding her: “You can’t go round thumping folk!” to which Belle defiantly responds: “Cain does it!”, reports the Express.

Trouble follows Belle home as she faces her mum Lisa’s wrath over the brawl, ending up slaving away at the dishes while her brother Sam and his wife Alice bear witness. The storyline cleverly explains Belle’s absence from earlier episodes she was supposedly caring for Granny Clegg, but it also served to age the character without recasting the role.

Before Eden Taylor-Draper became synonymous with Belle Dingle in Emmerdale, the part was initially played by James Mather as a baby and then by his twin sister Emily from 1998 to 2005. Post-soap, Emily opted for a life beyond the lens, aiming to be an educator as she pursued studies in sports with ambitions of becoming a teacher, marking a drastic shift from her stint in front of the cameras.

It was a proud family moment when Eden clinched the accolade for best performance by a young actor at the British Soap Awards in 2007; nevertheless, her mother Niki maintained a level head amidst the excitement.

Niki conveyed to the York Press: “My daughter won a soap award on Saturday, which we’re over the moon about. My other daughter went to the toilet on her own for the first time and we were just as pleased. We’re proud of all of them for doing these fabulous things, but they are all equal. It’s just that for one of them, eight million people were watching!”

Despite the glitz and glamour of the awards night, Eden preferred a more grounded celebration. Remembering the event, Niki recounted: “She said, ‘Mum, can we go back to the hotel? I want to bounce on the bed and have a ham sandwich’. So we went back to the hotel and bounced on the bed and had a ham sandwich and a cup of tea.”