ITV Emmerdale viewers fuming as Tom King pulls sick move against Mandy Dingle to control Belle

Belle Dingle’s friendship with Mandy Dingle is in peril and Emmerdale fans have Tom King to thank for the crisis.

As her trust in Tom King (played by James Chase) slowly falters, Mandy Dingle, played by soap icon Lisa Riley, has dropped hints Belle (Eden Taylor-Draper) should be careful before rushing into commitment with her beau. But during Wednesday’s (May 15, 2024) trip to the Yorkshire Dales, Tom made sure she wouldn’t thwart anymore of his plans.

Tom has been keen to lock Belle down at home with a baby, while she is adamant she needs more time to focus on her career but as he insists on the idea of a family, she is slowly starting to relent.

Meanwhile, Mandy tried to talk some sense into Belle, warning her about the effect of her schizophrenia medication on an unborn baby – a worry Tom has used to his advantage by suggesting to Belle that Mandy was gaslighting her.

Tensions eventually culminated into an explosive row in the Woolpack this Wednesday as Tom continues to isolate Belle from her nearest and dearest. The couple walked into the boozer ignoring Mandy and Paddy Kirk (Dominic Brunt) before Belle made it clear she wasn’t interested in talking to Mandy.

“I was only trying to give you some advice”, the latter said in an attempt to avoid conflict. “Even if it’s pessimistic and frightening?”, Belle sarcastically responded. While Mandy and Paddy continued to defend themselves, Belle was having none of it – and Tom stood back silently as he watched the discussion grow tenser by the second.

Matters went from bad to worse when Belle, incandescent with rage, used Mandy’s unlucky love history against her, comparing it all to her “very strong marriage” with Tom. And viewers were in disbelief when Belle warned her pal to “keep her nose out” of her life.

“Poor Mandy looked really hurt”, one of them lamented, while another jumped in: “Well done Tomtit – you’ve now estranged Belle and Mandy – so that plan worked perfectly especially as it makes her look like the unreasonable one.” A third one agreed: “Belle talk to bloody DR about your meds instead of taking your frustration out on Mandy, look at Tom how his manipulated her way of thinking.”

A fourth Emmerdale fan echoed: “Ah, poor Mandy, Belle is slowly isolating herself”, just as another shocked viewer wrote: “No way is Belle turning on my Mandy? Woah.” Another fumed: “Tom segregating belle from her family now. And she’s walking around blind too it all. It’s annoying!”

One viewer commented: “Fgs Belle! I don’t like the way she’s siding with Tom, saying they have a strong marriage”, while another raged: “Snidey, creepy, manipulative Tom makes my blood boil!”

Elsewhere, one viewer theorised Tom could make another sick move to get what he wants: “My suspicious mind makes me wonder if Gaslight Tom is gonna mess with Belle’s medicines.” While this remains to be seen, Belle’s coercive control ordeal is only set to get worse. In upcoming scenes, the overwhelmed wedding planner urges Tom to get help over his troubling behaviour as she promises to leave him if he decides otherwise.

Tom continually vilifies Belle, while she is devastated when he demands her to wait at home for a parcel on his behalf, forcing her to miss out on an outing with Lydia and Sam Dingle to celebrate the memory of her late mother, Lisa.

Soon enough, and after months of being relentlessly bullied by Tom, Belle snaps and physically lashes out against her husband in front of multiple villagers. Unbeknownst to her, Tom has told village GP Liam Cavanagh she has behavioural issues, another proof he is a skilled manipulator. But how will Belle cope through it all? Will Mandy realise what Tom is up to?