Sugden Family - Changes in The Family

Changes in The Family

In early 1973, Amos feared that the brewery wanted a husband and wife team to run the pub together, in fear, Amos cycled over to the farm and proposed to his close friend, Annie Sugden. Annie was amused but turned Amos' offer down. Later in the year Peggy gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl. Matt and Peggy named the babies Sam and Sally Skilbeck, they also converted a barn on the farm into a small cottage for them to live in near the family. However a huge tragedy was to strike the Sugden family in July, just three months after the twins were born, Peggy unexpectedly suffered a brain haemorrhage and died. The family were devastated and Matt sent the twins to live with his Aunt Beattie and her husband so that they could give the twins full-time care as Matt had to work on the farm. Peggy was buried next to her father, Jacob.

In early 1974, Jack and Marian Sugden decided to leave Beckindale, to write his second novel in Italy. Devastation would later occur for Matt again when the twins died along with his aunt when her car collided with a train. Joe fell in love with Christine Sharp and married her, Christine started to work on the farm but the hard life of farming stressed her out and she left Joe after just five weeks. Jack later came back in 1976, after suffering from writer's block, he came to visit Annie and the family after his divorce from Marian, after getting the boost he needed, he left for Italy to finish off his second novel.

In 1976, Joe formed a relationship with Kathy Gimbel, a local farm girl who like Joe had recently split from her spouse however their relationship got too complicated and they split up. Later on, Joe's estranged wife, Christine Sugden, returned and wanted to give their marriage another go but Joe insisted on having a divorce. Christine's dad, Robert Sharp wanted Christine to get half of Emmerdale farm in the divorce settlement but Henry Wilks suggested to Joe that if Sharp claimed half of the farm then Joe could claim half of his dairy farm. With this in mind Sharp did not claim any of the farm and the divorce went through. Meanwhile Grandad Sam proposed to his old flame Nellie Radcliffe who turned him down, claiming they were too old to marry. Sam later thought to keep Nellie in her cottage when NY estates tried to force her out. Joe and Kathy reconciled later in 1977 and moved into 3, Demdyke Row but Kathy's dad committed suicide after his wife and kids left him. Kathy felt guilty and depressed and left Joe again. Matt meanwhile, had found love again in the form of Dolly Acaster in 1977, they eventually made plans to marry and did so in June 1978. Dolly later fell pregnant but misscaried in early 1980.