Emmerdale star exits after 6 years in early ITVX release showdown

The following article contains spoilers from an episode of Emmerdale that hasn’t aired on ITV1 yet, but can be viewed on ITVX.

After 6 years, Emmerdale’s Bear Wolf (Joshua Richards) has left the village.

The character was introduced to us in 2019 as Paddy Kirk’s (Dominic Brunt) biological father. The pair have had their ups and downs, as expected, but ultimately had quite a strong relationship.

Up until fairly recently.

Due to Bear’s sudden change in behaviour, he has clashed multiple times with Paddy. As concern grew, Paddy attempted to get through to his dad to work out what was on his mind, but he struggled.

As Bear became more irritable and forgetful, Paddy convinced himself that something was seriously wrong. He tried to do a memory test on his dad in the pub a couple of days ago, fearful he might have dementia, but it ended with Bear angrily grabbing Paddy and pinning him against the wall.

Yesterday, Paddy was attacked by a dog that was found on Celia Daniels’ (Jaye Griffiths) farmland. Bear saved Paddy’s life due to quick thinking and calling an ambulance in time, but for some reason, he didn’t want to focus on this for very long.

Instead, Bear verbally attacked Paddy. He claimed that he lets people walk all over him, and that his loved ones are afraid to say things sometimes in case he feels suicidal.

It hurt Paddy even more than arm injury. In tonight’s episode, talking to his dad about it and getting back on the same page was nigh-on impossible, so he decided to put his mind elsewhere.

Paddy took a bolt gun from the vets and went to the spot where the dog attacked him. He was found by Celia, who said that she had shot the stray dog already.

Celia got the upper hand in this conversation and scared Paddy away by practically screaming in his face. With his self-esteem low, Paddy unleashed his anger on his dad and said it would be better if he no longer lived with them.

Heartbroken, Bear packed up his things and left, with Mandy Dingle (Lisa Riley) and Pads under the impression he was off to see his friend in Ireland.

However, as he stood outside, Bear called his mate and learnt that the plans had changed. Feeling unwanted, Bear got in his hire car, and drove away.

This is the last we’ve seen of Bear – but not permanently.

The character will return in a few weeks time, as part of a mysterious new storyline.