Emmerdale icon Joe Tate quit the village in heart-stopping scenes a whopping 30 years on from his soap debut.

The key character has been at the centre of a series of significant storylines during his on-and-off run on the programme.

Ned Porteous made a shock return as Joe at Christmas six years after he was believed to have been murdered, having taken over the role in 2017.

Prior to that, Oliver Young portrayed the figure in the Yorkshire village from 1995 until 2005 when he left the area with Zoe Tate and her daughter Jean.

But now after three decades on our screens, Joe has made another surprise exit from the soap during Monday’s episode Joe Facetimes Caleb, after committing a terrible crime against another character.

On his return to Emmerdale over the festive period, everyone was shocked to discover he was still alive after it seemed he had been killed by Cain Dingle in 2018. 

Emmerdale icon Joe Tate, currently played by Ned Porteous (pictured), has quit the village in heart-stopping scenes a whopping 30 years on from his soap debut

Needing a kidney, he tried to take Noah Dingle’s (right) before attacking Caleb and taking his in a shocking plot development

He revealed he had been living abroad and working with Will Taylor, but it turned out he had another giant secret – he was receiving dialysis treatment and needed a kidney.

After attempting to take half-brother Noah Dingle’s kidney, Joe turned to Caleb as his next victim, even more sinister given he is a member of his family.

On Monday night, Emmerdale dealt with the fallout of the attack on Caleb, with Joe revealing to him his reason for disappearing.

He told the victim over the phone: ‘It’s a work trip. Illinois this time of year is all just wind and rain. 

After Caleb asked him how he is feeling, Joe added: ‘Yeah, late night. How are they treating you?’

From his hospital bed, Caleb said: ‘Doctors are giving me a load of meds. I feel like a right druggie.’

Discussing a police investigation into the attack, he added: ‘They found the car; they’re dusting it for prints.

‘I want to talk to you when you get back though.’

Ned made a shock return as Joe at Christmas six years after he was believed to have been murdered (pictured)

The key character (pictured, in 2018) has been at the centre of a series of significant storylines during his on-and-off run on the programme

In a bid to throw Caleb off the scent, Joe said: ‘Sure! I’m not sure how much help I can be. When I got there, whoever did that to you had gone… I’ve got to go for a meeting, but you take care of yourself, okay?’

It turned out Dr Crowley was in the room with Joe for the call and the ᴀssailant justified his contact with his victim, saying: ‘I think it would be odd to not check up on Caleb.’

The doctor responded: ‘He’s not your problem anymore. Shaun’s been released this morning pending an investigation and now we’re flying him to Thailand as requested. It’s not cheap.’

Joe said, ‘Money well spent. And my car?’, to which Dr Crowley replied, ‘Discreetly delivered back to Home Farm.’

After hearing Joe’s plan to flee for god, the doctor said: ‘You’ve just had your op. You shouldn’t be travelling and not without trained medical staff.’ 

But the iconic character was hellbent on leaving the area, adding: ‘I’m aware of the risks. I can’t stay here. I’ve got medics waiting for me when I arrive in Dubai. Time to move on.’ 

A car was then shown driving Joe away from the village in what seemed to be the villain’s final exit from the soap.

A look back at a recent interview with actor Ned might suggest otherwise, however, with the star saying: ‘Well, as we’ve started to see, there are other things in the village that are keeping Joe’s attention. 

It comes after it was revealed that Cathy Hope, played by Gabrielle Dowling, 19, (pictured) was going to go on a ‘temporary’ break’ from the soap after 18 years 

A source told The Sun: ‘Gabrielle has been working solidly on the show for her entire life but with her A levels coming up thought it was best to take a break to focus on them’

‘So if he should ever realise that he’s healthy again, what’s next, you know, everything which is going on with Dawn, if it does seem legitimate and if it is legitimate, then that will obviously be something to keep him around.

‘Also he’s also very low on family members, so potentially being just near and around Noah, that could be enough to stay. Family is important to him and so he may want to stick around.’

Read More Iconic Emmerdale star taking break from soap after a whopping 18 years on screens

It comes after it was revealed that Cathy Hope, played by Gabrielle Dowling, 19, was going to go on a ‘temporary’ break’ from the soap after 18 years.    

A source told The Sun: ‘Gabrielle has been working solidly on the show for her entire life but with her A levels coming up thought it was best to take a break to focus on them.

‘She will be gone for a matter of months and will return later in the year once exam season is over.

‘Her exit storyline is being kept quiet until it plays out on screen but it’s only going to be a temporary one.’

Emmerdale airs on ITV1 and is available to stream on ITVX.