Natalie J Robb, known for her role as Moira Dingle on ITV’s Emmerdale, embraces her single life and explains why she’s never tied the knot or had children.
As Moira Dingle in Emmerdale, Natalie J Robb is the epitome of a devoted family woman and tenacious farmer. However, away from the cameras, Natalie leads a very different lifestyle. “I don’t have any children,” she reveals. “Apart from furry animals.”
The soap star has recently welcomed a new canine companion, Buddy, into her life following the loss of her cherished dog Bronson. “Last year in February, I lost Bronson, my best friend. Never felt grief like it, it doesn’t go away,” she shares. “Now Buddy won’t stop growing. I just love the companionship of an animal.”
Natalie harbours no regrets about her personal choices. “I’ve never been one for marriage. My mum got divorced when I was very young. I think my world shattered when that happened,” she reflects. “But I don’t believe people need marriage anymore. A lot of them have children – that’s a marriage in itself.”
She continues: “I’m 50 now, I spent a lot of time trying to find love but it wasn’t the right thing for me. I should have just been more single then, rather than find something.”
While her character Moira has weathered many storms, including a brain tumour and family turmoil, Natalie teases that there’s even more drama ahead for her character.
“It’s all kicking off,” Natalie hints, with Moira still grappling with her recent health scare. “She’s still in recovery, her tumour was only diagnosed last year.”
Moira has been a pillar of strength for her husband Cain, who’s been left shaken by the discovery of Nate’s body in a lake. “She knows what it’s like to lose a child, so she knows the pain he’s feeling,” Natalie explains, referencing the tragic 2016 death of Moira’s daughter Holly. “But there’s just so many different emotions going on.”
She’s also wrestling with guilt. Before Nate’s untimely demise, he was attacked by Cain – a reaction sparked by whispers that Moira had attempted to kiss him.
With suspicions of Moira and Nate’s past affair reigniting, Cain couldn’t hold back. “That fight they had,” Natalie reveals, “Moira believes she caused it.” And now, more trouble looms. Joe Tate has his sights set on Moira’s land, plotting to pass it to Kim Tate, his step-grandmother.
“Moira can be a bit crazy, fierce and protective,” Natalie describes. “But she’s a fair woman when it comes to farming and her business. What they’re trying to do to her is awful, it’s really bad. Her hands are tied.”
With Butler’s Farm already under pressure, the prospect of losing it threatens to leave Moira and Cain without a roof over their heads. “The outcome is going to be much worse,” Natalie warns.
“She’s resigned to the idea that they might have to sell. But then Joe spins her lies about being just a tenant farmer. She’s determined to save the farm at all costs. But working with Joe? He really gets under Moira’s skin.”
As tensions rise, Cain also clashes with his brother Sam, who’s employed by Kim and connected through his wife Lydia. The situation escalates when two trespassers are discovered hiding in Moira’s barn.
Cain points the finger at Joe, leading to a dramatic showdown. “I go to punch Joe Tate, but as I do that, I punch Lydia in the ear,” Natalie reveals. “It’s very convoluted but it creates a big rift between Sam and Cain.”
Off-screen, however, things are much more peaceful. Natalie has been working alongside Jeff Hordley (Cain) for over ten years. “We can work together with our eyes shut,” she shares.
“We have a nice friendship and a good working relationship. But it was also nice to work with Ned Porteous, who plays Joe, and do things with Home Farm. It’s been talked about for a while, they’ve always wanted this land. They want the land for access, they don’t care about the farm.”
Natalie feels a personal connection to the storyline. “I’ve got some farmer friends, they said that is the way it’s going a lot of the time. They’re making a lot of tenant farmers so they work their land,” she explains.
“But they don’t have the same responsibility. It’s not theirs anymore, which is really sad. Farmers are a different breed, they have a different mindset and they don’t have time to mess around. They’re survivors. Even Jeremy Clarkson realises now how hard it is.”
Natalie often hears from fans who admire Moira’s spirit – and she can relate. Growing up just outside Glasgow, she was a tomboy surrounded by boys in a farming community.
“There were more boys than there were girls. I didn’t get on with girls,” she confesses, “I was into playing football.” Natalie’s early days were far from easy, as she faced some tough times with bullying. “I was walking home from school one night,” she recalls.
“I had a bit of a black eye, my lip was bleeding. My mum said, ‘Come with me.’ She dragged me to one of the girls’ house and said, ‘You’re going to fight her one to one.'”.
The confrontation didn’t spiral out of control, but it left an indelible mark on Natalie. “I was terribly shy and quite sensitive,” she admits, “But I’ve definitely changed. Maybe Moira has helped.”
16 years on, and Natalie is still completely smitten with Emmerdale. “I live in the present but you never know what’s going to come up,” she muses, “The Emmerdale pace is fast and no day is the same. I absolutely thrive on that. I’m very lucky.”