Emmerdale newcomer Joe Absolom opens up on his dark storyline involving April
Absolom's character has a previous connection with Mack.
Joe Absolom's Ray will be stirring up trouble in Emmerdale as his dark connection to Mackenzie (Lawrence Robb) crosses paths with the younger members of the village.
The ITV soap recently announced that Absolom would be joining the Emmerdale cast as an old contact of Mack who initially claims to be selling agricultural machinery before his intentions become clear.
And now, in an exclusive chat with RadioTimes.com at the British Soap Awards, Absolom has teased what viewers can expect from his characters and those involved in Ray's dark plot.
"Ray turns up and he likes to sell the leaves [drugs] and it's a bit of a county lines idea," he explained. "I actually get kids, April and Dylan, to work for me and to play them cash. It's quite good fun."
April [Amelia Flanagan] hasn't had the best start to the year, having experienced life on the streets after she ran away from home on Christmas. After the police raided her safe house, April got away but buckled in pain as she gave birth alone in a toilet cubicle.
While back in the village, April is still struggling with adjusting back to normal life, and it seems trouble awaits her.
As for how Ray and Mack crossed paths in the past is yet to be revealed, but it'll be sure to rock the village.
Producer Laura Shaw said of Absolom's casting: "It's fantastic to have such a high-calibre and immensely talented actor join our wonderful team to play the role of Ray.
"Charming, charismatic and effortlessly likeable, Ray is an extremely complex character who very quickly shows his dark and villainous side to some of our most loved villagers, leaving them in no doubt as to what he's capable of."
While Absolom added: "Well, what an honour to join such a talented team at Emmerdale! It’s an iconic show and I’m grateful to be part of it. I can’t wait to see what’s in stock for Ray!"
Emmerdale airs Mondays to Fridays at 7:30pm on ITV1. Stream on ITVX.
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Authors
Katelyn Mensah is the Senior Entertainment Writer for Radio Times, covering all major entertainment programmes, reality TV shows and the latest hard-hitting documentaries. She previously worked at The Tab, with a focus on reality TV and showbiz news and has obtained a BA (Hons) in Journalism.
