Emmerdale star Mark Charnock revealed that he cried when he discovered that his on-screen counterpart Marlon Dingle would be shot dead in dramatic scenes.

The actor, who has played Marlon for almost 30 years, opened up about Tuesday’s (November 4) edition of the ITV serial, which, as viewers know, contained a pretty shocking twist.

Ahead of the episode hitting screens, Mark, 57, discussed how Marlon is in the dark about what April Windsor (Amelia Flanagan), who has been targeted by drug dealer Ray Waters (Joe Absolom), is going through, branding the past year a ‘really dark’ one for the father and daughter duo.

‘They’ve not been communicating,’ he said on This Morning, revealing that Marlon just wants April back in his life. ‘Because of everything she’s been going through, she’s protecting him by not telling him. She’s killed a man and it’s self-defence.’

Tuesday’s offering of the soap, which focused solely on April and Marlon’s story, saw things take quite a turn, with Marlon finding out what his daughter has been going through.

In intense scenes, Ray turned up at Smithy Cottage and shot Marlon, who died in heartbreaking scenes.

However, much to the relief of audiences, the day rewinded – with the whole thing having been in April’s mind.

Mark branded the twist ‘astonishing’ and revealed the impact it had upon him when he first discovered what would happen.

‘The producers told me about the episode and what was going to happen, but reading it was more shocking. I cried when I read it.’

The episode in question left fans utterly in shock. ‘Omg what an episode!’ X user Julie Reed wrote. ‘I really thought she told her dad!’

Amy exclaimed that ‘they got me’, admitting that the scenes had left them ‘crying like a baby’.

JD.Gamz had ‘no words’ except to declare ‘wow’ over it while Metro’s own readers declared it ‘one of the best episodes in years’ and ‘a total rollercoaster.’