Emmerdale fans have long joked about Dotty Thomas always seeming to be locked away in her room on the ITV soap.
For the past two years, her mother Laurel Thomas has often referred to her young daughter, aged five, and called out to her in the house.
But Dotty is never in scenes and always seems to be up in her room, or somewhere with a relative.
Viewers were in for a surprise though this week, as Dotty appeared on screen again for the first time in what fans believed to be around two years.
That said, she did actually appear on the show last month, in a scene with her older brother Arthur.
While actress Tilly-Rue Foster has played the role since 2016, when the character was born, she had been noticeably missing for some time – with one of her last known scenes on the show being in May 2020, when there was a fire that almost killed her.
(Image: ITV)
When filming was halted in March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, there were some major changes to the set and filming when it came to starting up again.
One key change was that children did not return to filming for a long while, with only limited cast members allowed there at any one time.
As things started to ease and restrictions lifted, filming went slightly back to normal and it was only this year that more of the child stars have been back to the studios.
(Image: ITV)
The odd child character did make an appearance a year ago, but most of the time they were just off screen.
From staying with relatives to being in their rooms, or playing somewhere, the soap found numerous ways to explain why they weren’t in the scenes.
It became a little bit of a joke with fans, who claimed characters like Dotty were forever in their rooms.
(Image: itv)
So when the character made a comeback this week after so long away, fans were surprised – and the bigger shock came when they realised how grown up she was.
The actress who plays Dotty has grown a lot and it was certainly noticed by fans who raced to Twitter to share their shock.
One viewer commented: “Well hasn’t there been a growing spurt in # emmerdale.. first Arthur now Dotty…what they feeding them?”
(Image: ITV)
Another agreed: “What have they been feeding the kids in the past 2 years-First Arthur now Dotty has shot up in height.”
A third fan added: “Dotty is so big now omg,” as a fourth said: “It’s Dotty all grown up.”
The comments kept on coming too, with another viewer tweeting: “Dotty got that big when?” while another noted: “Nearly 2 years since she last appeared.”
Got any theories or thoughts on the storyline? Let us know in the comments section below
Emmerdale airs weeknights at 7:30pm on ITV, with an hour-long episode on Thursdays.
Emmerdale fans in disbelief as ‘grown up’ Dotty Thomas returns after almost two years
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