Tracy Shankley’s (Amy Walsh) recent antics were finally exposed in Emmerdale earlier this week, when Vanessa Woodfield (Michelle Hardwick) drunkenly told Eric Pollard (Chris Chittell) that she’d been stealing.
Poor Tracy had found herself struggling after becoming a single mum. With no child support payments from Nate Robinson, she was forced to steal from David’s shop to pay her rent.
In tonight’s episode, Eric very kindly offered her job back, but warned her that she needed to regain his trust. Tracy was incredibly grateful for his change of heart, given that he had been threatening to call the police not long before.
Later, Tracy bumped into Kerry Wyatt (Laura Norton), who confessed that she had been the one to encourage Eric to involve the police, which she knew was hypocritical after what she’d got away with in the past.
As Kerry apologised for what had happened to Tracy’s dad, Frank Clayton, Tracy revealed that she was ready to stop blaming Kerry for his death now that she knew how it felt to act out of desperation.
But who was Frank, and how did he die?
Who was Tracy’s dad Frank Clayton?
Tracy’s dad Frank Clayton first appeared in the Emmerdale village in 2016, and was played by Michael Praed.
During his time in the ITV soap, Frank was revealed to also be Vanessa’s dad, making her and Tracy half-sisters.
Having been released from prison after serving time for fraud, Frank vowed to turn his life around.
He began a relationship with Megan Macey, but things between them grew sour when he got involved in one of Charity Dingle’s (Emma Atkins) scams, before later sleeping with her.
Eventually, Megan forgave him and they got back together.
How did Frank Clayton die in Emmerdale?
In 2019, a devastating fire took hold at the sweet factory, and it put Tracy in danger as she was trapped in the building.
Frank was able to get his daughter out alive, but he ended up getting caught in an explosion that claimed his life.
The horrifying blaze was accidentally set by Kerry and her daughter Amy Wyatt (Natalie Ann Jamieson).
Kerry and Amy started the fire right after they raided the safe at the factory – a crime that Kerry had previously claimed would be ‘victimless’.
However, the pair noticed that the robbery had been caught on CCTV, and when they tried to destroy the footage, they carelessly left wires exposed, which sparked and set the building on fire.
