Emmerdale - Val Pollard HIV+?
A quiet village in the heart of Yorkshire, remote, idyllic surroundings, a traditional country pub. Sounds perfect doesn’t it? Oh, I forgot to mention the odd explosion, a few murders, a coach crash and even a plane falling from the sky.
Over its 42 years, the fictional village of Emmerdale has entertained the nation, and reached in to most homes in the UK. We have seen some pretty hard hitting storylines too; from characters battling cancer to victims of rape. The actors, writers and producers of the show have always sensitively and beautifully portrayed these difficult and at times taboo subjects.
I have avidly watched Emmerdale for some years now, and when I heard they were to tackle a HIV storyline – I wasn’t expecting Charlie Hardwick’s character Val Pollard to be the character that would be involved. A heterosexual woman in her 50’s – to some of the public was simply shocking. To me, it made complete sense to have chosen a character of that profile.
“New diagnoses among older adults more than doubled between 2002 and 2011, rising from 442 in 2002 to 990 in 2012.” National Aids Trust
Charlie plays the part of Val perfectly for me – the one liners, the comedic arguments and the hilarious relationship with her on screen husband Eric. So I admit, when I found out it was her, I questioned whether it was the right choice of character. My question was very quickly answered as I watched, emotionally, at how beautifully Charlie portrayed the character’s reaction.If you don’t watch the show, Val, who has always been somewhat of a good time girl, is now happily married, but had an affair whilst on Holiday.
Now, Ian, the married man involved, has arrived in the village with the news that he has been diagnosed, and is now living with HIV. He has come to tell Val, as they had had unprotected sex, and he wanted her to get herself tested. Her reaction was very nonchalant and dismissive when she was initially told;
“I’m a woman, I’m 49…ish! I’m too old for this carry on! It’s a youngen’s thing! I’ve slept with millions of men, and I haven’t even had thrush!”
It later becomes clear she is struggling to cope with the news, and goes to meet Ian. It’s then that the reality of a HIV diagnosis seems to hit her.
“I was only ever worried about getting pregnant, then when that threat was done, I didn’t give it much thought. I’ve got a gay son n’all, totally vigilant about this kind of stuff. He used to tell me off, and I would just laugh…what is he going to say?”
Ian then accompanies Val to a sexual health clinic to get a pin-prick HIV test, she panics and runs from the clinic before she is tested.
The panic and fear that is being portrayed is very realistic. Watching Val brought a lot of memories back for me, and I could remember feeling just like her. The reaction from the public has been somewhat mixed; some reactions are utter confusion at how and why the story line is affecting Val as an older heterosexual woman.
A while ago, I was speaking to an older woman in a bar. She was ultra-glam, and very much enjoying her 50’s…and being a divorcee. She admitted she was at times promiscuous, and didn’t practice safe sex. She told me that she thought the HIV/AIDS epidemic had ended in the 80s because “you just don’t hear of it anymore’.
I don’t doubt as an older business woman, who spends her spare time drinking fine wines and eating in restaurants every night – not watching soaps, reading tabloid type newspapers – it simply hasn’t been a topic she has seen.
"It wasn’t until some dear friends of mine were featured in the Daily Mail..." – that suddenly HIV was ‘resurrected’ for her. She realised it wasn’t ‘over’ and, seeing the story of, like her, an older heterosexual woman, did she realise that it WAS something that could affect her, and you could see in her eyes, it had dawned on her that, as someone that had never consistantly practiced safe sex – could have already done so.
I never saw her again, so whether she got tested, or indeed started to practice safer sex is unknown, but at least she knew.
I see Val’s storyline to be that situation, but on a scale of incredible magnitude.
6-8 million people watch Emmerdale. That is a lot of people that could have been watching, knowing they could easily be in Val’s place. I wonder, how many questioned it so much that they were prompted to go and get a HIV test.
This is of course, not soap lands first story line tackling HIV. The most well-known was of course the character of Mark Fowler in Eastenders, who was also heterosexual. Hollyoaks also had one with Mallacky, Mercedes and Kris, prompting PEP treatment to be introduced to the show. Coronation Street had Violet, who like Val, was also heterosexual.
Emmerdale however, is the first soap to tackle HIV in older heterosexual women, and I hope the sensitivity and the beautifully realistic portrayal prompts more women to go and get tested, and give the hard hitting reality that safe sex is important, no matter your age or sexuality.
To say I hope the character tests positive may sound crass or even immoral; but perhaps a beloved character that is hitting so many homes in the UK contracting HIV could impact people on a greater scale.
I continue to watch as this storyline unfolds, with great interest as a fan of the show, and as an activist.
Could soap land be the key to change the rise in new diagnoses in the heterosexual community?
