Emmerdale spoilers follow.
Emmerdale star Samantha Giles has revealed that her character Bernice Blackstock will put up a fight for her ex-partner Liam Cavanagh when she returns to the village.
Bernice is heading back home next week after time away in Australia, but lots has changed in her absence.
Bernice's departure in 2019 led to the breakdown of her relationship with Liam, who has since moved on with his life by getting engaged to Leyla Harding.
Speaking to Digital Spy and other media about why Bernice comes back, Samantha explained: "There's quite a lot going on, isn't there? It's all to do with her connected family. We've got Gabby pregnant and Liam out to get married to Leyla. So there's quite a lot for Bernice to come back for!
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"Bernice does get it into her head that everybody else is going to be on the same page as her. She's been having some sort of relationship with her ex-husband in Australia, but it has gone wrong. She now thinks maybe the door is still open for her and Liam.
"Liam is engaged to someone else and Bernice thought that wouldn't happen. Liam and Leyla kissed quite soon after Bernice left, so she's harbouring that grudge, really."
She continued: "Obviously Bernice moved on quite quickly when she went to Australia and forgot about Liam. Coming back is more to do with her pride and the fact that he's now with someone else.
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"She thinks: 'How dare he?' She thinks he should be falling at her feet, begging for her forgiveness and wanting to try again.
"I think that's what irks Bernice, rather than there being any genuine feelings left. I don't think Bernice really knows what love is.
"We can probably guess that Bernice is not going to take this lying down and she's going to fight. Even if she doesn't really want Liam in the end, she's going to fight for him."
However, Samantha also hinted that Bernice might not get the reaction from Liam that she's expecting.
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She laughed: "I think Liam will be quite shocked to see Bernice back. I'm sure he will be cross and I certainly don't think he's going to be falling at her feet!"
Emmerdale bosses announced Bernice's return in April. Her comeback scenes air in next Thursday's double bill (May 27).
Asked whether she always planned to return, Samantha replied: "I didn't know what was going to happen. I certainly needed to have a break because I was doing a lot of writing. I come to work from Liverpool and the travelling was also becoming impossible to negotiate.
"But you just don't know what's round the corner, especially when you're freelance. I did a lot of things in lockdown – and in spite of lockdown – that I never thought I'd be able to do.
"When this came up, it seemed like a good thing to do. The character had a lot of things to come back for, so I thought: why not?"
Emmerdale airs weeknights at 7pm on ITV, with an extra episode at 8pm on Thursdays.
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