Emmerdale finally brings back absent character tonight after months away

Emmerdale spoilers follow from Tuesday's episode (26 August), which is available to watch now on ITVX and YouTube but hasn't yet aired on ITV1.

Emmerdale brings back Arthur Thomas tonight – five months after his last appearance on the show.

The teen character has been absent from our screens for most of the year without much explanation, appearing in just three of 2025's episodes before today.

In Tuesday's episode, Arthur pops up for a very special occasion as he celebrates his 18^thbirthday with family and friends.

Arthur's mum Laurel, sister Gabby and close friend April Windsor are among those wishing him well.

ITV

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Sadly, it's tricky for April to be too focused on Arthur, as she's still caught up in drug dealing dramas with her troubled boyfriend Dylan Penders.

Elsewhere in the episode, there's also a touching reference to Arthur's late dad Ashley, who died in 2017.

Although Arthur has been absent from our screens in recent months, he started to be mentioned again in recent episodes of the soap.

In a chat with April last month, Laurel mentioned how Arthur has been keeping his distance from her to respect her boundaries following her difficult year.

ITV

Around the same time, Dylan also stole some of Arthur's tracksuit bottoms from the washing line at Laurel's house when he was struggling without a place to stay.

Last week, Alfie Clarke – who plays Arthur – revealed that he'd only just returned to filming after a holiday, so there could be further absences ahead from his character in the coming weeks.

Meanwhile, there's big drama on the way for April over the next fortnight as she's drawn deeper into dodgy activities thanks to her connections with Dylan and drug dealer Ray.