Emmerdale star Isabel Hodgins issues one-word message in emotional 39-week bump update

As the walls close in on one of Emmerdale’s most dramatic storylines in years, life off-screen is moving toward a moment of quiet, powerful joy for Isabel Hodgins. The actress, who has portrayed Victoria Sugden for nearly two decades, has shared a poignant 39-week pregnancy update—just as her on-screen alter ego edges closer to a devastating exit that will leave lasting scars on the Dales.

Isabel’s journey with Emmerdale began in 2006, when she first stepped into the role of Victoria Sugden, a character rooted at the heart of one of the soap’s most iconic families. Over the years, Victoria has grown from a vulnerable child into a resilient woman shaped by trauma, loyalty, and impossible moral choices. Now, as Isabel prepares to welcome her first child, Victoria’s storyline has reached one of its darkest and most consequential chapters yet.

The seeds of Victoria’s downfall were planted in 2024, when she learned the truth about her secret brother, John Sugden. At a time when her family had already been fractured by loss and imprisonment—most notably Robert Sugden’s incarceration over the death of Lee Posner—Victoria was eager to believe that John’s arrival was a chance for healing. She welcomed him with open arms, desperate for connection and family unity.

But John’s presence would soon unravel everything she held dear.

What began as cautious optimism quickly turned into unease as John embedded himself deeper into village life. His romance with Aaron Dingle—Robert’s ex-husband—burned fast and bright, a whirlwind affair that swept Aaron off his feet and led to wedding plans almost as quickly as the relationship began. To Victoria, this felt like fate restoring balance: her brother finding love, her family moving forward.

That illusion shattered the moment Robert returned.

Robert’s dramatic interruption of the wedding marked a turning point not only for Aaron, but for John himself. Faced with the possibility of losing Aaron, John’s darker instincts surged to the surface. Viewers slowly began to see the truth: beneath his charm lay a dangerous hero complex, one that compelled him to manufacture crises so he could be the one to save the day.

That obsession proved fatal.

In a chilling escalation, John attempted one of his “rescues” with Nate Robinson—but instead of saving him, the injection John administered killed him. Panic set in, and as the truth began to close in, John made a desperate final move: throwing himself and Aaron off a cliff in a twisted attempt to bind them together forever. The act exposed everything. John fled the village, leaving devastation in his wake.

His return, during the epic Corrie-dale crossover episode, was never going to end quietly.

In one of Emmerdale’s most harrowing sequences, Victoria awoke after being injected and stumbled upon John at the crash site. Injured, frantic, and unhinged, John begged her to run away with him—to start again somewhere no one knew them, as a family. But Victoria, no longer blinded by loyalty, fought back.

What followed was raw, brutal, and irreversible.

As the struggle turned physical, Victoria discovered a syringe hidden in John’s pocket—the same instrument that had already taken one life. Acting on pure survival instinct, she stabbed him in the neck. Just like Nate, John died from the injection. In that moment, Victoria crossed a line she can never uncross.

Her confession to Robert and Aaron was met with shock—and a vow of secrecy. But secrets rarely survive long in the Dales. Joe Tate, lurking in the shadows as ever, had recorded the incident. Using the footage as leverage, he blackmailed Robert into framing Moira Dingle in exchange for his silence, detonating yet another moral bomb within the village.

With Victoria now a killer and the truth buried under layers of deception, her future in Emmerdale is bleak. Her exit from the soap later this year feels less like a departure and more like the inevitable consequence of years of trauma finally colliding.

Against this backdrop of fictional darkness, Isabel Hodgins’ real life tells a very different story.

Earlier last year, the actress announced she was expecting her first child with her husband, Adam Whitehead. The couple—who had recently married—shared the joyful news with fans by posing with an ultrasound image, captioned with a heartfelt line that traced the milestones of their life together: love, marriage, and now, parenthood.

Now, at 39 weeks pregnant, Isabel has offered fans a final glimpse of this chapter before motherhood begins.

Taking to Instagram, she posted a softly lit Polaroid photograph of herself seated on an exercise ball, her baby bump fully formed, her posture calm and reflective. The caption was striking in its simplicity: “Waiting.” Accompanied by hashtags like #waitingforyou, #preparing, and #pregnancy, the one-word message resonated deeply with followers who know both the emotional weight of anticipation and the intensity of everything Isabel has portrayed on screen.

The response was immediate and affectionate. Co-star Laura Norton, who plays Kerry Wyatt, commented warmly: “So close beauties.” Fans echoed the sentiment, flooding the post with messages of support, excitement, and admiration.

There is a poetic contrast in the timing. As Victoria Sugden faces the consequences of a life shaped by violence, secrecy, and loss, Isabel Hodgins stands on the brink of a new beginning—one defined by hope, love, and the promise of something entirely her own.

For viewers, it marks the end of an era. Isabel’s portrayal of Victoria has been one of Emmerdale’s emotional anchors, guiding audiences through stories of grief, resilience, and moral complexity. Her impending exit will leave a noticeable void in the Sugden legacy, and the reverberations of Victoria’s actions are certain to be felt long after she’s gone.

Off-screen, however, the future could not be more different. As Isabel waits—quite literally—for her next chapter to arrive, her quiet update speaks volumes. Sometimes, a single word is enough to capture everything: the fear, the excitement, the stillness before life changes forever.