Zoe Tate - Development

Development

Zoe arrived in the village a month after her father, Frank (Norman Bowler), stepmother Kim (Claire King) and brother Chris (Peter Amory) moved into Home Farm. Chris and Zoe's mother, Jean, died of cancer. In his book, 30 Years of Emmerdale, Lance Parkin described Zoe as "charitable and reasonable compared with the other Tates". He said while Zoe had a romantic streak, she also had a dark side, which often saw her become moody and angry. Zoe stuck up for what she believed in and was committed to animal rights and welfare.

In early 1993, Zoe decided that she wanted more from her friendship with Archie Brooks (Tony Pitts). Bracknell commented "It's one of those situations where neither of them has yet had the courage to say anything about their relationship. They've always been friends and I think they've definitely both thought about something more. But it's not until now that one of them has made the first move." A writer for Inside Soap said that there had always been sexual tension between Zoe and Archie and they both got jealous when one of them went out with someone else. Bracknell stated that when Zoe left for New Zealand, she regretted that nothing happened between herself and Archie. On her return, Zoe was "livid" when Archie had a girlfriend. Zoe eventually plucked up the courage and asked Archie to have sex with her. Bracknell quipped that it did not matter to Zoe that she was the one to make the first move. Archie was "gobsmacked" by Zoe's offer and was unsure about what to do. Bracknell said "I think he wants it to be right and he thinks 'we musn't do this'. And in a way I agree with Archie." The actress added that she would have been a bit sorry if Zoe and Archie did not manage to start a proper relationship as she believed they were good for each other.

A couple of months later, Zoe and Archie did have sex together and they began a relationship. Archie revealed that he was concerned that rushing into sex would spoil his friendship with Zoe, but after he submitted to her request, she held back and Archie was left "holding his breath." Zoe struggled to deal with the physical aspect of their relationship and she realised that she was a lesbian. Richard Arnold commented that apart from a one night stand with Michael Feldmann (Matthew Vaughan) and an older man, Patrick, who she once brought home for Christmas, Zoe did not have much experience with men and the mystery behind that had finally been revealed. Bracknell explained that Zoe was not aware of her sexuality when she decided to have sex with Archie and said "Zoe wanted to sleep with Archie to put her fears to rest but she didn't do it to prove anything. She didn't count out the possibility that it could all work out with him." Bracknell told Arnold that Archie would be gutted by the news, but Zoe would want to remain his friend. Bracknell thought Zoe's sexuality would be "a big hurdle to cross" with her family, especially with Frank who Zoe was very close to. Arnold reported that Zoe's bad luck with men was one reason why the show's producers felt the storyline could work for the character. He added that lesbianism had not been tackled before in a British soap. Of how the storyline unfolds, Bracknell explained "Zoe is quite feminine and not the obvious media stereotype of a lesbian, but the writers aren't taking any sort of moral stance. This is something that Zoe discovers gradually and it will be dealt with constructively, emotionally and positively."