LAUREL and Jai make the heartbreaking decision to terminate their pregnancy in a special four-hander episode next week in Emmerdale.
The episode – featuring Laurel, Jai, Marlon and Rhona – will see Laurel and Jai make the controversial decision after a CVS test reveals the baby has Down’s syndrome.
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Viewers will then see Laurel and Jai, who are left reeling by the diagnosis, head home to work out and process what’s happened.
But when they arrive they’re shocked to realise Gabby has found the scan picture and that she’s got the kids excited about having another brother or sister.
Later, Rhona notices something is bothering Laurel, and encourages her to open up.
Laurel comes clean to Rhona about what’s happening, but it’s not long before Rhona gets hurt and angry at their conversation.
The next day, Laurel and Jai continue to struggle to make their decision and overhear Marlon and Rhona reminiscing about their son Leo and what joy he’s brought into their lives.
Later, Jai and Laurel discuss all the factors, but realise they’re both united in a silent agreement to terminate the pregnancy.
Actress Charlotte Bellamy – who plays Laurel – has said of the storyline: “Terminating a pregnancy is an emotive subject, but I think, as a programme, what Emmerdale does brilliantly is portray difficult stories that are important to tell.”
She added that she’s hopeful that “Laurel and Jai’s story will take the audience on the journey of them coming to this conclusion and having some understanding why they do”.
“There are some very powerfully written scenes that I hope will give a fair portrayal of their situation.
“When I embarked on this storyline I was well aware of the responsibility of the subject matter, but the scripts have been so well written and I think the story is told fairly.”
Series producer Laura Shaw said: “Right from the moment the idea was first mooted for this storyline, we knew it was one that, if we went ahead, it had to be fully researched, which involved us speaking to medical professionals, charities and parents with lived experience.
“Listening to women and men telling us their stories, hearing what brought them to make the difficult decision to terminate their pregnancies, cemented for us that this was a topic rarely shown on soap, but a really important one to highlight.
“Translating what we had learnt into Emmerdale scripts led to what was arguably the most challenging and difficult writing our writing team had ever been tasked with.
“What we have produced, and Charlotte and Chris have both brilliantly brought to life, is some of the most heart-breaking and emotional episodes of Emmerdale viewers will have ever seen.”
