Nathaniel "Nate" Robinson was the son of Cara Robinson and the long-lost son of Cain Dingle, the father of Frankie Robinson and the -husband of Tracy Metcalfe.
Nate originally came to the village seeking revenge on Cain, who he thought had abandoned him and his mother, by having an affair with his wife Moira.
Nate was killed by John Sugden in 2024, as John tried to make it look like he was saving his life.
Biography[]
1991-2019: Birth and early life[]
Nate Robinson was born on 27th April 1991 to Cain Dingle and Cara Robinson but was raised by only his mother as they were separated from Cain during her pregnancy with Cain never knowing she was even pregnant before Cara disappeared without explanation.
Since birth, Nate was brought up thinking that Cain had rejected him because while Cara made had numerous attempts to get in contact with Cain about their son, she never had a reply. However, as it turns out, Cain's mother Faith Dingle who was aware of the pregnancy, was actually intercepting all of Cara's correspondences in an attempt to protect them all from Cain's alcoholic, abusive father, Shadrach Dingle who was racist and would have reacted badly if he had found out about his son fathering a mixed-race son with a black woman.
In 2019, Nate was hired as a farmhand at Butlers Farm in Emmerdale, the farm owned by Cain's current wife Moira and formulated a plan to get back at Cain for abandoning him and Cara.
2019-2020: Affair with Moira and reuniting with Cain[]
In April 2019, Nate chatted up Rhona Goskirk on a night out at Metro 107, and they ended up kissing outside the club. A few days later, Nate ran into Rhona in the village after getting his job at Butlers, but she ignored him. Nate was fired after he had a run-in with Rhona and her boyfriend, and co-owner of the farm, Pete Barton, when in a desperate attempt to cover her infidelity Rhona told Pete that Nate came on to her at the club. However, Pete gave him his job back after Rhona admitted that she had actually kissed Nate at the club and that he didn't know she was taken.
Nate and Moira's affair
Nate continued working on the farm for Moira Dingle and soon developed a great dislike for her husband, Cain, who he didn't get on with. He also pursued a relationship with Amy Wyatt. However, he soon shows an interest in Moira and starts flirting with her, telling her she deserves better than Cain, and although she is tempted she brushes off his advances. In late July 2019, Nate kisses Moira in the barn, she kisses him back but then tells him they can't go any further. In August 2019, Nate and Moira sleep together but Moira once again tells him it was a mistake. However, later in the month when Cain tells her he's going to Scotland for a few days to help his daughter, she takes the opportunity to pursue their affair.
In early September 2019, after Amy admitted that she and her mother Kerry caused the fire at the factory that killed Frank Clayton, Nate talked to Frank's daughter Tracy to get information. However, Amy got the wrong idea and kicked off, believing he was about to tell her their involvement, angering Nate who walked away. Later, Kerry who wanted to make things right between them went to his trailer where she spotted him and Moira in bed together. She confronts him the following day but Nate blackmails her, saying if she tells Amy he'll go to the police and tell them about the fire. She agrees to not tell Amy if he keeps quiet but demands that he breaks it off with Amy which he does. Cain soon returns and starts becoming suspicious of Moira's behaviour. He later becomes convinced that she is having an affair with Pete and confronts him which forces Pete, who knew about the real affair, to reveal the truth.
Cain and Nate show-down
On 22nd October 2019, Cain lures Moira and Nate into his car and takes them out on a boat. Nate realises the meaning of Cain's boat trip when he admits he knows Moira's sleeping with somebody else. Cain pushes Nate too far by beating around the bush, forcing him to come clean and brag about sleeping with Moira on many different occasions. Cain and Nate get into a fight with Cain attacking Nate with a crow bar. Nate's intensions with Moira become clear once he unexpectedly calls Cain "dad". Nate reveals he is Cain's long lost son from a previous relationship, hellbent on making Cain's life a misery as he did to him when he abandoned them. Then, an explosion goes off on the boat, caused by the paraffin brought on board for the stove, but they all make it off in one piece.
Cain later visits Nate in hospital where he reveals that he did what he did to get revenge on Cain for abandoning him and his mum, Cara Robinson. However, Cain is adamant that he never knew she was pregnant and that she never tried to contact him. Cain’s mother, Faith then arrives and explains what really happened and that Cain truly didn't know about Nate's existence, making them both furious that she had kept it secret so long. Nate realises the error of his ways and wants to start over with Cain. He spends the next few weeks trying to build a relationship with his brothers, Kyle and Isaac, but Cain warns him to stay away from his family. However, Nate soon starts getting closer to the rest of the Dingles, especially Belle Dingle, Cain’s younger sister, which angers Cain. In December 2019, Nate makes a deal with Kim Tate to run Wylie’s Farm for her, which lets him stay in the village as well as run his own farm. On Christmas Day, Nate is invited to spend the day at Wishing Well Cottage by Belle, but Cain is also there and unhappy to see Nate. Belle and Cain argue over Nate and she tells him that Nate is staying. After this, Cain finally gave in and told Nate he would not stop the rest of the family from getting to know him, but said he still wanted nothing to do with him and warned him to stay away.
In January 2020, Cara Robinson arrived in the village after being called by Moira who wanted Nate out of the village. She tried to convince her son to come back with her as she still thought of the Dingles as the awful racists she remembered and was horrified when she realised how close to them Nate was. However, he refused to come with her and urged her to go back home without him.
Nate is shot by Cain
In February 2020, Nate started dating Tracy Metcalfe who encouraged him to make amends with Moira, but she still wanted nothing to do with him. After finding out about violent rustlers who had been targeting nearby farms, Nate went to Butlers to warn Moira but was accidentally shot in the abdomen by Cain, who thought he was a rustler trying to invade Moira's farm. Cain and Moira told the police that rustlers had shot Nate but Cara was less than convinced. Thinking he owed them as much after everything he'd done, Nate backed their story and started to grow closer to his father. He was also delighted when Cara and Cain decided to put their differences aside for his sake. Later, he and Tracy decided to make their relationship exclusive.
In May 2020, Tracy became pregnant with Nate’s child. Nate was excited at the prospect of becoming a father and promised to support Tracy. He became obsessed with making the farm a success, so he could provide for his family. However, the farm was struggling and Kim was putting increasing amounts of pressure on him to turn a profit. Also, Tracy refused to move into Wylie’s as she felt it would be unsafe for a baby. In August, after a conversation with Cain about what it meant to be a good father, Nate conceded and moved in to Tug Ghyll with Tracy and her sister, Vanessa Woodfield.
In October 2020, Nate was framed for a hit and run on Moira Dingle. Belle’s boyfriend, Jamie Tate was the real culprit but he had set Belle up for it after she found out and tried to report him, also claiming that Nate had covered it up. The stress of being arrested and the possibility of going to prison caused Belle to have a mental breakdown. Seeing this, Nate turned himself and claimed full responsibility for the accident to spare Belle anymore anguish. Tracy and Cara were both reluctant to go along with the plan at first, but after seeing the state Belle was in, they agreed it was for the best. Before the trial, Nate was worried that going to prison would mean missing the birth of his child, but fortunately he was given a suspended sentence for the crime.
2021-2022: Becoming a father and end of relationship with Tracy[]
On February 25th 2021, Nate became a father when Tracy gave birth to their daughter, Frankie Robinson, named after Tracy’s late father. Unbeknownst to Nate, over the next few months Tracy began suffering with post-natal depression. This put a strain on their relationship as Tracy became moody and distant, rejecting all of Nate’s attempts to be close to her and Frankie. In August 2021, Nate proposed to Tracy and she accepted, which he was overjoyed about. However, the next day, Tracy went missing with Frankie and Nate panicked about what happened to them. Faith found Tracy and brought her back to the village, much to Nate’s relief. Tracy was diagnosed with post-natal depression, which shocked Nate. He promised to stand by her, but struggled when she and Frankie went to the mother and baby hospital so Tracy could be treated. Following her return in October, Nate continued trying to support Tracy, but it became increasingly difficult for him.
In December 2021, Nate went on a night out with his friend, Mackenzie Boyd, to blow off steam after another argument with Tracy. Mack soon left but Nate decided to stay and have another drink. He met a woman at the bar and accepted her invitation to go back to her place, where they slept together. The next day, Nate lied to Tracy and told her he stayed with Mack. Mack went along with this and advised Nate to keep quiet when he told him he wanted to come clean. On 29th December, Tracy’s sister, Vanessa returned to the village after staying with her mother for a few months. She also brought her new girlfriend, Fiona Murphy, who turned out to be the same woman Nate had cheated on Tracy with. He was horrified to see her again and they made a deal to keep quiet about their infidelity. However, the truth was soon revealed, resulting in the end of both relationships despite Nate’s apologies to Tracy. He spent the next few weeks living with his cousin, Aaron Dingle at Mill Cottage as he attempted to get Tracy to forgive him.
In January 2022, Tracy announced that she would be moving to Nottingham for a new job. Nate was unhappy with this arrangement as it meant he would be separated from Frankie, but Tracy was adamant and she left on the 14th January. Nate then moved into Tall Trees Cottage with Mack and Ryan Stocks, who were renting from Marlon Dingle. In March 2022, Mack moved out of Tall Trees to live with his girlfriend, Charity Dingle. A few weeks later, Ethan Anderson moved in with his boyfriend Marcus Dean. Nate was flattered by Chloe Harris showing an interest in him. They slept together after she walked home with him one night, but this quickly fizzled out as Nate wasn’t looking for a relationship after everything that he went through with Tracy.
Later, Ethan’s sister, Naomi Walters also moved in with them. Naomi quickly developed a crush on Nate and he was attracted to her as well, though was uncertain about dating his friends sister until Ethan told him it was okay. They started a relationship and though they were happy together for the first few weeks, the couple soon experienced some problems. Naomi wanted to go out and have fun, but Nate was constantly working on the farm and didn’t have the time or the energy, so Naomi got bored of him.
In September, Tracy returned briefly and Nate was excited as it meant he was able to see Frankie. Naomi was annoyed by Tracy’s presence and felt Nate was neglecting her. A few days after Tracy’s return, she and Nate ended up having sex in Tug Ghyll. Nate thought this meant they might get back on track, but Tracy revealed she was engaged and that she didn’t want to be with Nate. Tracy left a couple of days later, much to Nate’s disappointment. After Tracy left, Naomi suspected Nate had cheated on her and when she confronted him, he confessed. Naomi was furious about this and dumped him, then moved out of Tall Trees. She went to her father claiming that Nate and Ryan had treated her like a maid and borrowed money from her that she never saw again. Her father, Charles Anderson, confronted them about this but Nate and Ryan denied all of it, and Ethan backed them up.
In October 2022, Nate lost his grandmother, Faith Dingle. Despite their initial rocky relationship due to Faith hiding Nate’s existence from Cain, the two had grown close over the last few years. Nate was one of the pall-bearers at her funeral.
2023-2024: Reuniting with Tracy, feud with Caleb and exit[]
In January 2023, it is revealed that Chloe is pregnant and Nate asks her if he is the father but she assures him he isn’t, to Nate’s relief. Later in the month, he is introduced to his long lost uncle, Caleb Miligan. Nate and Caleb get along well as they are both secret relatives of the Dingles, and both had difficult relationships with Cain.
Over the following months, Nate reconnects with Tracy during his visits to Nottingham. They eventually got engaged but Tracy wanted to keep it a secret to stop people from judging them. Nate agreed and they arranged to be married in a town hall with Tracy’s friend as a witness. In July 2023, Moira and Cain follow him to town hall where they see Tracy in a wedding dress, then bundle him into their car and take him back to the village. Nate is angry with them and reveals that he was the one who was supposed to marry Tracy. Nate and Tracy then go back to Tall Trees and spend the night together. The next day, Cain and Moira organise a replacement wedding out of guilt. On 3rd July 2023 Nate finally tied the knot with Tracy and they got an official marriage certificate the next day. Their reception is ruined, however, when Charity Dingle dumps a drink over Chloe’s head for stealing Mack, who is the father of her baby.
Over the next few weeks, Nate becomes stressed about some money issues he and Tracy have. This is made worse when Moira Dingle is forced to sack him from Butlers as she doesn’t have the money to employ him and Nate is hurt when Cain hires Mack to work in the garage over him. Tracy tells him she wants to open a nursery in the village and Nate is sceptical as they need money and can’t afford for Tracy to start a brand new business. This attitude causes problems between him and Tracy, but after she presents a solution, he agrees to support her.
On 1st August, Nate meets his old friend, Corey Sanderson when he comes to offer Cain a contract fixing a fleet of hire cars. They go for a drink and get talking, with Corey bragging about how much money he makes. He offers to help Nate get a job with the car hire firm and Nate accepts, thinking things might finally be looking up. However, he soon discovers the firm is owned by Caleb and the offer to Cain was an effort to get back in his good books. Nonetheless, Nate continues to work for Caleb as he doesn’t have as much of a grudge against him as Cain does. When Cain finds out, Nate refuses to stop working for Caleb which causes problems between him and Cain.
In August, Nate is shocked to find that Corey is using the car hire firm as a cover to smuggle guns for a gangster called Harry. Nate is initially reluctant to get involved, but is talked round when Corey shows him how much money he could make. Corey tasks Nate with being Harry's chauffeur for a day. Before Harry arrives, Corey advises Nate not to chit-chat, not to use the satnav and to make sure he opens the car door for Harry. Nate is curious about the man he is chauffeuring but keeps to Corey’s instructions. At the end of the day, Harry said Nate did fine, before paying Nate and telling him and Corey that he will see them around before leaving.
A few weeks later, Nate is told to transport a shipment of guns by Corey, but he panics and throws them away. When he tells Corey what he did, he threatens Nate with what Harry will do when he finds out. Then Nate goes to his uncle, Caleb and informs him about what’s been going on. Caleb is annoyed with Nate for putting the business in jeopardy, but promises to take care of it. Caleb has a meeting with Harry in the car hire firm office, but Nate is worried when Caleb doesn’t return from the meeting and gets Cain to come with him to find Caleb. They get to the office to find him bloody and beaten on the floor. They take him back to Mill Cottage, then ask local doctor, Liam Cavanagh to work on Caleb. After Liam is finished, Cain and Nate leave and both thank him for what he did.
In September 2023, Caleb makes Nate, Cain and Nicky Miligan co-owners of Longbrook Private Hire. Nate gratefully accepts the offer, as it solves his money worries, but Cain rejects any part of the business as he sees it as Caleb trying to buy him. Nate and Caleb continue to grow close over this time, with Nate coming to admire and respect his uncle, much to Cain’s anger as he warns him Caleb isn’t trustworthy. Nate asks Caleb to help Tracy with her nursery presentation and he agrees. He is harsh with Tracy and Nate is angry with about this until he explains that he would be happy to help her improve, which elevates Nate’s opinion of him even more.
In October, Caleb attacks Amit Sharma over Amit’s treatment of his son, Nicky, and Nate backs him up. The next day Amit confronts Nate in front of Tracy and Frankie, calling him a thug and a bully but Nate threatens him into backing off. Once they are alone, Tracy asks Nate what Amit was talking about and he explains that he was there when Caleb hit Amit, which causes the two to argue about Nate’s actions. On October 27th, Nate is one of the people Lydia Dingle suspects of killing rapist, Craig Reed. When asked for his alibi, Nate reveals he and Tracy rowed about the attack on Amit and that Tracy then confronted Caleb. Unbeknownst to Nate this was the beginning of an affair between the two. Nate and Tracy spent Christmas with Cain and Moira at Butlers that year.
In January 2024, Nate begins to suspect Tracy is having an affair. Later in the month, after he finds Caleb’s wallet in their sofa, he works out that it is Caleb that Tracy is seeing. On 25th January, Tracy leaves to go on a training course and Nate thinks this is a lie so she can go see Caleb. He charges over to Mill Cottage as Moira and Nicky, who both know about the affair, try to stop him. He bursts into Caleb’s flat and finds him kissing a woman, but it is revealed that the woman is Caleb’s estranged wife, Ruby Fox-Miligan. Nate is embarrassed by his outburst and apologises to Caleb and Ruby before leaving. Nate tells Tracy about this but she still doesn’t tell him the truth. In February, Nate and Tracy attend a dinner party, thrown by Caleb and Ruby with Cain and Moira. During the dinner, Ruby brings up Nate and Moria’s affair which embarrasses both of them. Cain and Moira storm out, followed by Nate and Tracy. The next day, Ruby apologises to all involved and Nate is quick to forgive her.
A few days later, Tracy tells Nate she doesn’t love him anymore and she wants a divorce. Nate is crushed by this and asks what’s changed but Tracy doesn’t answer. He refuses to move out of Tug Ghyll, as he still thinks there’s a chance to fix his marriage. As such, he suggests that he and Tracy attend Belle’s wedding to Tom King together, in the hopes it will reignite something. At the wedding they are sat next to Caleb and Ruby, when suddenly, Ruby gives a speech and announces Caleb’s affair with Tracy. Nate is furious when he hears this and attacks Caleb. Cain manages to pull Nate away before he does anymore than punch Caleb but Nate is still angry. Nate and Tracy then return home where they argue about the affair. Tracy tries to explain but Nate doesn’t want to hear it. He leaves Tug Ghyll and moves into Butlers Farm with Cain and Moira. He takes Frankie with him and initially denies Tracy any contact out of anger, but soon relents as he knows Frankie needs her mother.
After this Nate stops working for Caleb and becomes a farmhand at Butlers again. In March 2024, Nate attacks Caleb but is pulled away by Cain before he can hurt him. Cain then suggests that he Nate and Aaron take revenge on Caleb by stealing all the cars from Longbrook, which Nate goes along with as he wants to punish Caleb. The hire cars are all returned before Caleb can get the police involved, but they crush Caleb’s Bentley and deliver the badge to his door. When Caleb ruins Tracy’s chances of opening a nursery, Nate confronts him about what a disgusting person he is. He also goes to see Tracy and comforts her, as he knew how much she wanted to run a nursery. Tracy then kisses Nate, but he awkwardly pushes her away and leaves. After this, they agree to be friends and move on from what happened.
In August 2024 Nate is offered a job in Shetland. He is torn over whether or not to leave as he and Tracy are finally on good terms again. Soon they get back together and Nate decides he wants to stay in the village with her and Frankie. However, the next day Nate finds Moira having a seizure and catches her. He asks her what’s wrong but she insists she is fine. Then, Moira who unknowingly suffering a brain tumour makes a misguided pass at Nate. Caleb sees this and tells Cain that Nate kissed Moira, which puts Cain into a rage. He storms into Tug Ghyll and beats Nate in front of Tracy, ignoring Nate begging him to stop. He also tells Tracy that Nate and Moira are having an affair, which Nate denies. However, after Tracy throws Cain out, she tells Nate to go as well as she believes what Cain said. Nate goes to the farm and tells John Sugden he is leaving Emmerdale, saying that Cain isn’t his dad anymore after what he did. Nate agrees to let John treat his injuries but John then injects him with a sedative in an attempt to make people think he saved Nate’s life. However, Nate dies after a bad reaction to the sedative and John disposed of his body in a lake.
Cain and Tracy later learn Nate was innocent after the discovery of Moira's brain tumour and try to contact him. After months of not hearing from him, Tracy believes that he abandoned their daughter as he stops sending child support. In February 2025, Amy Barton saw Nate’s body under the ice, but died before she could tell anyone.
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Residences[]
| Address | Duration |
|---|---|
| Caravan at Butlers Farm | 28th May 2019 to 25th October 2019 |
| Car | 25th October 2019 to 26th October 2019 |
| Unknown | 26th October 2019 to 3rd December 2019 |
| Wylies Farm | 3rd December 2019 to 21st August 2020 |
| Tug Ghyll | 21st August 2020 to 16th November 2021 |
| Butlers Farm | 16th November 2021 to 2nd December 2021 |
| Tug Ghyll | 2nd December 2021 to 30th December 2021 |
| Apartment One, Mill Cottage (temporary) | 30th December 2021 to 4th January 2022 |
| Tall Trees Cottage | 4th January 2022 to 5th July 2023 |
| Tug Ghyll | 5th July 2023 to 5th February 2024 |
| Apartment One, Mill Cottage (temporary) | 5th February 2024 to 7th February 2024 |
| Tug Ghyll | 7th February 2024 to 15th February 2024 |
| Butlers Farm | 15th February 2024 to 9th September 2024 |