Major arrest made in Emmerdale as Billy’s life hangs in the balance after attack

| Soaps Reporter Published July 31, 2026 10:10am Updated July 31, 2026 10:15am Billy Fletcher has been attacked (Picture: Shutterstock/ITV/Metro) The following article contains spoilers from the episode of Emmerdale dated July 31. It hasn’t aired on ITV1 yet, but can be viewed on ITVX and YouTube. Billy Fletcher’s (Jay Kontzle) life is hanging in the balance in Emmerdale after a violent attack. The character’s week took quite a turn a few days ago, as he found himself making a move on ex Dawn Taylor (Olivia Bromley). Billy and Dawn had spent a few hours playing board games with their children, but they were left alone when it was clear Clemmie and Lucas would rather sit in front of a screen than hang out with their parents. The former couple got chatting about their relationship. When Dawn made a comment about how she’ll always care about Billy, he misread the situation and tried to kiss her. Ask Metro Use AI to go deeper into the stories you care about – powered by Metro and trusted publications. Seconds later, Joe Tate (Ned Porteous) appeared. Neither Billy or Dawn knew how much Joe had seen, and it left them very worried. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video The next day, Joe invited the family to lunch at The Hide. The fact that Billy was asked to attend only fuelled his and Dawn’s theory that Joe was about to expose what happened between them. It was quickly revealed that Joe had absolutely no idea Billy had tried to make a move on Dawn. In front of everyone, Joe made his announcement – he wanted Billy to be one of his groomsmen at his wedding. This left everyone absolutely stunned. Billy and Dawn eventually reached the conclusion that if Joe knew their secret, he would’ve exposed it at the lunch. They believed they were in the clear – but then Billy went and made a huge mistake. He opened up to Caleb Miligan (William Ash) about his feelings for Dawn. Billy asked Caleb to keep it quiet, but that unfortunately went right over his head due to how much Caleb hates his nephew. Caleb took great pleasure in telling Joe about Billy’s secret (Picture: ITV) With a smug smile on his face, Caleb told Joe about Billy and Dawn kissing. As he tried to process the betrayal, Joe convinced himself that taking action would be a far better option than having an adult conversation with Dawn about his discovery. Moments later, we saw Billy lying unconscious on the floor in the depot. He was found by Jai Sharma (Chris Bisson) and Kerry Wyatt (Laura Norton) in today’s episode, and quickly rushed to the hospital. When a detective arrived at the depot, he stated to Caleb and Kerry that he believes Billy was the victim of an attack. Caleb made a great deal of effort to point out that Joe should be considered a suspect due to what he learnt about Billy and Dawn. How will today’s developments impact Dawn’s upcoming exit? (Picture: ITV) In the copper’s eyes, there was enough evidence to back up Caleb’s theory, which meant he could later arrest Joe on suspicion of GBH. Dawn had spent the entire day hoping and praying that Joe hadn’t done anything to Billy, so she was absolutely devastated when the detective arrived and arrested her partner. Billy is currently fighting for his life after experiencing a bleed on his brain, and Joe is heading to the police station. Deals of the Day Wuka launches the UK’s first period-proof swimwear for heavy flows Bridgerton fans are rushing to buy these new Netflix-inspired perfumes now £12 off The affordable summer wardrobe update you'll wear from rooftop drinks to beach holidays The £7.99 lip balm beauty fans love for glossy, hydrated lips just dropped four new shades This Keskine hydrogel mask could fix your summer skin If Joe did put Billy in hospital, what will this mean for Dawn, who is leaving the show soon anyway? Arrow MORE: Are you a true fan? Test your knowledge with Metro’s weekly Soaps quiz Arrow MORE: Lives forever destroyed in Emmerdale as Sadie, Charity and Sarah explode shattering secrets Arrow MORE: Emmerdale fans have ‘worked out’ major return that will rock the Tates to the core The Soaps Newsletter – Weekly Sign up for exclusive spoilers and interviews, handpicked by our Soaps Editor.