Emmerdale spoilers follow.

Emmerdale’s Sam Dingle was dealt another devastating blow tonight in his quest to secure the perfect Christmas present for his wife Lydia. While searching for concert tickets online, Sam’s romantic gesture backfired and he became the victim of a nasty scam. Could this latest financial issue ruin Christmas for the couple?

Despite being low on cash lately, Sam has been determined to surprise Lydia with some VIP Jason Donovan concert tickets. In his desperation, he and Belle Dingle stole trees from Home Farm with the goal to sell them on as Christmas trees.

However, the money-making scheme was put to an end yesterday by Joe Tate, who quickly realised what was going on. Furious Joe unceremoniously fired his employee, leaving Sam more desperate and skint than ever.

Things started to look up for Sam in tonight’s episode when Joe turned up at his house and offered him his job back. He revealed that Belle had changed his mind about the “hasty” firing, and said he believed Sam was a “good man” with a lot on his plate.

sam dingle, lydia dingle, emmerdale

ITV

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Though confused about Joe’s uncharacteristic kindness, Sam gratefully accepted the “one-time offer”, joking that he should call his boss “Santa” from now on.

Fueled by the promise of overtime and an advance on his wages, Sam restarted his search for the VIP concert tickets. As Belle scoured the internet, she excitedly discovered the answer to their prayers was right on their doorstep.

“Wait, I think I’ve got some,” she said. “Look, Tracy. She posted the link on her socials the other day.”

tracy, emmerdale

ITV

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The pair hurriedly tried to call their neighbour but when she didn’t answer, they went ahead and made the purchase via the link. However, when Sam went over to Tracy’s house to collect the tickets, he received a nasty shock.

“I don’t know what you’re on about,” said a confused Tracy, before revealing that her phone had been “doing weird stuff all day”. She added: “I think I might’ve been hacked.”

After speaking to a customer service representative, Tracy shared that there was nothing that could be done about the hacking, with a devastated Sam realising that he had lost all of his money.

Meanwhile, Joe accidentally made matters worse by telling Lydia about the concert – not knowing it was supposed to be a surprise. When a giddy Lydia asked where Sam got the money from, Joe tried to cover for him by saying he had won the tickets in a competition.

But with the money gone and no tickets in sight – will Sam be able to save Christmas? Or will he fall deeper into the financial hole?

Emmerdale airs on weeknights at 7.30pm on ITV1, and streams on ITVX.

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