Shadrach Dingle was played by Andy Devine whose character debuted during 2674th episode of Emmerdale which aired on 30 March 2000.

The character, who had alcohol-induced liver disease, was killed off on 23 July 2010 after collapsing into a river and drowning whilst attempting to retrieve some beer cans.

A friend of the actor said, "Andy thought he would be able to come back every now and then, so to find out that Shadrach will leave Emmerdale in a body bag was a big disappointment."

"[1] Shadrach's main character traits were uselessness, laziness, selfishness, hypocrisy and a dependency on alcohol, although he occasionally surprised his family with sensitivity or support.

Shadrach first appeared at his nephew Butch's (Paul Loughran) funeral and was so drunk that he fell asleep in church – infuriating his brother, Zak (Steve Halliwell) who was grieving for his son.

Order was restored when Zak returned but Shadrach's behaviour continued to provoke disgust among his family and their neighbours alike.

A life of heavy drinking took a toll on Shadrach and his daughter, Chastity (Lucy Pargeter), worried that her father would die of alcoholism-related illnesses.

Shadrach's best friend, Fat Pedro, never appeared on screen but often provided horse race betting tips which always lost money.

In spring 2008, Laurel and Ashley learned that they had been given the wrong child at the hospital and their son had been given to Greg (Shaun Prendergast) and Melanie Doland (Caroline Strong).

Shadrach finally met Genesis, now Gennie Walker (Sian Reese-Williams), several weeks later, when Paddy invited her to Eli Dingle's birthday party.

After buying a bottle of wine, Shadrach staggered into the road and was accidentally run over by his nephew, Marlon (Mark Charnock).

Shadrach gave up for a few days but on his 62nd birthday, Marlon threw him a party with the whole family invited, having forgiven him for the flooding.

Shadrach immediately bought a six pack of beer and while walking over a footbridge, he staggered in pain caused by his liver condition and dropped his cans in the river.

Shadrach was found by Marlon and his girlfriend, Rhona Goskirk (Zoe Henry), and was dragged out of the water but they were unable to save him.

Angered and hurt at the way he had treated Shadrach over the years, Zak turned violent and got very drunk; Lisa, Cain, Chas and the Dingles helped him through this.

Following a ceremony conducted by Ashley, the Dingles and Laurel held a private vigil for Shadrach where they all said how much they loved him and what they would remember most about him, each then taking a swig of beer.