not want to celebrate with any of his family members. To explore his grief, Emmerdale produced a one-hour special episode which featured Eric as a version of Ebenezer Scrooge, and the episode took on the format of the Charles Dickens 1843 book A Christmas Carol. Explaining the plot, Chittell stated that Eric wants the festive season "over and done with", and that his character "thinks that it's a waste of time and a waste of energy". He praised the producers for using the Dickens plot in the episode, describing it as "beautifully done" and "really, really clever". He went on to admit that he believes Eric "has to move on now", and accept the love he is receiving from friends and family members. For the story, Chittell grew out both his hair and facial hair to give Eric a "very unkempt" look, and recalled shaving it off immediately after the filming of the storyline concluded. Reception When Chittell was offered the role of Eric, it was for a 12 episode guest appearance. However, due to the positive reception from viewers, he was later promoted to a regular character. The Daily Mirror stated that Eric's "constant plotting, scheming, and often seducing, made him an instant hit". Chittell explained that due to Eric's poor treatment of women, men tend not to like his character, but women love him. He stated that he gets a lot of fan mail from women. In 2013, John Moores University did a study for the Co-operative store chain, and they found Eric to be the "unhealthiest character in soap". Their results showed that in 62% of his scenes, he was either holding an alcoholic drink, or talking about drinking alcohol. Senior British Heart Foundation cardiac nurse Doireann Maddock commented: "If Eric wants to reduce his risk of that second heart attack, he needs to spend less time in the Woolpack and more enjoying brisk walks in the Dales – and eating plenty of fruit and veg." In scenes aired in 2017, viewers felt that other characters were too harsh on Eric, and expressed an interest in his character being formed into a villain again. References External links Eric Pollard at itv.com Emmerdale characters Television characters introduced in 1986 Male characters in television Fictional politicians Fictional businesspeople Fictional chefs Male villains Fictional con artists Fictional shopkeepers