Parkin described Zoe as " charitable and reasonable compared with the other Tates " . He said while Zoe had a romantic streak , she also had a dark side , which often saw her become moody and angry . Bracknell said of her character in 2005 : " She was very unpredictable which I liked . She was n't a victim but she had lots of problems to deal with and at the same time she could be very Tate-like , ruthless and sometimes violent . " In early 1993 , Zoe decided that she wanted more from her friendship with Archie Brooks ( Tony Pitts ) , and the two later began a relationship . Zoe struggled to deal with the physical aspect of their relationship and she realised that she was a lesbian . '' Inside Soap '' 's Richard Arnold commented that apart from a one-night stand with Michael Feldmann ( Matthew Vaughan ) and an older man , Patrick , who she once brought home for Christmas , Zoe did not have much experience with men and the mystery behind that had finally been revealed . Bracknell explained that Zoe was not aware of her sexuality when she decided to have sex with Archie and said " Zoe wanted to sleep with Archie to put her fears to rest but she did n't do it to prove anything . She did n't count out the possibility that it could all work out with him . " Bracknell added that Archie would be gutted by the news , but Zoe would want to remain his friend . Bracknell thought Zoe 's sexuality would be " a big hurdle to cross " with her family , especially with Frank who Zoe was very close to . Arnold reported that Zoe 's bad luck with men was one reason why the show 's producers felt the storyline could work for the character . He added that lesbianism had not been tackled before in a British soap . Of how the storyline unfolds , Bracknell explained " Zoe is quite feminine and not the obvious media stereotype of a lesbian , but the writers are n't taking any sort of moral stance . This is something that Zoe discovers gradually and it will be dealt with constructively , emotionally and positively . " Zoe was diagnosed with schizophrenia in 2002 . According to Bracknell , this was the '' Emmerdale '' storyline she was most proud of portraying , " b ecause it dealt with a particular area of mental health and we did it over a relatively long period of time - about ten months - so there was a lot of research involved and the story was ongoing and changing . We had to get the nuts and bolts right and also it was n't just about how it affected her Zoe but also the effect on her family . " For her portrayal of Zoe , Bracknell received a nomination for Most Popular Actress at the 8th National Television Awards in 2002 . The character 's last episode was an hour-long special that aired on 22 September 2005 and was watched by 8.58 million viewers . In 2006 , Zoe 's departure from the show was named Best Exit by The British Soap Awards . '' Emmerdale '' received praise for the way it handled Zoe 's sexuality . The '' Daily Mirror '' noted in 2002 that despite being a " schizophrenic lesbian vet " , " Zoe Tate is actually a fairly credible character , " and that " a fter 10 years , she has served her time as the only serious lesbian in soap . " In the 2006 book '' The Way We Are Now : Gay and Lesbian Lives in the 21st Century '' , Jane Czyzselska wrote that lesbian characters in British television tended to be " issuized " , but singled out '' Emmerdale '' as one of the few exceptions , " where vet Zoe Tate is subject to the crazy ideas of the script writers as much as the next heterosexual character . " Sarah and Lee from AfterEllen said in 2010 : " Actress Leah Bracknell left '' Emmerdale '' in 2005 and many waved a fond farewell to the longest running and possibly the best representation of a lesbian ever to grace British soap land . '' Emmerdale '' is still the only soap to allow its lesbian resident to exist without having to wear a sign around her neck that constantly reinforced her sexuality . Sometimes she was just having a drink , or working or visiting her brother . No other British soap opera has managed this since . " The '' Sunday Mail 's '' Steve Hendry described Zoe as the " wealthy , lesbian vet ... who brought more misery to the Dales than an outbreak of foot and mouth . "
8th National Television Awards
8th National Television Awards
Zoe Tate