Francis 'Frank' Ronald Tate is the patriarch of the Tate dynasty.
Biography
1937-1989
Frank was born Francis Ronald Tate on the 1st October 1937 to Nigel Tate and an unnamed woman. Frank was an only child. Frank had an illegitimate son called Liam Hammond in 1961 and left his mother. He met Jean shortly afterwards and they married in 1962 and they had two children, Chris in 1963 and Zoe in 1968. In 1984 Jean fell ill with cancer and Frank assisted her suicide. In 1986 he married again, to a much younger woman, Kim Barker. By 1989 Frank was a multimillionaire, which he then decided to retire and bought Home Farm.
1989-1997
Frank in 1989
Businessman Frank Tate arrived in Emmerdale in November 1989. As patriarch of the Tate family, he arrived with his second wife Kim, son Chris and daughter Zoe. Frank had previously married been married to Jean, who died in 1984. It was later revealed that Kim, who had started off as Frank's secretary, had an affair with Frank while Jean was dying of cancer.
Frank, having made his fortune in haulage, and Kim bought Home Farm along with all the land belonging to it. The two continued to run Tate Hualage along with Chris. Frank and Kim's married life was shattered in 1992 when Kim had an affair with gamekeeper Neil Kinkaid. Frank subsequently threw her out and they divorced. Frank was deeply affected by his separation from Kim, and turned to alcoholism to drown his sorrows. In 1993, Frank was deemed a hero during the plane crash that rocked Emmerdale in December that year when he helped local farmer Jack Sugden rebuild the bridge that had been demolished by the crash and let emergency services across. During the plane crash, Frank withheld Kim from running into her burning stables to rescue her horses. Frank and Kim soon reconciled and they remarried in 1994.
With his life back on track Frank stopped drinking and he and Kim enjoyed their remarriage. However, in 1996, Home Farm employee Dave Glover soon caught Kim's eye, and they began an affair. Frank hired a spy to watch over Kim and Dave, and eventually caught them in bed together, uttering the line "What do you call this Dave - overtime?". Kim later discovered she was pregnant and gave birth to baby James in September 1996. Frank paid Kim £1 million to name the baby as his, although Frank was eventually revealed to be James's biological father. Dave died on Boxing Day 1996 while rescuing Baby James from a
Frank dies of a heart attack while Kim watches on
fire.
In 1997, Kim took her next plot against Frank by faking her own death, subsequently getting Frank wrongfully imprisoned for her murder. After Frank was released from prison however, Kim shocked him by turning up on his doorstep on 22nd May 1997. Kim revealed that the woman who had in fact been killed was a double, and, after a heated argument, Frank suffered a massive heart attack. As Frank lay dying on the floor, Kim uttered the last words he ever heard, which were "You're a dinosaur Frank, and we all know what happened to them". Frank then died the following day and the true circumstances of his death were never exposed.
Legacy
One of Frank's biggest secrets were revealed two years after his death when Tate Haulage employee Liam Hammond - who took Chris Tate hostage - revealed that he was Frank's illegitimate child and that he was the result of an affair between Frank and an unnamed woman. Chris bonded with Liam, but Liam was shot and killed by Zoe when she was trying to "save" Chris.
Frank was mentioned by Eric Pollard in October 2018 when Kim returned to the village but without James. Eric revealed to the villagers that back in 1997, there was a lot of speculation that Kim had caused Frank's death.
Kill count
Murders
None
Attempted murders
- Neil Kincaid, 14th January 1993 - Frank tries to shoot Neil, but Zoe Tate deflects the gun in time.
- Kim Tate, 14th January 1993 - Frank tries to shoot Kim, but Zoe deflects the gun in time.
Notes
- Norman Bowler decided to leave in late 1996. He originally wanted some time off to take part in a play, and producer Mervyn Watson agreed to giving him 4 months off, but Bowler decided to leave for good. Bowler said to The People in February 1997, "I hope they don't kill me off - I'd rather go quietly. But it's time to call it a day. Emmerdale has asked me to think about going back part-time but I don't think I'll do that." Unfortunately, Bowler's hopes were dashed when Frank was ultimately killed off in May 1997.
Quotes
"Good grief! A farmer bang on time! Sorry if I made you jump, didn't hear you come in" - first line.
"What do you call this, Dave? Overtime?" - to Dave Glover upon discovering Dave's affair with his wife Kim Tate.
"You made one little Mistake! "- to Kim Tate after Frank found out about her affair with Neil Kincaid.
"Kim." - final line to Kim Tate as she lets him die.