Paddy comes to Emmerdale as a locum for Zoe Tate (Leah Bracknell). He is drawn to Mandy Dingle (Lisa Riley) and they begin a rocky relationship. Paddy's mother, Barbara (Judi Jones), disapproves of Mandy, and offers her money to marry someone else. Needing money to stop her family from being evicted, Mandy takes it and marries her cousin, Butch (Paul Loughran), leaving Paddy depressed. After a bad date with Bernice Blackstock (Samantha Giles), Paddy proposes to Mandy and she accepts. They marry the following year but over the next two years, Mandy is frequently absent as her father, Caleb (Mike Kelly), is ill. She misses Paddy but begins an affair with her father's carer and their marriage breaks down. A heartbroken Paddy becomes close to Emily Kirk (Kate McGregor). They begin dating and later get engaged. On the day that Marlon (Mark Charnock) and Tricia Stokes (Sheree Murphy) were supposed to marry, Tricia gets cold feet, so Emily and Paddy get married instead. They become foster parents, looking after several children including Debbie Dingle (Charley Webb) but over time, the marriage becomes stale. Paddy tells Emily about his affair with Viv Windsor (Deena Payne), and he is punched by Viv's estranged husband, Bob Hope (Antony Audenshaw) and Zak Dingle (Steve Halliwell). Soon after, Emily leaves the village with Debbie's young daughter, Sarah.