Emmerdale’s Nicola King debuted a striking new hair style tonight – and it left fans divided.

King, played by Nicola Wheeler, eschewed her blonde locks in favour of a bright red look.

On tonight’s episode of the ITV soap, the mother-of-one was seen wearing a choppier style, which featured a cropped crimson fringe.

Arriving at Home Farm in search of boss Graham Foster, she bumped into Priya Kotecha, played by Fiona Wade, who joked that she had become a “fiery redhead”.

She said: “It’s a brave choice… I’m joking. It suits you, being a fiery redhead.”

Fans watching at home also saw fit to judge the new appearance, and on the whole they were in favour of Nicola’s new look.

But some were less positive. One viewer joked that her haircut looked oddly familiar.

Another compared her new look to that of Thelma from the Scooby Doo series.

Another common comparison was to BBC presenter Yvette Fielding.

Some viewers wanted to know how King had managed to achieve such a startling transformation.

And one viewer decided the make the cruel comparison between King and Pennywise the Dancing Clown from Stephen King’s It.