Hollyoaks actor Jessica Fox has responded to the news that her co-star Alex Fletcher is leaving the Channel 4 soap after 16 years playing Diane Hutchinson.
It was recently announced that Diane will be written out of the show in a story that will see the character diagnosed with an advanced stage of ovarian cancer.
In an interview with The Mirror, Nancy Osborne actor Fox jokingly stated that she was very angry upon hearing that her friend was departing the ‘oaks.
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“I was fuming with her to be perfectly honest,” she said cheekily.
“I think it’s really rude she’s leaving us. How dare you make a decision about your own life?”
More seriously, Fox stated: “I adore Alex and I think she is just the most fun. She’s so great to have on set because she’s always in a good mood.
“That energy reflects on other people so on a personal level, I am really sad she’s leaving but I’m also excited to see what she goes and does next.”
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“It’s bittersweet, that’s the best way to describe it,” she continued. “She did drop me a little text just as the scripts were coming out ‘cos she had to keep it under wraps until then.”
Fox stated that Fletcher had been “smashing it out of the park” with her performance, and admitted that she will have to make herself scarce on her co-star’s last day, as she’s “absolutely rubbish when anyone leaves”.
“They get flowers and one of the bosses comes down and says really nice things,” Fox added. “I have to hide cos I’ll cry. I’m an absolute mess with anything like that so I will be hiding that day.”
Hollyoaks airs on Mondays-Wednesdays with its Channel 4 streaming premiere at 7am, then an E4 broadcast the same night at 7pm. Full episodes are also released on YouTube a week after their Channel 4 release.
Selected omnibus episodes are available via Prime Video.
Read more Hollyoaks spoilers on our dedicated homepage
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