ITV Emmerdale Heath Hope actor breaks silence as he’s ₭illed off after 17 years in brutal 𝕕eath

An Emmerdale star has spoken out over their dramatic exit plot which saw them killed off after 17 years in the role.

Sebastian Dowling took to Instagram this week to break his silence over his shocking and rather abrupt exit from the show after almost two decades. Having been on the soap since he was a baby, his role came to an end when his character Heath Hope was shockingly killed off in a car accident on New Year’s Day.

Heath went joyriding with his sister Cathy Hope and pal Angelica King, with there currently a major plot unfolding as to who the real driver was. In the episode we did not see the crash, but Bob Hope and partner Wendy Posner came across the crashed car and found the teens injured.

Cathy and Angelica were outside of the car, and they were alert and conscious. Heath was in the back of the car lifeless, and despite attempts to save his life he passed away in heartbreaking scenes.

Now the actor, who has been on the show his entire life, has spoken out about his departure, albeit briefly. Sebastian was supported by fans and his co-stars as he thanked the show for his time there, and shared some behind-the-scenes snaps from filming the big stunt.

An Emmerdale star has spoken out over their dramatic exit plot which saw them killed off after 17 years

Emmerdale cast members offered support to one actor on the ITV soap as he spoke out following his character’s tragic exit

Sebastian wrote: “Thanks to everyone @emmerdale for such a fun time filming over the 17 years,” with a love heart emoji. The actor was inundated with supportive messages from viewers wishing him luck with the future.

Two of his cast mates also took a moment to send messages of support, after their final scenes with him. Sebastian’s onscreen and offscreen twin sister, Cathy Hope actress Gabrielle Dowling, shared a message to her brother after his exit.

Under his post she shared two heart emojis. Their co-star and fellow show teen Amelia Flanagan, who plays April Windsor, also shared a message of support which read: “Good luck with everything will miss you.”

The trio have been on the show together for a long time, with Gabrielle and Sebastian taking on their roles when they were babies 17 years ago. Amelia joined the soap as Marlon Dingle’s daughter April in 2014 when she was five years old.

Meanwhile, Bob actor Tony Audenshaw also spoke out over his onscreen son’s death, after filming together for close to two decades. He said: “It’s been brilliant because they’re the kids that were here since they were born. I remember, and it doesn’t seem that long ago since we shot up on the moors the babies being born. It just doesn’t seem that long ago and obviously it’s nearly 17 years now.”

He went on: “He’s always been there. There were great stretches of time when they weren’t used at all and they’d be in it like twice a year. I think it’s always difficult for young actors – when we have a few months off, you always come back rusty, you think, ‘ooh, can I still do it?’

“You always feel a bit awkward. And I think it’s probably more difficult for kids coming back in when they’re not used much. We all get on dead well and it’s gonna be quite an emotional time, I think, over the next couple of weeks.”