DYER »»Soap chiefs reel as »»He ditches £1m deal Danny jumps ship to but is ‘over the moon’ appear in Sky drama as TV offers flood in
Favourite stars leave Albert Square as TV viewing figures plunge
A huge 30.1m tuned in to see Dirty Den & Angie in 1986
A STRING of EastEnders favourites have quit the BBC soap over the last year.
Maisie Smith, who plays Tiffany Butcher-Baker, announced her decision to quit in October, having played Bianca’s bolshy daughter on and off since 2008 when she was just six years old.
Show veteran Adam Woodyatt took an extended break in January 2021. He has been touring in the play Looking Good Dead, alongside former on-screen wife Laurie Brett, and appeared in the 2021 series of I’m a Celebrity!
During conversations in the castle, Adam suggested no decision had been made about returning to EastEnders, and that he wouldn’t be available until April 2022 at the earliest.
In February 2021, Jake Wood’s final scenes as Max Branning aired. The popular actor quit after 15 years in the role.
Laila Morse’s latest stint as Mo Harris lasted from 2018 to 2021. In an interview she said: “I left in April. If they wanted me to go back for a one-off thing or a storyline lasting a couple of weeks I would, but I wouldn’t go back full-time.”
Last June, Davood Ghadami, who plays Kush Kazemi, also quit. He has been a major star in EastEnders for the past six years. In October, it was also confirmed that Clair Norris will be leaving her role as Bernadette Taylor after she said she needed to “take a break”.
Rose Ayling-Ellis, who plays Frankie Lewis, took a break to star in Strictly – which she won – but soap bosses say she is set to return.
EastEnders has been struggling in the soap ratings war for some time now. Although bosses are keen to point out it is a massive hit on iPlayer – with 57m streams – its viewing figures have dropped dramatically.
At Christmas in 1986, an incredible 30.1m viewers tuned in to watch Dirty Den (played by Leslie Grantham) hand divorce papers to Angie Watts (Anita Dobson).
But this year the show pulled in only 2.9m viewers – landing it in 10th place in the 10 most watched programmes on Christmas Day – beaten by both Emmerdale and Coronation Street.
A mixture of Covid as well as sport on TV were the reasons behind the soap’s all-time low last July, with 1.7m viewers.
Ratings expert
Stephen Price said: “The soaps’ dominance of traditional TV appears to be on the wane, no longer impervious to challenge from the linear opposition and losing fans to the streamers,” he said.
EASTENDERS star Danny Dyer has quit after being poached by Sky – plunging the soap into crisis.
The actor – who has played Queen Vic landlord Mick Carter since 2013 – has signed to an upcoming drama on the satellite channel.
The deal is thought to be worth six figures – much less than the £1milliona-year so-called “golden handcuffs” deal he is on with the BBC. But it will open the door to a raft of offers that could ultimately dwarf what he earns now.
Strict BBC rules have prevented him appearing on rival channels – which has irked the 44-year-old Cockney and some of his fellow co-stars.
CHANGE
One source said: “Danny has offers coming in left right and centre, and a lot of the things he has wanted to do he can’t because EastEnders have such strict rules about what he can and can’t do.
“It’s driven him mad at times and he’s now ready for a change. But it hasn’t been easy to walk away, BBC bosses have been desperate to keep him. But he’s been insistent and when Sky approached they gave him an offer he couldn’t refuse. It’s a new chapter for Dan and he’s over the moon.”
An exact date for his departure is not known but scriptwriters must now turn their pens towards Mick’s exit plot. And bosses are only too aware they are losing their most valuable asset.
Viewing figures have plummeted and morale on the programme is said to be “at an all-time low”.
The source said: “There’s been a lot of tension about Danny going as he is their No1 star. To say they were upset to see him go is an understatement. But in the end they couldn’t convince him.” Father-of-three Danny first appeared on
EastEnders in December 2013. The move paid off as audience figures went up and Danny landed a string of awards for his role.
Viewers loved his character Mick, the gravelly-voiced landlord who has faced family ructions, rivalries, betrayal – and in recent episodes has been fighting off the advances of Albert Square schemer Janine, played by Charlie Brooks. Mick has been involved in a string of explosive plots down the years, including an affair with his daughter-in-law, a heist gone wrong, and the rape of his wife by his brother.
Danny once said that he finds his role so draining that he resorts to using IV
On show with Janine booster drips for energy. In April 2020 his representative said Danny was considering leaving – but ultimately signed a new deal. That came after the star was caught on camera telling fans: “This takes up my life, this does. I ain’t signed yet. I’m meant to sign in October but I might elbow it.”
When asked by fans when he was releasing another movie, Danny replied: “F***ing tell me about it.”
Earlier that year, Danny took time off from the soap as he was “exhausted” from working non-stop since joining the show. In January 2020 he told the Sunday Mirror: “I did a lot last year and I burned myself out a little bit.”
Since 2019 Danny has also hosted game show The Wall – as part of the