EastEnders legend quits just months into BBC comeback – and their final scenes have already aired
EASTENDERS legend Kim Medcalf has quit the BBC soap – just months after returning.
The actress – who plays Sam Mitchell in the BBC soap – originally returned two years ago for a return as the iconic villain.
She took a break earlier last year and made her comeback by the end of the year.
But it has now been revealed that she was only ever coming back briefly – having decided to leave the soap once more.
Sam’s exit played out on screens tonight as she was forced to leave Walford following an explosive row with brother Phil.
He had tried to con her out of her inheritance from Aunt Sal, forcing her to blackmail him for the cash.
But once she had it in hand, Phil’s insults got the better of her and she exposed his cheating with Emma, and blew up his marriage with Kat.
With Phil’s life in tatters, he turned on Sam and warned her to leave before he could get revenge.
And after an emotional chat with her son Ricky, she let him down again and abandoned him.
Actress Kim revealed: “It’s been brilliant, as always! It was perfect timing for me and worked really well that Sam was coming back for another short stint.
“That’s the beauty of this character – I love that she comes in, disrupts things, and then leaves the debris behind her.
“This time, she’s been chucked out the back of a van, taken £100k from Phil to pay back a drug dealer and then blown up his marriage to Kat!
“There’s a lot of drama with Sam, and it’s never plain sailing. Hopefully, she’ll be back again sometime for another stint of causing chaos.”
She added: “I love playing Sam because she is so liberated. Sam just says what she sees; not many of us do that because you’d cause chaos!
“I don’t think she is hugely devious. Instead, she’s kneejerk in the moment.
“Sam doesn’t have that filter others have, and that’s fantastic to play. I respect her honesty.”