EastEnders star Samantha Womack leaving Ronnie Mitchell role
Samantha Womack is leaving her role as Ronnie Mitchell in BBC One soap EastEnders.
The Sun reports that the actress “jumped at the chance” for her character to leave Walford in dramatic circumstances after talks with the soap’s new Executive Producer Sean O’Connor, which sounds like a nice way of saying she’s being written out.
“Samantha has created an iconic character in Ronnie Mitchell. However, she was recently offered a big storyline which she happily accepted that leads to Ronnie departing Walford. We wish Samantha all the best for the future.” – EastEnders spokesperson
Sam made her first appearance as Ronnie in July 2007 and stayed in the role for four years – leaving after a controversial plot saw Ronnie lose her baby son James to cot death before swapping him for neighbour Kat Moon’s son Tommy. Ofcom received 1,044 complaints over the two New Year episodes of 2010 which featured the swap while the BBC itself received 13,400 complaints. Ronnie’s leaving line saw her imprisoned over the kidnap.
Other harrowing storylines saw the death of Ronnie’s daughter Danielle (Lauren Crace) as they were reunited and the admission that she was sexually abused by her father Archie (Larry Lamb).
Ronnie arrived in the Square with sister Roxy to spice up the Mitchell family
Ronnie and Roxy with their mum Glenda
Womack returned to the saga in 2013 in scenes that saw Ronnie released from prison.
The character has remained at the centre of drama since that time including being responsible for the deaths of her sister Roxy’s (Rita Simons) boyfriend Carl White (Daniel Coonan) and Fatboy (Ricky Norwood).
“It was felt that with everything Ronnie has been through over the past nine years, it is now time to rest the character.” – Unnamed Insider
Ronnie’s exit is expected to be aired next year and forms the climax to an explosive storyline. Womack has other projects in the pipeline reports note.
