Fair City actress Rachel Sarah Murphy has revealed she will be written out of the show next week.
Breaking the news to fans, the TV star, who has played Jo Fahey for the last 16 years, admitted that her time in Carrigstown will come to an end.
“Jo’s not in Fair City for 2016, I’ve no contract for 2016,” she said.
Leaving: Rachel revealed she’s leaving the RTE show after 16 years
“I’m saying it now as I think I owe it to the fans. I don’t want to disappear and have them wondering what happened.
“They deserve more. I thought I’d always be there. I didn’t see it coming – nobody did among the cast, they’re in shock too. I would never have left, ” she told the Irish Daily Mail’s You Magazine.
The 42-year-old actress was told in May by show bosses that she was being written out of the programme.
“It was like the death of Jo and I was so down for a week,” she admitted.
Grieving: Rachel admitted she grieved for character once she knew she was leaving
“It’s a hard thing to come to terms with and I didn’t know what was happening.
“I was so down and as someone who never gets down, I couldn’t understand what was wrong with me until my best friend Rachel, said: ‘You’re grieving’. And Yes, in my gut, I was grieving the loss of Jo,” she revealed.
Although the Dubliner is devastated to be leaving the RTE soap, she admitted she “bored” with her character.
“I didn’t like what was happening with Jo where her character changed so much and got lost in the mammy and baby thing – that’s not a reflection of real women,” she said.
Bored: Rachel said she was “bored” of her character
“Women don’t change at their core because they get married and have a baby. I know because I’m a mother.
“She got so lost as a character and to be honest, I felt really bored. I could have played Jo in my sleep,” she added.
Following the news, a RTE spokesperson confirmed her departure from the show next week.
