Emmerdale airs an exit next week, as spoilers confirm Jacob Gallagher leaves the village.
The teen heads away for a while, with his exit storyline now confirmed.
Amid heartache for his aunt Leyla Harding, who is actually his biological mother, he departs for Portugal.
But Jacob reveals he will be gone for at least six months, with him not being in the village for the remainder of 2020.
He's going to stay with his adoptive mother, Leyla's sister, Alicia.
In real life, actor Joe-Warren Plant is taking a long break from the ITV soap due to an exciting new venture.
Joe has signed up for Dancing on Ice 2021, and is one of the new line-up also featuring Faye Brooks, Rebekah Vardy and Jason Donovan amongst others.
Also on the bill are Denise Van Outen, Lady Leshurr and Myleene Klass.
Given the coronavirus pandemic and the latest lockdown restrictions and government guidelines, it's likely that the stars of the show are having to form certain social bubbles to take part.
Like with Strictly Come Dancing, if the celebs are already training with their chosen professional skater then it's also likely that they have formed a bubble together to get the show on the road.
With Joe probably not allowed to mingle closely with others outside of the show, perhaps this is the reason behind Jacob's lengthy absence from the village.
Next week, spoilers confirm he tells Leyla he is leaving for Portugal - for six months.
It comes amid heartache for Leyla, as she wrongly believes her boyfriend Liam Cavanagh has taken advantage of her teen-aged colleague Gabby Thomas.
Jacob worries about leaving Leyla amid the ongoing drama, but soon departs in his final scenes for a while.
Emmerdale airs weeknights at 7pm on ITV, with an extra episode on Thursdays at 8pm.
