Kieron Richardson is leaving Hollyoaks after almost 14 years of drama.
The Eccles actor, who plays Ste Hay in the Channel Four soap, is taking a break from Hollyoaks village to star in Kay Mellor's stage show Band Of Gold.
His last episode, for now, will be screened tonight at 7pm on E4.
Kieron, 33, has won high praise for the harrowing storyline as Ste, who was groomed for months by far-right extremists Stuart Sumner and Jonny Baxter.
He previously said he was 'too scared' at first to take on the far-right radicalisation plot, which reached its conclusion this week.
Ste was encouraged to take action against the Maaliks the Muslim family living next door and things took a horrifying turn as racist Jonny attempted to set off an explosive device in The Loft nightclub.
A horrified Ste tried to stop his friend, only for the bomb to be dropped in the garden leaving neighbour Yasmine, played by Haiesha Mistry, deafened by the blast.
Ste has since been trying to escape the manipulative group.
Since his arrival in 2016 Kieron's character has battled alcohol and drug addiction, got two different women pregnant and been made homeless.
Back in 2008 Ste battered his ex partner Amy Barnes in harrowing scenes which saw her walk out on him.
He then went on to have a passionate relationship with drug dealer Brendan Brady, played by Emmett J Scanlan, and Ste became the victim of Brendan’s violent attacks.
In 2015 he worked with sexual health charity Terrence Higgins Trust on a storyline that saw Ste diagnosed as HIV positive - the first time a British soap had featured a gay character living with HIV.
And in 2017 he was part of a whodunit plot which saw Amy murdered on her wedding day, and the killer turned out to be her husband Ryan Knight.
