Waterloo Road's Craig Fitzpatrick is being sought by police after he failed to turn up for a court appearance in Lancashire.

Fitzpatrick, who plays Lewis Seddon in the BBC One series, was due to appear on domestic abuse charges relating to incidents with his then pregnant girlfriend Julie Owens, 20.

In his absence, Fitzpatrick was convicted of two assault charges. Sentencing has been suspended and a warrant issued for his arrest.

In the trial at Tameside Magistrates Court, Owens said Fitzpatrick had stormed into her flat and started "pulling things apart", accusing her of seeing another man.

"I was backing away from him and I could tell he was angry. He had my shoe in his hand. I asked him to please stop," she said.

The couple have two sons, six-month old Jayden-Lee and three-year-old Joshua.

A spokeswoman for Waterloo Road confirmed that Fitzpatrick will not return to the show.