Dales boss laments Coleman, Oliver exits

Emmerdale's leading producer Gavin Blyth has admitted that he regrets the departures of Jenna-Louise Coleman and Sally Oliver.

Coleman bowed out from her role as Jasmine Thomas on the ITV1 soap earlier this year and has since secured a role as troubled schoolgirl Lindsey James on Waterloo Road. Jasmine's exit saw her sent to jail after admitting responsibility for the death of boyfriend Shane Doyle (Paul McEwan).

Meanwhile, Oliver's final scenes as Lexi King were broadcast in August. Lexi was seen deciding to leave the village after her relationship with husband Carl (Tom Lister) broke down in a real-time special.

Both actresses had already chosen to quit the Yorkshire-based programme when Blyth was named as its new series producer in January.

Reflecting on their exits, Blyth told DS: "It was beyond my control - because I came in when some decisions had been made - but I regret that Jenna-Louise Coleman, who played Jasmine, had decided to leave by the time I arrived as I really like her as a character and actress. It was a foregone conclusion by that point, though, so I couldn't undo that one."

He continued: "Then obviously Sally Oliver's departure was in the works as she'd chosen to move on. The story wasn't there by that point, though.

"The one thing that we managed to achieve in the last three to five months of Sally's time with the show, was that the audience started to understand who Lexi was - and who would have thought that four months earlier? Had Sally stayed when Lexi was becoming the most interesting she'd ever been, that would have been great."

Blyth's appointment to the rural serial followed the departure of his predecessor Anita Turner.

> Click here to read Gavin Blyth's Producer's Perspective 2009
> Click here to read what's to come in Emmerdale in 2010