EMMERWAIL Emmerdale legend slams soap bosses as she reveals she burst into tears after axe
The star was killed off the series in 2022 in a shocking turn of events
FORMER Emmerdale star Katherine Dow Blyton has slammed soap bosses for the way they handled her character’s exit.
The actress, who played Harriet Finch for nine years between 2013 and 2022, has told of her shocked reaction when bosses axed her character.
Viewers will remember that Harriet was killed off during the show’s 50th anniversary month in October 2022.
She fell off a quad bike during a storm and it subsequently crushed her following an explosion.
However, the aftermath of her death saw the village forget her and the character wasn’t even given a funeral, enraging fans at the time.
Now Katherine has slammed the soap for how they treated police woman-turned-vicar-turned-police woman Harriet.
“I went up and they basically said, ‘We love Harriet and we’re going to give her a good death,’” she said.
“I did sit there for ten seconds thinking, have I done something wrong? They say don’t take it personally but it’s impossible not to.
“I was taken aback. I said, ‘Well you don’t know what to do with me anyway, do you?’
“I tried to get out of the building, sat in my car and burst into tears because it was a shock.
“I had been ready to go for a while, to be fair, but to make the decision to leave a good job is a big decision and I’m glad they made it because I possibly wouldn’t have been brave enough.”
Despite the shock, Katherine had already been left uncomfortable with the changes made to Harriet.
The character had become an accessory to murder when she covered up the shooting of her ex-lover, with grim scenes even seeing her dig up his body.
Harriet went on to suffer a breakdown before quitting as a vicar and rejoining the police force as a constable – something that didn’t sit right with Katherine.
“Going back to being a policewoman on the beat at my age was, I think, a bit left field,” she said.
“For the first time in my nearly ten years, I felt uncomfortable in my own skin because it just felt wrong to me.
“When Harriet came in she was such a fabulous character, she was a bit naughty, a bit off the wall, she had a sense of humour. When did you laugh see Harriet laugh?”
Viewers were devastated when Harriet died and reached out to the actress with messages of support.
I tried to get out of the building, sat in my car and burst into tears because it was a shock
Katherine Dow Blyton
Katherine added to the new episode of Soap From the Box podcast: “I got so many lovely messages after Harriet died.
“People going she hasn’t even had a funeral, where’s her body? I just felt a bit sorry for Harriet, it is what it is.
“You have to suck it up and go, that’s showbiz! The irony is that was the first super soap week I’ve been involved with!”
She added: “I think the problem is everything seems to be very sensational now, when you watch the old episodes, it was very much character-based.
“You just think why has everything got to be conflict, murder, affairs? You can have a character that’s single or a happily married couple.
“I don’t know whether soaps are a victim of their own success because there is a limit, when you’re doing six episodes a week, what do you do to keep people interested?
“It just seems more of a competition between soaps to do the best stunts and the best trauma and tragedies rather than characters.”
The new episode of Soap From The Box is out tomorrow.
