Top 20 Soap Stars Who Destroyed Their Careers

Taking over from Jon Peyton-Price, Alexandrou played the role of Martin Fowler in “Eastenders” from 1996. During that time, he played a pivotal role in some of Martin’s best storylines, including the relationship with Sonia and accidentally killing Jamie Mitchell. However, in 2006, Alexandrou announced he was leaving the square, with his last appearance coming in 2007. In 2008, he began a public friendship with Amy Winehouse. Shortly after, scandal erupted when a photo of Alexandrou was released on Facebook that had the actor smoking cannabis. Since then, Alexandrou has mostly focussed on theatre, with some TV and minor film roles. However, he did front a 2011 BBC documentary titled “Cannabis: What's the Harm?” Martin was recast in 2014 with James Bye.

In 2011, Lapinskas walked into “Eastenders” as the new addition to the Moon family, Anthony. He and his brother Tyler were seen as the latest generation of Phil and Grant Mitchell. While Lapinskas’s career was taking off, so was his personal life as he began dating co-star Shona McGarty. However, in March 2012, the duo found themselves in hot water. Reportedly, while they were at Asda, McGarty suggestively poured yoghurt on herself as Lapinskas allegedly threw pots about. As such, the two were kicked out of the store. A few months later, in May, it was announced Lapinskas was leaving “Eastenders.” While the yoghurt incident wasn’t confirmed to be responsible, the actor suggested in interviews it wasn’t his decision to go.

Debuting in “Hollyoaks” as Sinead O'Connor in 2010, Davis was a vital part of the Liverpool soap. However, in 2015, her personal life began to hinder her working one. After a series of warnings for being late, Davis turned up to set under the effects of drink, leading to her being fired. She’d been known for attending parties regularly and allegedly flashed someone days before her sacking. After leaving “Hollyoaks,” life didn’t get better for Davis as she struggled with drinking and being in an abusive relationship with Jeremy McConnell. In 2018, she went public with her mental health struggles and spoke about going to rehab. That same year, Davis returned as Sinead before leaving again in 2019.

Shortly after “Brookside” debuted on our screen in 1982, Regan arrived as Terry Sullivan. For the next 15 years, he was one of the soap’s main characters. After leaving in 1997, Regan rarely appeared in screen productions. Any hope of a successful comeback seemingly evaporated in 2011. That year, Regan was arrested for involvement with the murder of Bahman Faraji. The former actor had driven the car that took Edward Heffey, on the orders of Jason Gabbana, to take Faraji’s life. Regan was taking illegal substances during the incident. In 2012, he was sentenced for perverting the course of justice after lying to the police about his alibi, earning Regan 4 years and 10 months imprisonment.

In 2004, Suffield became the third actor to take on the mantle of Lucy Beale in “Eastenders.” This led to a spike in Lucy’s stories, as she became a teenage terror on the square. However, in 2010, it was announced Suffield had been sacked due to “unruly” behaviour on set after receiving the maximum 3-warning limit. On top of questionable social media posts, the actor was known for partying despite being 17 at the time. Upon learning of her firing, Suffield stated she was a “naughty girl outside of work” and called the decision “pathetic.” Since then, beyond a handful of screen appearances, Suffield has also worked in a few stage productions. She’s also a vocal advocate for body positivity.

Brought into “Emmerdale” in 2003 as Daz Eden, Tittensor was soon celebrated for his work with the story of Daz and Belle Dingle falling down a mine shaft and his uncomfortable relationship with Victoria Sugden. However, in 2008, Tittensor was embroiled in a scandal when he was 19. After getting into an argument with a group of teenagers in Rochdale, the actor attacked a younger teen, causing severe injuries, including a broken jaw. In 2009, Tittensor pleaded guilty to grievous bodily harm. As a result, “Emmerdale” sacked him. Tittensor received a 9-month suspended sentence. In the aftermath, the actor struggled to find regular screen work. It took until “House of the Dragon” in 2022 to give him a regular role in a big production.

In 1996, Dunn first appeared on “Hollyoaks” as Mandy Richardson. Beyond a couple of stints away from the soap, she was a regular cast member, winning awards along the way. However, in 2021, Dunn’s stint in the Channel 4 show came to an abrupt end. Despite taking part in glamour photoshoots throughout her career, some involving the show’s official calendars, the production staff were livid that she had an account on OnlyFans. After she refused to remove her account during a meeting with “Hollyoaks” bosses, they dropped her, citing it wasn’t appropriate for their target audience. Fans were furious at the decision, calling for a boycott of “Hollyoaks” in response. Since then, Dunn has barely worked in the acting industry.

There might not be a soap actor who had more chances than Westbrook. In “Eastenders,” she had the role of Sam Mitchell since 1990. However, her time there was mired in substance issues, which affected her work, leading to her being fired multiple times and severely damaging her nose. Kim Medcalf would take over the role of Sam, while Westbrook has also returned briefly. In 2013, Westbrook joined the cast of “Hollyoaks” as Trudy Ryan. However, a few months later, she departed. Westbrook was set to return in 2015. However, she was suddenly sacked, with “Hollyoaks” stating she’d breached her contract. Westbrook originally claimed that she chose not to return as her ex, Tom Richards, lived near the set.

In 2013, a teenage gang descended on “Eastenders,” pressuring Liam Butcher into joining and then clashing with his mum, Bianca. One of the members was Berouain’s Tayo. After his Walford stint, the actor slowly added several productions to his credits. However, in 2020, any hope of an acting career evaporated. As Berouain was driving 60 miles per hour on a 30-mph limit road in London, he struck an Uber, causing the passenger, Caroline, to lose her life. She was the mother of England cricket star Gus Atkinson. 7 months later, the cops went to charge Berouain but discovered he had fled the country. He was eventually found in the US and extradited back to the UK. In 2024, Berouain was sentenced to 8-and-a-half years imprisonment.

A month into “Coronation Street” debuting, Adamson joined the cobbles as Len Fairclough, becoming a vital cog in its success. However, it wasn’t all smooth, as the actor had a drinking problem that caused issues. In 1983, shortly after he criticised the cast in an interview, Adamson was charged with assaulting 2 children as he gave them swimming lessons. He went to Granada, who produced the soap, asking for financial aid for the court case. Just before they handed him the cash, Adamson mentioned he was selling his memoirs to The Sun. So, Granada withdrew the money and sacked him. While he was acquitted, Adamson’s reputation was in tatters as he struggled to find work, causing him to be bankrupt before passing away in 2002.

Chris Fountain found success on Hollyoaks in early years, but it was on Coronation Street as “Tommy Duckworth” where his career began to take off. Sadly for Fountain, this did not last long. On the side, he had a DJ and Rap persona known as “The Phantom”, and some time in 2013 this got him in hot water - as a video of his began to spread exhibiting the obscene and violent lyrics in his songs. The character of Tommy was written off the show very quickly after.

It can be the slightest mistake that gets you thrown out the door. Arthur “Fatboy” Chubb was the man Ricky brought to life on Eastenders from 2010 to 2015. He became such a beloved character that many were sad to see him go. But that’s what happened when screencaps of a Skype chat involving Ricky surfaced, showing him doing things he shouldn’t - including using illegal substances. While he was known to be popular on set, they ultimately had to do what they thought was best for the show’s reputation and Ricky was released.

Being a principal cast member on the long running soap opera series ‘Coronation Street’ is definitely a great thing to have on an actor’s resume; making mean-spirited tweets against all of India on the other hand? Not a great thing to have in your file. Anwar ruined his public image after posting a series of hugely offensive and racist tweets towards the Indian population. Anwar attempted to apologize later, but it all seemed like a moot point, it was all said and done by that time. The producers naturally found Anwar’s behavior completely unacceptable and even despite his character being in the middle of a major story arc, wrote him off the show without batting an eye.

This one is very unfortunate. Perrie starred as Ivy Tilsley on Coronation Street for the better part of 23 years, but it was a strange circumstance that led from her quick exit from the show. Without informing the executives at Granada, Perrie decided to undergo extreme plastic surgery. Many mocked how she looked afterwards, and her bosses were allegedly upset that she made this decision without consulting her. While she herself denied that this was the case, many seem to agree that there is no other correlation that would lead to her swift departure.

Bruce Jones, sadly, hasn’t had an easy life. A series of traumatic events shook his personal life, but he was able to turn things around when he played the role of Les Battersby in Coronation Street. Here he enjoyed a career that lasted over 10 years. But things went south when he was, allegedly, caught getting drunk with an undercover reporter and leaking upcoming corrie storylines. This led to his suspension and the ITV team not renewing his contract. While he has appeared on Celebrity big brother and a few other shows, he has yet to reappear in the iconic soap.

This ‘Emmerdale’ star had just signed on as a series regular and had a promising career in front of her, but sadly, any potential doors opening for her were swiftly shut when tweets she wrote at the age of 19 resurfaced online. The social media posts in question contained racist and homophobic slurs, completely tarnishing her reputation. Shila attempted to apologize, as many celebrities do during situations like this and even tried to justify her actions, saying that she too was a victim of offensive messages in the past and is aware of how abundant the issue is.

At the 2019 TV Choice Awards, violence was clearly in the air. A fight broke out between “Emmerdale’s” Asan N’Jie and “Hollyoaks’” Jamie Lomas in the lobby of The Hilton. It was apparently over a financial dispute between a fellow actor and friend of N’Jie who was being managed by Lomas’ company; rumour has it that when this unnamed actor decided to leave, Lomas asked for his commission, which N’Jie didn’t take kindly to. Regardless of his motivation, however, he still threatened to stab Lomas in public and was subsequently sacked from the role of Ellis Chapman.

Dirty Den is up there with the most iconic characters in Eastenders history. But the man who portrayed him, Leslie Grantham, faced a huge media scandal that would impact his career greatly. In 2004, images of Grantham appeared in newspapers exposing himself on a webcam call with an undercover reporter. He was also reported to have hurled insults about his co-stars during this chat - and this obviously didn’t go over well. As a response to the scandal, the show producers immediately set up his exit from the show, and the character was killed for a second time in 2005. Sadly never got a chance to redeem himself and return to the show, as he passed away in 2018.

You’re probably sick of us talking about her incident, but when you talk about career self-sabotage you simply cannot ignore the Roxanne Pallet debacle. We’ll make it quick this time don’t worry. Roxanne enjoyed her time on Emmerdale as Jo Stiles for 3 years. But of course, it’s not her work on that show that has made her so infamous. When she appeared on Celebrity Big Brother in 2018, she falsely accused her fellow housemate, and fellow soap actor Ryan Thomas of attacking her. This led to the nation being outraged at her behaviour and since rumours even popped up that her Emmerdale co-stars hated working with her too!

A lot of you might be scratching your head when you see Todd Grimshaw on Corrie these days. He’s now played by a completely different actor! That’s because Bruno Langley who had played him between 2001 and 2017 was allegedly involved in a heinous crime. In 2017, police confirmed he was involved and later that year he pleaded guilty. This would lead to him receiving a number of punishments, including wearing an electronic tag. Suffice to say, Langley did not return to the show. Are there any former soap actors who you’d like to see back performing in the same show or another soap? Let us know below!