Kim Medcalf has made an unannounced exit from EastEnders in tonight's episode as her character Sam Mitchell left Albert Square yet again.
Sam reappeared in Walford in November and had to rely on brother Phil (Steve McFadden) to settle a hefty debt with a drug baron.
In Wednesday's episode, Sam blackmailed Phil after discovering he had a one-night stand with Emma (Patsy Kensit) - but after getting her money, she announced his infidelity in the Vic, devastating his wife Kat (Jessie Wallace).
An angry Phil responded by disowning his sister and forcing her out of the Square - and after saying goodbye to son Ricky (Frankie Day), she left for a new life in Canada.
"It's been brilliant [coming back], as always!" said Medcalf, who reprised the role in 2022. "It was perfect timing for me and worked really well that Sam was coming back for another short stint.
"That's the beauty of this character – I love that she comes in, disrupts things, and then leaves the debris behind her. This time, she's been chucked out the back of a van, taken £100k from Phil to pay back a drug dealer and then blown up his marriage to Kat!
"There's a lot of drama with Sam, and it's never plain sailing. Hopefully, she'll be back again sometime for another stint of causing chaos."
Despite Sam's time in the Square coming to an acrimonious end with Phil, Medcalf thinks that they will eventually patch things back up again.
She continued: "I think it's feasible that there could come a point in the future where Phil admits that Sam might have been wrong in how she did it, but the situation was all caused by his error.
"Sam didn't make up the fact he slept with Emma - she just exposed him and his deceit. If Phil had a moment of introspection, he might think, 'This isn't about Sam, it's about me.'
"So, if I'm being positive, I believe there is potential for them to repair things. The Mitchells are a family who go through a lot and are used to this drama between them.
"Right now, it feels very broken, and Sam realises it's best to cut her losses and try to start again somewhere else. But if you think about what Grant and Phil have done to each other, this is nothing!"
EastEnders continues tomorrow at 7.30pm on BBC One and from 6am on iPlayer.
Neil Wilkes
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