Sammy Winward thinks she has left ‘Emmerdale’ at the "right time".
The 29-year-old soap star – who played Katie Sugden on the ITV programme for 14 years – decided to leave the show because she wanted to do something "different" and spend time with her daughter Mia.
She said: "I still loved the show and everybody there. So it kind of went against all my instincts, but I just knew I needed to do something different.
"I’ve just started filming for a new show [‘Prey’], which I’m really excited about. It’s been perfect really because I’ve had four months to spend some proper time with Mia. I’ve been able to be at home, which sounds really boring, but I’ve been working non-stop since I was 15! I’ve also written a children’s book called Princess Phoebe Meets The Tudors."
However, Sammy has admitted she does miss seeing her "best friends" every day but is glad she has more time free to spend with her little girl.
She added to OK! magazine: "I do [miss it]. I’m adjusting to it now and it’s strange not going to work and seeing my best friends every day, but we still see each other all the time.
"I missed Mia a lot, especially when I had a big story line and I was away for three or four days. That was hard and kind of went against my motherly instincts."
Sammy Winward: I’ve come out of Emmerdale at the right time
