Claire King has praised Leah Bracknell as the "most pure, honest, beautiful person".
The ‘Emmerdale’ actress – who plays Kim Tate – and her co-star Emma Atkins (Charity Dingle) paid tribute to the late star (Zoe Tate), who tragically lost her battle with lung cancer in September last year aged 55.
Speaking about her on-screen stepdaughter in an episode of ‘Emmerdale Family Trees’, which focused on the Tate family, Claire said: "She was just the most pure, honest, beautiful person inside and out."
One of Emma’s first major storylines saw Charity embark on an affair with Zoe in 2001, when the character was dating Zoe’s brother Chris Tate (Peter Amory).
And Emma admitted Leah was "so professional" on the show.
She said: "Leah Bracknell was a complete joy to work with, just because she was so professional, so kind.
"I loved her a lot."
Peter added: "I think working with Leah was fantastic.
"She was basically like a sister."
In October 2016, Leah revealed she had been diagnosed with stage four terminal lung cancer, and a £50,000 fundraising appeal to pay for experimental treatment in Germany hit its target within three days.
The star – who played Zoe for 16 years on the ITV show before her exit in 2005 – was determined to fight the disease, and last summer she was part of an immunotherapy clinical trial.
Sadly, she passed away in September 2019, with the news announced the following month.
Her manager said at the time: "It is with the deepest sadness that Leah Bracknell’s family confirm that Leah passed away in September, three years after her diagnosis with stage four lung cancer.
"They would like to thank all the public for their support and generosity which contributed to the extension and quality of her life over the past three years.
"Leah continued to embrace life and faced her illness with positivity. Many aspects of her journey can be found on her blog."