Emmerdale Robert Sugden star’s life six years after ITV soap exit

Former Emmerdale star Ryan Hawley looks unrecognisable from his Robert Sugden days as he landed a new role away from the soap.

The actor, 39, appeared in the ITV hit show between 2014 and 2019, taking over from previous actor Karl Davies.

During his time on the soap, he was involved in a number of dramatic storylines including his love story with fellow villager Aaron Dingle, played by Danny Miller.

They became one of soap’s most loved couples of all time however, they were torn apart in 2019 when Robert was sentenced to 14 years in prison for the manslaughter of his sister Victoria Sugden’s rapist Lee Posner.

Robert’s final scenes saw him jailed after he was arrested by the police, turning himself in for the attack on Lee Posner, who had raped his sister Victoria.

Now, nearly six years on from his final Emmerdale scenes, Ryan has now made a return to our screens in U&alibi’s period drama Miss Scarlet.

The star appeared in the guest role of James Bailey in the latest episode, which aired on Wednesday. Previewing his appearance, Ryan looked worlds away from his Emmerdale role as he posted a picture of himself in his new character on Instagram.

Updating his followers, He wrote: “The Thames Reaper is on the loose in this week’s episode of Miss Scarlet. Watch me, James Bailey help the eponymous hero crack the case! This Wednesday U&alibi 9pm UK.”

Fans rushed to the comment section and flooded the star with sweet support with many begging for the actor to make a return to Emmerdale. One viewer said: “Ah lovely to see you in another TV show. Hope to see you back in the Dales one day!”

Another said: “Robert Sugden we miss you.” A third asked: “Robert please come back to Emmerdale.” One went on to say: “Please come back to Emmerdale!!” Meanwhile another added: “Forward to seeing you on our screens again. We really need to see more of you.”

Since leaving Emmerdale, Ryan has made guest appearances in a number of other hit shows. Last year, he popped up in Casualty as Jamie Cleveland, a member of the board at Holby City Hospital.

He also appeared in two episodes of Silent Witness, sporting a very different long hairstyle and beard. Ryan has also had a recurring role in Channel 5’s reincarnation of All Creatures Great & Small, playing Sid Crabtree.

Emmerdale airs weeknights at 7:30pm on ITV1 and ITVX, with an hour-long episode on Thursdays

Former Emmerdale star Ryan Hawley looks unrecognisable from his Robert Sugden days as he landed a new role away from the soap. The actor, 39, appeared in the ITV hit show between 2014 and 2019, taking over from previous actor Karl Davies. During his time on the soap, he was involved in a number of…