Home and Away’s Sophie Dillman and Paddy O’Connor on leaving the soap
Home and Away’s Sophie Dillman and Patrick O’Connor fight back tears as they discuss their decision to leave the long-running soap
They were fan favorites on Home and Away for over five years.
And on Thursday, Sophie Dillman, 29, and Patrick O’Connor, 30, shared a moving farewell with viewers on the eve of their final appearance in Summer Bay.
The real-life couple, who played sweethearts Ziggy and Dean on the long-running soap opera, thanked their loyal fans during an interview on the morning program.
Appearing via video link from London, where the couple are currently enjoying a European excursion, Larry asked the popular couple if they had a final message for viewers.
“I’m going to try not to cry,” Sophie began clearly emotional, before Patrick said, “Oh my gosh!”
Home and away fan favorites Robert O’Connor (left) and Sarah Dillman (right) appeared on The Morning Show on Thursday before their final appearance as Dean and Ziggy.
The real-life couple, who played sweethearts Ziggy and Dean (pictured) on the long-running soap opera, thanked their loyal fans during an interview with hosts Larry Emdur and Kylie Gillies.
“We just wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone who supported Ziggy and Dean,” Sarah continued.
“And we can only do what we do because of the people who watched the show – we have the best job in the world.”
“We felt the support throughout the entire process, we couldn’t be more grateful for everything,” added Robert.
Morning Show co-host Kylie Gillies cheekily corrected Sarah’s earlier statement:
“You had the best job in the world,” he said, which left the happy couple in stitches.
The couple, who starred on the soap for more than five years, are currently enjoying a European vacation and told Morning Show viewers they had no plans to return to the screen yet.
They also revealed the emotional toll that leaving the show has taken on them.
Robert said that the last month of filming was particularly difficult and that the last week was very hard.
“When we said our last goodbyes it was pretty heartbreaking,” he said.
Elsewhere in the chat, Sarah and Robert said there are no immediate plans to return to work.
At the moment, they plan on taking more trips, having just completed a tour of Ireland and Scotland, where they were often recognized by their UK fans.
It comes just days after the couple revealed why they left Home and Away.
Speaking to TV Week on Monday, the pair said their characters had run out of steam after a long career on screen. Pictured: Patrick O’Connor as Dean in Home and Away
Speaking to TV Week on Monday, the pair said their characters had run out of steam after a long career on screen.
“We both did our best with our characters and it was time to start a new chapter,” said Sarah.
He called the move “emotional” but said the couple was ready for a new challenge.
“It’s bittersweet and emotional, but we realize how lucky we are to have had such an incredible career,” he added.
Sarah made her debut as Ziggy on Home and Away during the 2017 season. Patrick’s character Dean, meanwhile, made his first appearance six months later.
Sarah said that saying goodbye to the series after its debut in 2017 has not been easy