HOLLYOAKS legends Jessica Fox and Ashley Taylor Dawson have sparked fears they could be axed from the soap.
The pair spoke out after a mass culling of their co-stars and admitted they are ‘crossing their fingers and toes’ that they won’t also get the boot.
Jessica has played Nancy Hayton in Hollyoaks for 20 years and Ashley has played Darren Osborne for 26 years.
But even they are both concerned about their future on the E4 soap.
This year, Hollyoaks celebrates its 30th anniversary and bosses have said the milestone will be marked on the show.
It is not yet known if this will include another dramatic stunt scene – which could also result in more character deaths.
Jessica told the Daily Star: “If the past year has taught us anything, it’s that no one is guaranteed to stay. You just have to cross your fingers and toes that you will.”
Ashley added: “Anyone can go. That’s the industry we’re in.
“You never take anything for granted. If it’s your time, it’s your time. You just have to deal with it.”
Hollyoaks fans were left fearful for the show last year when The Sun revealed a huge number of characters were being killed off.
The soap’s schedule was also cut from five to three episodes a week, making it the industry’s biggest blood bath.
In September, an epic deadly motorbike crash and car explosion stunt saw the show fast-forward an entire year in a time jump and lose 20 stars.
Both Nancy and Ashley survived the cull – but not everyone was so lucky.
Gregory Finnegan’s character James Nightingale died in the car explosion. Suzanne Ashworth, played by Suzanne Hall, was also killed off.
Andre Clark (David Joshua-Anthony) Sally St Claire (Annie Wallace) had left the village once the show had jumped forward a year, while Ethan Williams was killed off by his new wife Sienna Blake the following month.
Matthew James Bailey, who played Ethan, was forced to bow out.
One of the biggest shocks, however, was the axing of Stephanie Waring.
Stephanie had played Cindy Cunningham on and off for 28 years and was devastated to be sacked.
Speaking exclusively to The Sun at the time, the actress said she broke down in tears and begged Hollyoaks bosses to reconsider.
She said: “I was learning all week of the people who were going, and I remember crying at one of them, and I had this gut feeling that I would be too.
“But another part of me was thinking ‘I’ve just signed a year-long contract, surely it won’t be me’. Everyone was telling me I would be fine as I’m an original character.
“In the meeting they read from a script and a tear fell from my eye because I could just feel it in the room.
“They got to the end and said ‘And with that, we will be losing Cindy from the show’. I just kept saying ‘I don’t understand’. I was very distraught, I didn’t take it well – I was probably the most dramatic person they told.
“I just kept telling them ‘I’m an original character’. I was clutching at anything – telling them, ‘But I was the first person to give birth on the show!’ I could see the distress I was causing them because they were upset that I was so upset.”
