Verity Rushworth 'so grateful' for her shocking exit from Emmerdale (VIDEO)

Emmerdale star Verity Rushworth says she's so grateful writers decided to end her character Donna Windsor's life in a homicidal plunge to the death rather than a protracted death from cancer.

Emmerdale fans saw Donna handcuff herself to criminal Gary North and leap from the top of a sky-rise building in Thursday's harrowing final episode. But for actress Verity it was a thrilling way to end her 16-year career on the soap.

She told What's on TV: "I was really excited about it. Obviously I was quite nervous because it was a huge stunt and I didn't have a stuntwoman so I had to be very brave."

She added: "When I was told the exit my instincts were excited by it and up for the challenge and now I'm really grateful because it would have been really difficult to portray Donna dying from her illness and the deterioration and things like that. This way it's a completely different slant on it. Her life's been cut short for a reason, a valid reason. I think it was more impactful and shocking and I think it's going to make people sit up and take note of it."

Watch the interview with Verity Rushworth, above.

 

 

Patrick McLennan

Patrick McLennan is a London-based journalist and documentary maker who has worked as a writer, sub-editor, digital editor and TV producer in the UK and New Zealand. His CV includes spells as a news producer at the BBC and TVNZ, as well as web editor for Time Inc UK. He has produced TV news and entertainment features on personalities as diverse as Nick Cave, Tom Hardy, Clive James, Jodie Marsh and Kevin Bacon and he co-produced and directed The Ponds, which has screened in UK cinemas, BBC Four and is currently available on Netflix. 

An entertainment writer with a diverse taste in TV and film, he lists Seinfeld, The Sopranos, The Chase, The Thick of It and Detectorists among his favourite shows, but steers well clear of most sci-fi.