Pauline Quirke has confirmed that she is set to leave 'Emmerdale' at the end of the year.
The actress, who plays the character of Hazel Rhodes in the soap, will leave once her current contract expires.
She is set to work on a stage version of the sitcom 'Birds of a Feather' in 2012.
Quirke told What's on TV: "They very kindly asked me to stay on until Christmas. And then next year I'm going to be doing a tour of Birds of a Feather - we're going to bring Birds of a Feather back to the stage!
"We thought it was about time we resurrected us three old girls, so we'll be doing a tour next spring. But I'm certainly going to be on the Woolpack steps until this Christmas."
A spokesperson for 'Emmerdale' told Digital Spy: "Pauline was originally due to appear for a year but extended her contract to the end of 2011, so there are many months of drama to come involving Hazel."
