Asan N’Jie fired over Jamie Lomas row: Seven other times TV stars were sacked for headline-hitting controversies

Emmerdale has announced Asan N’Jie will be leaving the soap with immediate effect after an incident at Monday night’s TV Choice Awards.

The actor had his contract terminated by ITV after a video showing N’Jie confronting Hollyoaks’ Jamie Lomas emerged online.

In the clip, N’Jie, who played Ellis Chapman in the soap, appeared to be saying: “I’m going to f*****g kill you… I’m going to f*****g knife you.”

After his dismissal, N’Jie apologised for his behaviour, describing it as “completely unacceptable and very much out of character.”

But he’s not the first British personality to lose a lucrative TV role following controversy.

Here are seven other stars who have suffered similar fates…

Marc Anwar – Coronation Street

Anwar, 63, played the role of businessman Sharif Nazir, who was part of the show’s first ever Muslim family. On-screen, his character was at the centre of the drama when the family man was revealed to have been having an affair with character Sonia Rahman.

But in 2016, the actor faced off-screen controversy after he posted a string of “racially offensive” tweets.

Anwar appeared to refer to Indian people as “b*******” and “p***-drinking c****” in the posts and called for Pakistani actors to stop working in the country.

His comments came after the Indian army said it killed a militant in a gunfight in Kashmir which is claimed by both India and Pakistan.

Following the publication of his tweets, Anwar was sacked from Coronation Street with “immediate effect”.

He posted a video apology on YouTube and said his “moment of madness” was caused by seeing footage of the dead in Kashmir.

His character Sharif was due to be the focus of a huge storyline as his affair unfolded.

However after Anwar’s sacking, the character was given an off-screen exit with him fleeing Weatherfield suddenly and leaving a goodbye note for his family.

Stephanie Davis – Hollyoaks

Davis joined the cast of Hollyoaks in 2010 as Sinead O’Connor, who was an integral part of the show. But in 2015, it was revealed that show bosses had axed her after she was reported to have arrived on set drunk.

A spokesman for Davis, 26, said at the time: “Stephanie’s contract was terminated following warnings for lateness, attendance and after a final incident in which she turned up to set unfit to work because of alcohol consumption.”

Her character was seen later storming out of her flat disappearing from the village when she discovered her boyfriend, Ste Hay, had been cheating on her with her teenage stepbrother Harry Thompson.

Davis later appeared on Loose Women and revealed that she was battling alcoholism and post-traumatic stress disorder, prompting her to enter rehab for eight weeks.

She told the presenters: “‘I just give up the fight. I was drinking every day at the end. Probably three bottles of wine in the morning.

“I was told I had PTSD and I was having panic attacks from the trauma that happened to me. I had night terrors so I was using it to go to sleep. I was in so much pain.

“It worked for a while then it started to take and take. I couldn’t cope without it.”

Davis’ story has a happy ending as she announced in May 2018 she would be returning to the show as Sinead.

Chris Fountain – Coronation Street

Fountain is a seasoned TV actor having starred in Hollyoaks as Justin Burton from 2003 to 2009, Dancing on Ice and BBC drama Five Days.

However, he hit the jackpot in 2011 when he landed the role of Tommy Duckworth in Coronation Street.

In 2013, videos emerged of him rapper under the pseudonym, the Phantom, about rape.

An ITV spokesman said at the time: “Chris Fountain’s contract with ITV has been terminated as a result of the unacceptable comments he made in a number of online clips.

The actor, 32, later released a statement saying: “I would like to sincerely apologise for any offence I have caused.

“I am deeply ashamed by the lyrics and very much regret my behaviour.”

His character was given an off-screen exit from the show.

Danniella Westbrook – EastEnders​

The 45-year-old actress was once a key member of the EastEnders cast having been a part of the show on and off since 1990 as Sam Mitchell,  the only daughter of Peggy and Eric Mitchell.

She left the show in 1993 but later returned as producers wanted her back.

However, in 1996 she was written out of the show after her cocaine addiction began to take hold.

In later years she was replaced by actress Kim Medcalf but took up the baton again in 2009.

In 2016 she came back to the show for a few episodes after the death of her on-screen mother Peggy, played by Barbara Windsor.

She later received an intervention from Jeremy Kyle and entered rehab. 

In May she revealed she was heading home, and tweeted: “Just wanna say thanks @ITVJeremyKyle and the Perry Clayman Project for the love support and patience. I’m fixed from the inside out. On the way home to Pcp missed my Pcp peers and my home groups the last 2 days.”

Shila Iqbal – Emmerdale​

In April this year, rising star Iqbal was sacked from Emmerdale after a series of historic, offensive tweets sent from her account were unearthed. The actress, who played Aiesha Richards, was then told her contract would not be renewed on the soap. 

The tweets, which were later deleted, were reported to have contained homophobic and racial slurs, including “Do not tweet me you gay” and “I know too many noisy n****s.”

She posted an apology, which said: “I am terribly sorry and take full responsibility for my use of such inappropriate language.

“I have paid the price and can no longer continue the job I loved the most at Emmerdale.

“Although I was young when I made the tweets, it was still completely wrong of me to do so and I sincerely apologise.”

Later appearing on This Morning, Iqbal said she “does not condone” the use of the words and they “aren’t in [her] vocabulary anymore.”

Frankie Cocozza – The X Factor

Cocozza won fans over with his cheeky chappy meets bad boy image in the 2011 series. The then 18-year-old also won over the judges in the audition stages, with his cover of The Zuton’s Valerie and revealing he had seven women’s names tattooed on his buttocks.

But his partying ways soon took their toll and he was axed for “breaking the show’s golden rule”. While it was never officially revealed what the rule was, he was rumoured to have “boasted about cocaine-fuelled sex sessions” backstage.

He later apologised for his actions, saying “My life during the show has gone out of control and my behaviour off stage has overstepped the rules of the competition.

“I no longer deserve my place in the show, so I am therefore leaving. I would like to thank everyone who has supported me.”

Sherif Lanre  – Love Island

Fans of Love Island 2019 had high hopes for the 20-year-old chef from London after he joined the villa and was paired with Anna Vakili, 29.

But they were left shocked when Sherif was ejected from the villa just nine days into the competition. The reasons were not made clear by the showrunners, with ITV confirming only that Sherif had “broke villa rules” and that police were not involved.

However, in a tell-all interview with The Sun days later, Sherif said he accidentally kicked Molly-Mae Hague in the groin while joking around with her and Tommy Fury.

He explained: “I did kick Molly-Mae in the groin area but it was an accident and she 100 per cent was not injured afterwards.

“She did appear to be in pain at first but then she stood up and seemed fine and we started laughing about it.” 

Sherif added that this was when he made a foul-mouthed joke about the incident.

He said: “I turned to Tommy and said, ‘That was a c*** punt.’ I realise now that was wrong and I would like to apologise.”