After almost a decade of being found irresistible by women completely out of his league, Max Branning actor Jake Wood, 42, has quit the BBC soap to pursue other ventures. Calm down, ladies, the ginger Lothario will be back in a year. Unlike most soap actors that quit, however, Wood’s return in a year is official and planned, not predicted and out of desperation.

I’d quit my job too if I had to put up with Denise van Outen’s husky tones.