‘Will you miss him?’ Bradley Riches says goodbye to Emmerdale

Bradley’s said a temporary goodbye! (Picture: ITV) Emmerdale’s Bradley Riches is bidding a temporary goodbye to the Yorkshire Dales for a cheeky little festive stint in Never Never Land. Bradley will be leaving Lewis Barton behind for a little while to step into the curly green shoes of Peter Pan in a pantomime this year, which comes as ITV bosses have relaxed their rules on allowing actors to undertake outside projects. Upon Bradley’s announcement, an ITV spokesperson said: ‘We’ve agreed to release a few of the actors from Emmerdale and Coronation Street to appear in pantomime this year. ‘We’ve been looking at this for a while and with plenty of notice, we’ve been able to release the actors for a limited time.’ As he heads away, Lewis made a Facebook post, with a picture of himself alongside Charlotte Bellamy and Nicola Wheeler, who play Laurel Thomas and Nicola King respectively. ‘Who’s gonna miss Lewis for a bit?’ he began the caption. ‘That’s a wrap on filming at Emmerdale for a bit, before some time off and then straight into Pantoland! ‘I’m so excited to see what’s ahead for Lewis in 2027 and to see where his story takes him next. I feel incredibly lucky to do a job I love, surrounded by such brilliant people. Feeling very grateful, as always. ‘For now, a little break before being back on your screens soon. Ask Metro Use AI to go deeper into the stories you care about – powered by Metro and trusted publications. ‘Bradley x’ Bradley will be playing Peter Pan (Picture: Sunderland Empire/ITV) The comments section was flooded with love, with Linda Abbiss writing: ‘You’ll definitely be missed but you’ll smash panto. It’s behind you!’, and Teddie Cork adding: ‘Good luck in panto! You will be fab’. Anne Murray said: ‘Be smashing, so full [of] energy, not shy, kids love you, Bradley going be missed in Emmerdale’ and Christine Dickinson adding: ‘You will be missed you will be great in whatever you do always a smile your an amazing young man’. Julie R Robinson wrote: ‘Of course we’re going to miss you sweetheart, but hey, Panto? Fantastic another string for your bow. Enjoy every minute. We will be here when you get back.’ Dawn Clifford said: ‘I wish I could come and see you in panto. I hope you have a lovely time doing it. Will miss on Emmerdale. x’ and Chloe Slater wrote: ‘Make sure you come back after panto season. You will be fab, you’re an excellent performer’. Chloe needn’t worry, Bradley has already confirmed his return in a tweet earlier in the year. AHHAHHAA! Unlucky for you I’m just off for 4 weeks 🤪— Bradley Riches (@brad_richess) March 5, 2026 Bradley recently teased what Lewis’ Christmas will look like. ‘Christmas is coming up and things are going to be very dysfunctional – you may have Kev [Barton (Chris Coghill)], Nicola, Ross [Barton (Michael Parr)], all those amazing characters who are different and weird in their own way coming together at Christmas. ‘It’s a recipe for weirdness which I’m buzzing about.’ Speaking on how it feels to have been so embraced by viewers, he said: ‘When I first joined, there was a reaction of, who the hell is this person? ‘There was a lot of that reaction but now people have seen Lewis being vulnerable, reconnect with his dad, there’s a lot to process, but I think people are really loving him. Lewis has been navigating losing Vinny… (Picture: ITV) …and his fledgling relationship with Kev (Picture: Mark Bruce) ‘As neurodivergent or autistic people, a lot of the time, we do get misjudged, and I feel like it is such a beautiful representation of the autism community in real life. ‘So much of my life I was misjudged. People have taken to Lewis and I’m very excited for him to go on more journeys and have more storylines, it’s going to be very special.’ Viewers have recently seen Lewis deal with loss of boyfriend Vinny Dingle (Bradley Johnson), who went to prison after accidentally causing the deaths of two villagers in an apocalyptic car collision, and continue to strengthen his relationship with his unconventional dad. Deals of the Day QVC shoppers can save £159 on Elemis' biggest beauty gift set of the year This Hoover vacuum is a game-changer for pet owners and muddy homes The wellbeing brand behind everyone's favourite candles has launched its biggest sale yet See London's Christmas lights from an open-top double-decker bus this winter My skin always suffers when the heating goes on but this serum changed that Arrow MORE: Lacey Turner confirms June Brown upset at EastEnders over storylines she ‘hated’ Arrow MORE: Coronation Street actor returns for sixth time in grim Gary and Ross story Arrow MORE: Coronation Street’s Georgia May Foote confirms romance with music star The Soaps Newsletter – Weekly Sign up for exclusive spoilers and interviews, handpicked by our Soaps Editor.