Former Hollyoaks actor sacked over £1.5m OnlyFans career pleads for acting return
Five years after being sacked from a Channel 4 soap because of her saucy side-hustle, Sarah-Jayne Dunn wants to revive her acting career.
The former Hollyoaks star, 44, has urged showbiz bigwigs who are currently in the process of 'casting or creating' to keep her in mind for any upcoming roles.
Which is news that might come as a surprise to many, given that she claimed to have made an absolute killing on OnlyFans - even if it did cost the actress the job she had held down for 25 years.
In 2024, Dunn sensationally claimed that she was given an ultimatum by TV bosses and was told that if she didn't stop flogging racy snaps on the adult site, she'd be shown the door.
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As she refused to quit OnlyFans, she was subsequently fired in 2021. The Leigh-born star had played the role of Mandy Richardson in Hollyoaks since 1996.
The mum-of-one alleged that soap bosses had forced actors to 'sign a new copy of their contracts' and previously told The Sun that these revised copies included clauses forbidding them from creating adult content.
A string of household names, such as Kerry Katona and Katie Price, have turned to sites like OnlyFans to earn big bucks in recent years.
Dunn claims to have earned a whopping £1.5million from the X-rated platform.
The actress also previously alleged that she knows which Hollyoaks co-star submitted an anonymous complaint about her second stream of income, which ultimately led to her being fired.
She previously described sticking with OnlyFans and sacking off the small screen as the 'best decision of her life' - but she has now revealed that she really misses acting.
It appears as though Dunn is still hung up on her Hollyoaks days, as she took to Instagram earlier this week to reminisce about her career in front of the camera on the Channel 4 soap.
Sharing a snap of her in character as Mandy, she wrote: "I haven't been on screen in over 4 years, but that doesn't mean I stopped wanting it.
"But now? I'm a woman in my mid-40s trying to find my way back. Not because I ever stopped loving it.. but because somewhere along the way, life shifted, and my priorities changed, and time just moved on.
"And suddenly...the thing that once felt like me felt further away. But here's the truth I can't ignore anymore, I still have that pull, that desire, that voice saying, 'you're not done yet'.
"And if I'm honest.. it's equal parts EXCITING and TERRIFYING to admit that out loud, because this industry moves fast, and stepping back into it as a woman in her 40s? That takes a different kind of confidence."
Dunn suggested that she might be able to use her maturity to her advantage, as she now has more 'experience and depth' which would allow her to tackle 'stories that couldn't have been told before'.
"So this is me," she went on. "Showing up again as an actress – and not who I was, but who I am now.
'If you're casting, creating or reading this… I'm here. And if you're ever felt the pull to return to something you love, go for it!"
In the caption of her post, Dunn told her thousands of followers that she was feeling 'scared, excited and unsure', while adding: "But I think I'm ready."
Go get em, girl!
Topics: OnlyFans, Jobs, TV and Film, UK News
Olivia Burke