Adam Woodyatt was pictured on the set of EastEnders for the first time since announcing his split from wife Beverley Sharp after 22 years of marriage.
The 52-year-old actor, who plays Ian Beale on the hit BBC soap, was seen shooting a dramatic cemetery scene last week, alongside co-star Letitia Mitchell (Sharon Watts).
Wrapping up in a brown coat, he looked pensive as he walked through a cemetery to visit the grave of Sharon’s son Dennis, several months after his tragic death.
At work: Adam Woodyatt was pictured on the set of EastEnders for the first time since announcing his split from wife Beverley Sharp after 22 years of marriage
While it has been reported that Adam was making a return to the soap after taking a planned extended break, sources have told MailOnline that it is yet to happen.
Looking leaner than usual after embarking on a new fitness regime, the actor sported spectacles and a light grey polo top as he chatted with co-star Letitia.
The shoot will serve as a dramatic moment on the soap, after Denny, played by Bleu Landau, who died in the sinking of a boat on the Thames earlier this year.
Dramatic: The 52-year-old actor, who plays Ian Beale on the hit BBC soap, was seen shooting a dramatic cemetery scene last week, alongside co-star Letitia Mitchell (Sharon Watts)
While Ian appeared to be stone-faced as he spoke with Sharon, she was seen getting emotional and shedding years as she stood at her offspring’s graveside.
Steve McFadden, who plays Phil Mitchell, was later seen arriving at the cemetery holding flowers as he marked the one-year anniversary of Denny’s passing.
After placing the floral arrangement on Denny’s grave, Phil was seen getting into an argument with Sharon, before storming off and leaving her in tears at the graveside.
For Adam, things have also been testing off screen, as he announced in August that he had split from Beverley Sharp, his wife of 22 years.
Split: Actor Adam Woodyatt, 52, has separated from his wife Beverley Sharp after 22 years of marriage (pictured together in 2017)
The couple reportedly separated in August of last year but it is thought that they have only now started telling friends about their decision.
A friend told The Sun that Beverley was ‘very upset’ at the split but added that it’s a ‘straightforward separation’.
They said: ‘Nobody plans for these things and divorce is a difficult thing to get your head around but they have dealt with it quietly for several months and are now telling friends so it’s less of a secret.
‘They still get on well, and are keen to make sure they stay that way for the sake of their children – even though they are now grown up.’
Adam and Beverley have been married since 1998 and have two children – Jessica, 27, and Samuel, 23.
A spokesperson for the actor said: ‘Beverley and Adam separated in August last year and we ask that the family’s privacy is respected.’
MailOnline contacted Adam’s representative for a comment at the time.
It comes after reports that Adam was being ‘written out’ of EastEnders after playing Ian Beale for 35 years as he is taking an ‘extended break’ from the soap.
Adam was said to be having a prolonged ‘holiday’ with his part being ‘written out’ of upcoming episodes, just as the show prepares to return to air.
The long-time character will be off screen for around 10 weeks due to an ‘explosive plot twist’, a BBC source has claimed, according to the Daily Star.
Another source added: ‘Writers are staying tight-lipped about what happens, so it’s not known yet what the future will hold for the character.’
The news came as the actor was pictured leaving a hotel near the EastEnders set with his luggage during time away from the home he shares with Beverley.
Adam shocked fans last month, when he showed he’d lost a considerable amount of weight in an EastEnders spoiler clip.
ITV’s This Morning aired a sneak preview of an upcoming episode of EastEnders: Secrets From The Square where the actor looked almost unrecognisable.
Host Stacey Dooley was seen interviewing Adam and his co-star Gillian Taylforth, who has played his mother Kathy Beale over the years.
Yet soap watchers were more distracted by Adam’s staggering weight loss with This Morning’s soap queen Sharon Marshall also impressed.
She quipped: ‘Gillian Taylforth hasn’t aged in a million years but Adam Woodyatt, I think, is looking very svelte, post-lockdown.’
It is not known how much weight Adam has lost but he is an avid cook and even appeared on the 2019 series of Celebrity MasterChef.
This Morning aired a spoiler clip of the scenes, where the two stars discuss their characters and turbulent mother-and-son relationship.
Ian has been centre-stage of the show’s biggest storyline this year with the death of Dennis Mitchell after he caused the teenager to perish in a boat crash – which marked the soap’s 35th anniversary in February.
The character has not faced justice over the incident but bosses have hinted Sharon, played by Letitia Dean, 52, will uncover what happened to her son.
The long-running drama recently returned to screens in September, following a 12-week break after it ran out of episodes while filming was halted amid the novel coronavrius pandemic earlier this year.
After almost three months off air, BBC bosses joked that they ‘can’t wait for series two’, after the soap previously ran uninterrupted for 35 years.
The announcement was made across Eastenders’ social media platforms, including Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Wow: EastEnders fans were left in shock last month, after the star, who plays Ian Beale on the hit soap showed off his weight loss in a spoiler clip for an EastEnders spin-off show
Over: Adam and Beverley tied the knot in 1998 (pictured together in January 2019)
Family: Adam and Beverley were married for 22 years and have two grownup children, Jessica and Samuel, together (pictured together in May)