Home and Away star Joshua Orpin has addressed his character Rory Templeton’s surprise exit from the soap.
In scenes that have aired in Australia already, River Boy Rory arrived in Summer Bay as part of Mali Hudson and his brother Iluka’s ongoing storyline.
After Iluka was beaten and hospitalised by the dangerous Allen family for stealing money from them, Mali arranged to meet the family face-to-face to put an end to their reign of terror.
Shortly after, he called up his friend Dean Thompson, who used to be involved with the River Boys gang, for reinforcement. Mali is soon backed up by two River Boys – David ‘Dingo’ Lewis and Rory.
However, Orpin’s guest stint on the show is now over. Posting on Instagram, he confirmed his character’s fate, writing: “Tonight we say goodbye to Rory as he departs Summer Bay for greener pastures… And by greener pastures, I mean the oppressive concrete pastures of a tiny prison cell.
“I’d be lying if I said he doesn’t entirely deserve it! Nonetheless, I hope you’ve enjoyed having him around these past few weeks.”
Orpin added that joining the show was “an utter privilege”, and praised the soap’s “enormously talented and hard-working” cast and crew.
“What an honour to make my own small contribution to the storied legacy of this iconic Australian TV series!” he continued.
“Don’t know if we’ll ever see Rory again, but I’m sure the River Boys will make their return to the bay sooner or later…”
In scenes that aired this week in Australia, Cash arrested Dingo as part of an investigation into the murder of Mangrove River police officer Franklin McGrath.
Cash, who’s recently returned to policing, found evidence that linked Dingo to the crime. However, when Rory heard news of the arrest, he rushed to the station to make his own statement.
Following Rory’s arrest, Cash’s sister Felicity Newman was left feeling dubious about the authenticity of his statement, questioning whether the man she has been falling in love with could truly be a killer.
Meanwhile, Home and Away viewers in the UK will get to see Rory’s storyline from next week onwards.