Shona McGarty has confirmed when her "last episode" of EastEnders will be broadcast, with her having described leaving the show as "really emotional". It was announced last year that the actor, 32 - who's played Whitney Dean since 2008 - would be leaving the show after more than a decade in the cast. Shona said at the time that she had decided to "spread her wings" and viewers are yet to discover how the character will leave the BBC show.

Shona took to Instagram on Wednesday night to share a video message with fans on the platform. She confirmed that her "last episode" will be broadcast on Thursday but said that she doesn't plan to watch it until the weekend. She said: "Hey guys.

So this is a little message just to say I have of course been following Whitney's journey this week and obviously it's her last week, which has been really emotional to watch because I know it's coming to an end." The actor noted that she's in rehearsals for the play 2:22 A Ghost Story, with her having previously been announced as a cast member for shows in Dublin over the summer. She said: "I literally go to rehearsal, come back to the hotel and watch EastEnders.

" Discussing her plans to watch her departure episode with her partner David Bracken, she said: "[He] has to fly back to Ireland because he has a gig, obviously he's a musician and that's the name of the game. So I really want to watch my last episode, which is tomorrow night ..

. I really want to watch [it] with him and with my whole family,.