'I was lost and wondered how I would survive': Home and Away star Kate Ritchie chokes back tears as she makes a heartbreaking admission on Anh's Brush with Fame
Kate Ritchie will become emotional on Tuesday's episode of Anh's Brush with Fame while reflecting on her decision to leave Home and Away in 2008.
A trailer for the season premiere of the popular ABC interview program shows the 42-year-old actress choking back tears as she discusses leaving behind the character she played for 20 years, Sally Fletcher.
She told artist-turned-TV presenter Anh Do she struggled to carve out her own identity separate from Sally and 'felt lost' when it came time to move on.
!['I was lost': Kate Ritchie will become emotional on Tuesday's episode of Anh's Brush with Fame while reflecting on her decision to leave Home and Away in 2008](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2021/04/06/02/41380930-9438953-image-a-26_1617673491901.jpg)
'I was lost': Kate Ritchie will become emotional on Tuesday's episode of Anh's Brush with Fame while reflecting on her decision to leave Home and Away in 2008
In the trailer, she said she didn't know how she would 'survive' without her Home and Away character to give her a sense of identity and purpose.
Kate explained: 'She'd been my best friend of 20 years. She gave me purpose and a sense of achievement because I felt - I feel differently now - after loads of therapy...
'I thought the only thing I had ever done of value in my life, was when I was her. That kind of thing.'
![Memories: Heath played local bad boy, Scott Irwin, on the long-running series for just one year in 1997. Pictured on set alongside co-star Kate Ritchie](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2021/04/06/03/41381416-9438953-image-a-30_1617674601556.jpg)
Looking back: A trailer for the program shows the 42-year-old actress choking back tears as she discusses leaving behind the character she'd played for 20 years, Sally Fletcher. Pictured here in a scene with a pre-Hollywood fame Heath Ledger
Anh asked Kate if she felt 'lost' when she left Home and Away, and Kate said she was.
'I was lost and I wondered how I was going to survive without her and how were people going to react to me if I wasn't Sally,' she added.
Kate had spent two decades on Home and Away, and feared how she would cope without having a full-time job.
![Iconic role: In the trailer, Kate (pictured as a child actress) said she didn't know how she would 'survive' without her Home and Away character to give her a sense of identity and purpose](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2021/04/06/03/41380926-9438953-image-a-31_1617674677797.jpg)
Iconic role: In the trailer, Kate (pictured as a child actress) said she didn't know how she would 'survive' without her Home and Away character to give her a sense of identity and purpose
But she said quitting the soap ended up being the best decision she ever made.
'I think the best thing to come out of all of this, is that I'm great without [Sally]. I nearly choked on the words! We're all great without our security blankets,' she said.
Kate captioned the teaser on Instagram: 'I worry so often of what people think... of me revisiting the same old chapter of my life.
![Leap of faith: 'I think the best thing to come out of all of this, is that I'm great without [Sally]. I nearly choked on the words! We're all great without our security blankets,' she said](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2021/04/06/03/41381052-9438953-image-a-32_1617674716872.jpg)
Leap of faith: 'I think the best thing to come out of all of this, is that I'm great without [Sally]. I nearly choked on the words! We're all great without our security blankets,' she said
'The chapter people continue to ask me about and the one that defined me, publicly and personally. One day I'll move through that worry, but for now I'll speak with Anh.'
Kate, who shares a daughter with her ex-husband Stuart Webb, starred on Home and Away from 1988 to 2008. She reprised her role as Sally Fletcher briefly in 2013.
She is now a successful radio presenter for Nova 96.9 in Sydney.
![Fan favourite: Kate starred on Home and Away from 1988 to 2008. She reprised her role as Sally Fletcher briefly in 2013](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2021/04/06/05/41381432-9438953-Fan_favourite_Kate_starred_on_Home_and_Away_from_1988_to_2008_Sh-a-29_1617681829756.jpg)
Fan favourite: Kate starred on Home and Away from 1988 to 2008. She reprised her role as Sally Fletcher briefly in 2013
![Newfound fame: She is now a successful radio presenter for Nova 96.9 in Sydney](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2021/04/06/03/41380936-9438953-Shocking_fans_In_June_last_year_Kate_who_is_now_a_NOVA_radio_hos-a-24_1617676557018.jpg)
Newfound fame: She is now a successful radio presenter for Nova 96.9 in Sydney
Last June, Kate surprised fans when she revealed she would love to return to acting.
She told TV Week: 'The day I walk back onto a film set will be a very happy one.
'I look forward to being part of an ensemble again one day. It's all about finding the right role. Don't worry - I'm still searching.'
She added: 'I will always feel attached to Home and Away.
'Even now, with some distance from those days and having had the chance to develop into my own person without the security blanket of Sally, I still miss it desperately.'
![Never say never: In June, Kate surprised fans when she revealed she'd love to return to acting](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2021/04/06/03/41380940-9438953-image-a-35_1617674845853.jpg)
Never say never: In June, Kate surprised fans when she revealed she'd love to return to acting
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