Emmerdale star Jeff Hordley reveals why he quit as Cain Dingle

, host Mike asked Jeff why he left the hit show all those years ago.

Jeff told listeners: "From 2000 until 2006, I'd only been four years out of drama school. I hadn't ticked all of the boxes that I wanted to tick.

"There were a couple of places where I wanted to work in London.

"I wanted to fulfil those things. So for three years, I did that."

During that time Jeff decided to focus on theatre work.

In 2006 he went on to star in a production of Mother Goose at the Churchill Theatre in Bromley.

Then in 2008 he played Napoleon in the George Orwell classic Animal Farm at Leeds' West Yorkshire Playhouse.

A year later he was Mick in the play The Caretaker.

Jeff is married to Emmerdale co-star Zoe Henry.

The pair have been married since 2003 and share two children.

The actress, 48 - who plays vet Rhona Goskirk - joined the ITV soap one year after Jeff, but they weren't married at the time.