Sandy Thomas
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6 November 2005
19 February 2018
| Sandy Thomas | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emmerdale character | |||||||||||||||||
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| Portrayed by | Freddie Jones | ||||||||||||||||
| Duration | 2005–2018 | ||||||||||||||||
| First appearance | Episode 4197 6 November 2005 | ||||||||||||||||
| Last appearance | Episode 8074 19 February 2018 | ||||||||||||||||
| Introduced by | Keith Richardson | ||||||||||||||||
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Sandy Thomas is a fictional character from the British soap opera Emmerdale, played by Freddie Jones. Sandy was introduced as the father of Ashley Thomas (John Middleton). He made his first appearance during the episode broadcast on 6 November 2005. The character originally departed in March 2008, but returned to the show in February 2009. On 6 February 2018, it was confirmed that Jones had filmed his final episode and he made his final appearance as Sandy on 19 February 2018.
On 19 August 2005, Kris Green of Digital Spy reported that actor Freddie Jones had been cast as Sandy, the father of established character Ashley Thomas (John Middleton). He was to join the regular cast, but would initially appear for three months worth of episodes, before returning if and when he was needed.[1] Series producer Kathleen Beedles told Green, "We are delighted to welcome Freddie to the cast."[1] Jones made his first appearance as Sandy in November 2005.[1] Jones announced his decision to quit in January 2008, remaining on-screen until March, however in October 2008, 7 months after deciding to quit, it was announced that he was to return to Emmerdale.[2]
On 6 February 2018, it was confirmed that Jones was to leave the role of Sandy on 19 February 2018. Jones played Sandy for the last 13 years, and his decision to quit was down to Middleton's (Ashley Thomas) leaving in 2017. He was offered an extension on his contract but declined as he felt it was the right time to leave.[3] On 28 January 2020, it was announced Sandy would die off-screen in early February, after Freddie Jones' death in July 2019.[4]