Hollyoaks' Nikki Sanderson and Emmerdale star give 'happy' update following soap exit

Hollyoaks star Nikki Sanderson has updated fans following her soap exit after 13 years.

The actress, 41, debuted her character Maxine Minniver on the Channel 4 show back in 2012 and featured in some major storylines, including domestic violence and miscarrying a baby.

In April 2025, Maxine departed the village in a taxi after making plans to escape the country alongside her daughter, Minnie.

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Following her soap exit, Nikki has shared a stunning selfie alongside her former Emmerdale star boyfriend Anthony Quinlan, who played Peter Barton on the ITV soap.

Taking to Instagram, the pair, who have been dating since 2022, posed for a photo and shared their 'happiness' as they enjoyed a holiday together in Majorca, Spain.

Nikki captioned the post: "Another happy holiday had. A short break in the place we love the most."

Fans of the two soap stars wasted no time in flooding the comments section with their well wishes for the couple, with one person writing: "Awww you both look really well and happy."

A second said, "Lovely picture. I hope you are having a lovely holiday. You look gorgeous." A third gushed, "You make such a lovely couple."

Nikki revealed in March that she had quit Hollyoaks after starring as Maxine Minniver for 13 years.

Before filming her final scenes in April, the actress told The Mirror that the decision to walk away was 'incredibly difficult'.

She explained: "Deciding to leave was an incredibly difficult decision for me because Maxine is a huge, huge part of my life – and a part of my life that I've loved.

"It's difficult to think, 'It's time', and it wasn't an instant or overnight decision, it took me a long time to make it and it was something I genuinely fought with myself about, but I'm lucky that I could talk to people around me and get people's opinions."

Nikki added: "I'm grateful that I've had the stability for so long, now I've just got to embrace the instability of not knowing what's next."

She also confirmed that she is not done with the soap world and would jump to Coronation Street if given the chance.

Between 1999 and 2005, the star took on the role of Candice Stowe in ITV's Coronation Street.

A year later, Nikki appeared in Holby City as Monica Southworth.

Between 2008 and 2009, Nikki played Dawn Bellamy in Heartbeat, and in 2012, she also landed the role of Amy Harris in Casualty.