Gaminara departed the long-running crime drama in last night’s Series 16 finale, having played Forensic Pathologist, Professor Leo Dalton since 2002.

Leo’s final episode saw the team in Afghanistan investigating the human remains of a suspected murdered British soldier who vanished five years ago.

Gaminara commented: “After eleven series I have decided to leave Silent Witness. I have had a fantastic time on the show but feel now is the appropriate time to move on hopefully to other ventures. Many thanks to all those who have been involved over the past decade, in particular the incredibly hard-working crews and production teams without whom the programme would be on the slab. Keep those tox reports coming in.”

Kate Harwood, Head of Drama, England, BBC added: “William Gaminara as Leo has been the rock at the centre of Silent Witness for 11 series being a mentor, hero and father to the team. This hasn’t stopped him from also leading some of the most high octane and often the most deeply moving stories the show has told in that time. We’ll never forget him confronting youth gun crime in ‘Safe’ and his own personal demons in ‘Lost’.”

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