Hollyoaks killed off an iconic character after 20 years with a stomach-churning fall from the side of a cliff.

At the end of yesterday’s (April 7) episode, the Channel 4 soap set up a confrontation between two familiar faces.

Clare Devine (Gemma Bissix) returned last week after breaking free from prison – with chaos following in her wake.

Having killed her grandfather Foggy (John Middleton), she found herself face-to-face with fellow killer Sienna Blake (Anna Passey) on the cliff.

Taunting Sienna, the scene saw Clare threaten to reveal Sienna’s murderous actions to her family.

This, however, infuriated Sienna, who proceeded to push Clare from the cliff – as her daughter Sophie (Scarlett Kerr) ran up.

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A legendary Hollyoaks character fell to their death after 20 years in stomach-churning scenes from Tuesday’s episode

Meanwhile, Clare fell downwards into the icy water below and was not seen again afterwards.

Sienna’s girlfriend Cleo McQueen (Nadine Mulkerrin) arrived, although Sophie was the only witness to what had actually happened.

In tonight’s (April 8) episode, which is already available to watch on Channel 4’s streaming service, Clare’s death is confirmed.

As news of her demise begins to spread, Sienna maintains that Clare slipped and fell to her death.

The pair also tell this to Warren Fox (Jamie Lomas) – and while they stick to the story with police, he is not convinced.

With Warren potentially on Sienna’s trail, will she be able to keep the truth under wraps?

Clare first appeared on Hollyoaks in 2005, but was initially portrayed by Samantha Rowley.

Despite this, Clare returned last year ahead of the soap’s 30th anniversary – and made a comeback once again in recent episodes.

It comes as the actress, 42, recently reprised her other famous soap character, who also happens to be named Clare.

Gemma reappeared as EastEnders’ Clare Bates, as part of her adoptive dad Nigel’s (Paul Bradley) ongoing dementia storyline.

She originally played the role from 1993 to 1998, as well as a brief stint on Albert Square in 2008.

Discussing her return to Walford, Gemma said: ‘It’s been an absolute pleasure to be back, and a privilege to be involved in Nigel’s poignant dementia storyline.

‘I think it’s a storyline that sadly resonates with so many people and it’s been a real full circle moment for me, as EastEnders is where I learnt my craft as I was on the show from the age of 9.’

The actress explained that the reunion – which aired last month – gave her a unique opportunity to reconnect with one of her oldest colleagues.

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Clare plunged into the icy water below and was not seen again – with Sienna’s daughter Sophie being the only witness

She explained: ‘It was a long time coming, and I was just so chuffed because I haven’t seen Paul Bradley [Nigel Bates] in over 20 years and so to be able to reconnect with him and work with him again felt like time had stood still.

‘It was like no time had passed at all, and Paul is exactly the same lovely person he was before.

‘Paul was sort of like a stepfather to me in real life at work, as we spent six years on screen together from 1993 to 1999, and Karen and I were close as well.

‘They make me feel like I’m a child again, in the best possible way.’

Gemma said that it was also ‘lovely’ to work with Steve McFadden again.

She added: ‘I was also really close to Barbara Windsor when I worked there before, and she got me my agent when I left, and I’m still with that agency to this day, so there’s such a legacy for me there.

‘The funniest thing is the people who really haven’t changed to me are Jane Slaughter who plays Tracy, Ulric who plays Winston, and some of the actors in the market as they’ve been there for the best part of 20 years.’