After just a little more than a year with the show, Laura Allen (Laura English) will be leaving All My Children.
Allen joined AMC on October 23, 2000 as the adopted daughter of Brooke English. Laura had recently returned from a trip to China. Allen isn't the only actress to play Laura. Prior to Allen, Lauren E. Roman held down the role from 1996 to 1998.
Due to storyline development, Laura English wasn't the most popular Pine Valley resident among fans. Earlier this year, Laura developed a heart condition that required a heart transplant. To facilitate the organ donation, the AMC writers killed off a much-loved character, Gillian Andrassy. Viewers saw Laura as the reason why Gillian's character was killed. Some fans wondered why another character couldn't have been "killed off" to help Laura. However, many fans never were able to get over the heartbreak of losing Gillian. With one strike already against her, Laura would soon find even more fans turning against her. As Laura's live hanged in the balance, Leo du Pres agreed to marry her to make her dying wish come true. Fans, however, wanted Leo and Greenlee Smythe together. The fact that Laura had come between the couple didn't endear her to many people. To put it quite simply: Fans on all fronts were outraged.
In recent weeks, however, Laura spiraled out of control, edging dangerously close to a total mental breakdown. Laura's newfound craziness did, however, manage to win her some new fans.
According to a spokesperson for AMC, Laura's exit is "storyline dictated." The role will not be recast.
Allen will last air on January 14, 2002.
