Why They Really Left
OLTL: Thorsten Kaye (ex-Patrick)
Soaps In Depth - November 21, 2006

Thorsten Kaye (ex-Patrick; now Zach, AMC) may have only been on ONE LIFE TO LIVE for two years, but by the time of his 1997 exit, both he and his poetic character, Patrick, had made an indelible impression. "I left the show because they started talking about the Irish peace and bombs and terrorists," Kaye confided to Soaps In Depth. "I had [requested] from the beginning when they asked me to play an Irish guy -- because I'm from England -- I said that I would do it, but please do not talk about terrorism. It’s something that's a little too close to my heart and something that I grew up with. I don't think a soap opera is the place to discuss that."

Just a few years later, the actor took on the role of Patrick's brother, Ian, on PORT CHARLES. Why not just return to OLTL? "Patrick’s character was penned into a corner so badly that you can’t come in with the same energy," Kaye insists. “There's too much history that was created not by me, but by the writers."