Laila Rouass then creative head of the channel, Shamin Desai. After moving back to the UK, Rouass became famous for playing the role of Bollywood actress Amber Gates in the cult ITV1 series "Footballers' Wives" between 2004 and 2006 and, albeit briefly, on the ITV2 spin-off series "". She also played recurring roles on the British soaps "Family Affairs" and "Hollyoaks", as well as appearing in episodes of "I Dream", "Casualty" and "Meet the Magoons". She starred alongside Meera Syal in the television adaptation of Syal's novel, "Life Isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee." Rouass was ranked No.87 and No.69 on FHM
ITV Encore attributed the closure of the channel to poor ratings, in part due to its Sky exclusivity, and an over-reliance on repeats. ITV Encore closed at midnight on 1 May 2018 as part of Sky's major EPG reshuffle. The last programme shown on the channel was "Agatha Christie's Poirot" The Plymouth Express. Its Sky EPG slot was taken by Sky Two. The idea of replacing the television channel with an online service is similar to a direction BBC Three took in 2016. ITV Encore broadcasts some of ITV's most successful drama series of recent years. Since January 2015, ITV Encore also