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"ABC has dropped Isaiah Washington (Dr. Preston Burke) from the cast of Grey&amp;#039;s Anatomy with immediate effect. Washington&amp;#039;s future on the hit drama had been uncertain since a widely-publicised incident in which he referred to fellow cast member T.R. Knight (Dr. George O&amp;#039;Malley) with an anti-gay slur during an on-set fracas with Patrick Dempsey (Dr. Derek Shepherd) in October 2006. Washington compounded the problem by denying he used the word - and then repeating it - during a backstage chat with reporters at the Golden Globe Awards in January. His actions outraged not only ABC and gay rights groups but also fellow cast members. Katherine Heigl in particular heavily criticised Washington while supporting Knight, who subsequently said he was gay. Washington apologised for his use of an anti-gay slur and sought to repair relations with gay rights groups. In May he signed on with the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation to appear in a public service announcement. Towards the end of Grey&amp;#039;s&amp;#039; third season, Washington&amp;#039;s character was getting ready to marry Dr. Cristina Yang, played by Sandra Oh. However, in the season finale, his character fled Seattle and ABC was tight-lipped as to whether Washington would be returning even when the return of other actors for the fourth season had been confirmed. In a statement, Washington&amp;#039;s publicist confirmed that the actor was &amp;quot;not invited back to the show next season.&amp;quot; "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.digitalspy.com/tv/greys-anatomy/news/a60092/greys-anatomy-actor-let-go/>