Natalie Cassidy is irreplaceable on EastEnders – here’s the real reason why shock exit has left BBC bosses reeling

NOT that she’d ever privation to stroke her ain trumpet, but Natalie Cassidy is East- Enders’ astir fashionable star.

And pursuing The Sun’s exclusive story connected Thursday revealing the actress’s departure from the BBC One soap, producers present look a large occupation — however bash you regenerate Sonia Fowler?

Known for her questionable trumpeting skills — an in-joke with viewers which the show’s writers person often alluded to — Natalie’s surface quality has fixed america heartbreak, tears, laughter and earthy emotion during her 32 years connected the show, passim which she has been axenic entertainment.

According to insiders, that’s not the lone crushed her daze determination has near Albert Square chiefs reeling.

They were softly hoping to crook her into the caller Dot Branning, played for 4 decades until 2020 by the precocious June Brown, by perchance processing her relation into an effectual “job for life” connected the show.

The insider said: “Bosses are good alert of Natalie’s popularity.

“Her much-loved quality has been a mainstay of Albert Square for implicit 30 years, and they envisioned her filling the immense spread near by Dot by becoming the Walford stalwart and busybody, who locals would spell to for gossip and besides advice.

“But incredibly, contempt being engrossed by EastEnders for 3 quarters of her life, Natalie has managed to turn a illustration extracurricular of the soap and has go excessively large for it.”

The insider added: “Natalie’s truthful good loved she’s successful the unsocial presumption of being missed by viewers adjacent much truthful than the writers.”

Natalie, 41, joined EastEnders astatine the property of ten, arsenic 1 of the notorious Jackson clan, dubbed the “family from hell”, alongside Patsy Palmer and Dean Gaffney, her surface siblings Bianca and Robbie, and their canine Wellard.

Together they each went connected to go cult figures connected Albert Square, with Natalie handling a fig of immense storylines during her stint connected the soap.

These included a teen pregnancy, coming retired arsenic a lesbian and astir recently, charged — and past acquitted — of sidesplitting Debbie, the comatose woman of villainous Reiss Colwell.

He is presently holding Bianca hostage successful his lock-up, having forced her to grounds a video connection fessing up to the crime that helium committed.

While galore pistillate soap stars thin to veer towards battleaxes, divas and enactment sirens, Sonia’s normality has ever been considered her character’s biggest asset.

It’s besides wherefore viewers tin subordinate to her, and wherefore they besides look to blur the lines betwixt the quality and the actress.

While the soap’s bosses proceed to litter Walford with glamorous girls and wannabe Cockney gangsters, Sonia has ever represented the viewer, idiosyncratic radical tin subordinate to among the hammed-up personalities.

And fixed her concern arsenic a nurse, she is often seen patching them each up.

Biggest asset

Her humour and crook of operation has besides helped to found her arsenic a instrumentality favourite, a accomplishment which possibly lone precise precocious has begun to beryllium appreciated.

Indeed, extracurricular the soap, Natalie has go a cult fig by showcasing her comedy talents connected societal media and has racked up an awesome 500,000 followers connected Instagram.

This has led to the motorboat of her ain podcast, Life With Nat, and a abstracted BBC Sounds offering called Off The Telly, alongside Gavin & Stacey prima Joanna Page, successful which the brace review the latest TV.

Her imagination beyond EastEnders is to beryllium fixed a salient relation successful a large drama series.

She has antecedently dipped her toes successful TV’s drama waters with cameo appearances successful BBC shows Psychoville successful 2009 alongside Dawn French, Motherland successful 2021 and Boarders, which volition aerial aboriginal this month.

Last twelvemonth Natalie revealed she was hopeless to look successful a task made by 1 of her drama heroes, Ricky Gervais, but is disquieted that her dedication to EastEnders implicit the years whitethorn person acted arsenic a obstruction to her ambition.

She said: “It’s my dream. I ticker (Ricky’s comedies) After Life and Derek and I’m like, ‘Why haven’t I done that? Why can’t I beryllium connected things similar that?’ ”

But thankfully for Natalie, the co-creator of The Office has present signed her up to prima successful his latest Netflix series, an animated drama astir cats.

Natalie volition dependable 1 of the moggies, joining Ricky’s prime radical of drama co-stars, which see Kerry Godliman, Diane Morgan, Joe Wilkinson and David Earl, who regularly prima successful his programmes.

And it’s Natalie’s tendency to propulsion herself much into drama which has sparked her determination to locomotion distant from her £150,000-a-year occupation connected EastEnders.

A root adjacent to her said: “Comedy has ever been her large passion, it’s each she watches connected TV.

“Working with Ricky is an implicit imagination travel existent and removing herself from the gruelling regular grind of EastEnders volition unfastened the doorway to akin opportunities.

“And the involvement is there, which is wherefore she’s walking distant now.”

Natalie has antecedently taken breaks from the soap to absorption connected her vocation beyond Walford, arsenic good arsenic giving commencement to daughters Eliza, 14, with ex-partner Adam Cottrell, and Joanie, nine, with cameraman hubby Marc Humphreys.

In 2011 Cottrell was sentenced to 120 hours of unpaid enactment for attacking Natalie astatine their Hertfordshire home. After making up they became engaged, but divided up for bully successful 2013.

Away from Albert Square she released a DVD, Natalie Cassidy’s Then & Now Workout successful 2007, and the pursuing twelvemonth she hosted a BBC3 documentary, Natalie Cassidy’s Diet Secrets.

In 2009 she appeared successful Strictly Come Dancing, partnering Vincent Simone and finishing fifth, and Celebrity Big Brother successful 2012, a mostly forgettable appearance, acknowledgment to Denise Welch’s topless frolics successful a blistery tub with erstwhile X Factor atrocious lad Frankie Cocozza.

Judging by her EastEnders exit statement, Natalie’s latest departure feels much last and volition beryllium factored into the soap’s 40th day celebrations this month, which volition besides spot the instrumentality of immoderate legendary characters, including Grand Mitchell, played by Ross Kemp.

Natalie said: “I consciousness highly bittersweet to beryllium penning this, but besides precise excited. After different 11 coagulated years backmost connected The Square, I person decided it’s clip to determination connected to pastures new.

“EastEnders is successful my bones truthful I volition ne'er hide wherever I started my vocation and I volition proceed to emotion the show.

“Thank you to (executive producer) Chris Clenshaw for the accidental to beryllium specified a large portion of the 40th day — it’s an honour. See ya, Sonia, going but ne'er forgotten.”

So however volition Sonia bow retired of EastEnders?

Showrunner Chris, who volition permission the soap himself aboriginal this year, said she volition instrumentality a “central role” successful the soap’s 40th day week, kicking disconnected connected February 17, which volition besides diagnostic a unrecorded episode.

As antecedently revealed by The Sun, a immense detonation volition rip done the Queen Vic and respective big-name characters are rumoured to beryllium caught up successful the blast.

But volition Sonia beryllium 1 of them? If it was up to viewers, she would surely survive, with the doorway near unfastened for a future return, similar chap instrumentality favourite Mick Carter, played by Danny Dyer, who was deemed “lost astatine sea” successful 2022.

An EastEnders root said: “Natalie is lone successful her aboriginal forties truthful there’s ample clip for her to travel backmost 1 day.

“If bosses bash determine Sonia volition perish successful the Queen Vic fire, fans volition beryllium utterly devastated.

“It’s rather uncommon for the soap to termination disconnected fashionable characters, truthful it would beryllium retired of tune somewhat.”

Just similar her trumpet-playing.