EastEnders legend Natalie Cassidy on why she refuses to do reality shows after exit – and whether Sonia will ever return
EASTENDERS fans were devastated when Natalie Cassidy, aka trumpet-playing Albert Square legend Sonia Fowler, announced she was quitting the soap after more than three decades.
A brand expert recently told The Sun she could make millions by cashing in on her social-media following, podcast popularity and by appearing on I’m A Celebrity – but Natalie has got other plans in mind.
Speaking exclusively to The Sun’s TV Mag, Natalie said: “I hope that expert is right!
“I always think about I’m A Celebrity and I just don’t know if I can do it as I’m such a scaredy-cat.
“I don’t like heights, I don’t like insects. I mean, I just think I’d be up every night, walking up to Ant and Dec, crossing that bridge for another trial.
“I don’t know if I could cope. And actually, I want to concentrate on some bigger projects.
“I’ve done Strictly which I loved, but your I’m A Celebs, your Dancing On Ices, if they’re still on telly, they’re kind of always there. I feel that now’s the time to do a few different things.
“I’ve always been honest – if I’ve got a very large tax bill and get offered an extreme amount of money, then you might see me in the jungle.
“But as it stands, I’m hoping to pick and choose a little bit more and just do a few projects for me.
“I’ve created other means with the podcasts, they’re doing very well, and I feel that I can now step out of EastEnders confidently.”
Continuing, Natalie admitted leaving EastEnders and Sonia behind wasn’t an easy decision.
She agonised over it with her family; cameraman fiancé Marc Humphreys and her two daughters, 14-year-old Eliza and eight-year-old Joanie.
The star shared: “It’s not a job to me, EastEnders. I’ve been there on and off for 32 years, and I’m only 42 this year.
“I was 10 when I started, so it really is my home. It’s a hard place to leave.
“There was a lot of thought over it, but it’s the right time and the right decision, I’m sure of it.
“I need to have a break and pursue all the other things that are going on. And if I didn’t make the decision now, I don’t know if I’d ever have made it.
“With EastEnders, every week you’re waiting for a Thursday to know what you’re doing for the next week.
“You can’t book a theatre show, you can’t say to your children: ‘I’ll be there on sports day.’
“Now I can look at a diary and say: ‘I’m not working that day.’ I do feel that you have more freedom. I can plan!”
To begin her post-Albert Square journey, Natalie is throwing herself into the world of presenting.
Alive and kicking
Natalie took part in February’s live episode of EastEnders to celebrate its 40th anniversary.
This week on screen, we see Sonia bid an emotional goodbye to Martin before his funeral, but did Natalie ever think it would be her character killed off in the episode?
“It did cross my mind because of the timing,” she admits. “But I always say if you make the choice to leave, you can’t have the choice of how you go.
“You have to make peace with the fact that you could be going for good.
“We had a really brilliant two weeks doing the live. Usually we don’t work like that, we’re churning it out, we work at top speed.
“So to be able to actually concentrate on the one episode, rehearse it, it felt like a real ensemble piece. We had a really good time.”
First up is What’s The Big Deal, a new consumer show in which Natalie and a group of families test out all those products we’ve seen plastered over social media, to find out whether we really should be buying them or not.
Natalie said: “I’m not doing any acting at the moment.
“People need a rest from the acting because I’ve been on their screens doing that for so long.
“That’s why I’m choosing to be myself for a while. There are a lot of actors who really don’t like being themselves and aren’t comfortable – they want to be behind the character.
“They don’t like quiz shows or interviews or sitting on This Morning.
“But I really like being myself and I think over the last few years with Instagram and the podcasts, people really enjoy me being myself.
“So it seems to just be a nice way to go out and for this show to be coming on as I leave EastEnders.
“With the families, you’ve got that kind of Gogglebox feel, and I’m looking at the science – but not in a stuffy way. You just want it to be an easy watch.
“You want to get your cup of tea, have finished dinner, chuck on Channel 4 and have something nice to sit down to.”
This week, Natalie looks into ‘invigorating’ ice baths, ‘brain-boosting’ Lion’s Mane mushroom supplements and ‘space-saving’ packing cubes – and she even gets a tutorial on how to fold underpants correctly.
“I want to get to a stage where nothing else needs doing in the house but to fold Marc’s pants into squares,” laughed Natalie.
She added: “I do love the look of it all being so organised and clean. I’m not there yet!”
Natalie admitted that, as a left-handed person, her life has been changed dramatically by one of the gadgets featured – an automatic veg chopper.
The star also said how she has also fallen foul of late-night Instagram shopping.
She said: “I bought a pair of slippers and they’ve got badges – one says ‘f***’ and the other says ‘off.
“When I got them, I thought: ‘I’ve got the children, I’m never going to wear them!’ I’ve also bought lots of hay fever products – wrist bands for pressure points, nose shovers, you know the things.
“Things just pop up now on all these channels. I think it’s quite hard not to give in.”
Asked whether she feels like she has a new confidence, Natalie replied: “A hundred per cent, it’s so exciting, I feel really happy in myself at this age.
“You know your friends, you say no to things if you don’t want to do them. You’re just comfortable, aren’t you?
“I feel very confident in what I want to do, where I’m going.
“I do get nervous, but it’s more about not letting myself down. But they are barriers that need to be broken.
“It was a very warm Bush!”
Natalie took part in the sixth series of The Masked Singer earlier this year, dressed as none other than… Bush.
“I was shown lots of different outfits and costumes and when Bush came up, I just thought I have to go for it,” laughs Natalie.
“I have a lot of gay fans you see, a lot of drag friends, and I just thought I love the fact that it’s like: ‘Trim your bush, here comes Bush, where is Bush?’
It was so camp and fun. It was really brilliant singing in that massive costume, but very warm. It was really a very warm Bush!”
“That’s why I did The Masked Singer. I was so nervous every time I went out, but by the end of it, I enjoyed it.
“The EastEnders live episode was terrifying, but I did it. So you kind of start going: ‘I know you’re scared, but you can do it.’ I like to set myself those challenges. I think it’s important.”
And if another major soap came knocking, what would Natalie do?
She said: “I’d say: ‘No thank you.’ I’ve only got one soap in my heart. If I ever go back to any of them, it’ll be EastEnders.”