'My legal team will be in touch' Danniella Westbrook warns BBC over EastEnders replacement

express.co.uk:

EastEnders, as when she learnt she had been overlooked for the Walford icon's return to Albert Square, she fired off a confrontational tweet warning that the channel would be hearing from her legal team.

Yet the situation is more complex than it sounds.Unfortunately, Danniella has already had to share her character for decades.It all began when she took on the role back in 1990, as a 15-year-old schoolgirl.Her character left and returned several times over the years, but by the time of her fourth reappearance, the role was given to rival actress Kim Medcalf, who went on to continue in the role from 2002 to 2005.It had seemed as though she was just a stand-in, which appeared to be confirmed when Danniella took on the character's role again on two further occasions in 2009 and 2016.BBC staff were thrilled to announce her TV comeback for 2022, but Danniella was much less keen - and reportedly horrified - when she learnt the character was no longer hers.To make matters worse for her, the soap star claimed that she hadn't even been consulted.The BBC's Head of Continuing Drama, Kate Oates, broke the news last night when she confessed: "I have long wanted to bring Sam back into the family fold."Unfortunately, this time, Danniella wouldn't be part of the family - and she didn't sound happy.When Kate had warned that her return was "guaranteed to be explosive", Danniella's legal threats were probably not quite the type of fireworks she'd had in mind.However, taking to Twitter to share her feelings with her followers, the snubbed 48-year-old wasn't holding back."Wishing Kym the best of luck at @BBCEastenders," she wrote.She then swiped: "Yet again this poor woman has to recreate a Samantha Mitchell as close to my last two recent.