Soap fans demand schedule change as Emmerdale and EastEnders go head to head this week

Eastenders star Natalie Cassidy has said "‘it is what it is” as the soap has announced plans to axe four of its cast members. The 39 year old has played long-running character Sonia Fowler on the BBC One series since she was a child, having been written off and brought back on multiple times over the years, giving her reason to understand the dramatic move made by producers. Characters Stuart Highway (played by Ricky Champ), Peter Beale (Dayle Hudson), Jada Lennox (Kelsey Calladine-Smith) and Dana Monroe (Barbara Smith), will be exiting Albert Square in a plot line shake-up to the surprise fans.

Nicola Duffett found fame in 1992 when she had a supporting role in the Oscar-winning film Howards End before going on to be cast as Debbie Bates in EastEnders between 1993 and 1995. But after after a promising start to her acting career she was left depending on benefits before securing a role in soap rival, Coronation Street in 2015. The 59 year old's soap career first began in 1993 but was cut short in 1995 when her EastEnders character was killed off in a tragic car collision.

EastEnders star Danielle Harold topped up her tan as she enjoyed a holiday following last week’s British Soap Awards.The 30 year old, who’s best known for playing Lola Pearce in the BBC soap, has been updating fans on her time in the sun following the news that her character is to be axed from the show after 11 years. Danielle was reportedly left "in pieces" over the shock axe, but has put on a brave face as she pouted at the camera in a black bikini as she took a selfie in front of a picturesque pool. In another, the star could be seen dangling her legs into the water as she enjoyed a frothy drink with a slice of lime on top.

In EastEnders this week, Ben Mitchell changes his mind about going to the police over Lewis Butler, messaging him and asking to meet. Later, Ben lies in wait for Lewis with a crowbar, ready to attack him, but is frustrated when he doesn’t show. Ben demands Kathy give him Lewis’s home address and becomes furious when she won’t, accusing her of protecting him.

Lacey Turner found fame thanks to her role as Stacey Slater in BBC One soap EastEnders, with the actress first appearing on our screens back in 2004. The 34 year old has found herself at the centre of several dramatic storylines over the years and has won over 30 awards for her portrayal of Stacey, having recently picked up another at the 2022 British Soap Awards. Lacey attended the annual bash alongside her younger sister Lily, 20, who is also an actress and has even previously starred in EastEnders.

EastEnders' Lacey Turner looked absolutely beautiful in a recent photo with her younger sister Lily. Not the only star in her family, Lacy's sister has also appeared on Albert Square. Back in 2011, Lily, 22, played the role of Shenice Quinn, who was Kat Slater's friend's daughter.

Soap stars partied late into the night on Saturday 11 June following the 2022 British Soap Awards. Many of the awards show attendees carried on the event at the awards after-party at Hackney Town Hall, with many of the nation’s favourite soap stars snapped either celebrating their wins or commiserating their losses following the ceremony.

EastEnders actress Letitia Dean revealed her father had recently passed away as she received the Outstanding Contribution award at this year’s British Soap Awards. The actress, 54, who has played Sharon Watts in EastEnders since 1985, dedicated the award to her father in an emotional speech. As she made her way onto the stage, she exclaimed “Hello mum!” before embracing on-screen mum, Anita Dobson, who presented her with the award.

EastEnders star Natalie Cassidy has opened up on meeting Prince Charles and Camilla on the set of the soap.The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall’s unprecedented appearance on the long-running soap saw the worlds of TV and royalty collide, airing on Thursday 2 June in honour of the Queen’s Jubilee. The scene saw Prince Charles and Camilla celebrating the Platinum Jubilee by raising Champagne in a toast to the Queen during a street party outside The Queen Vic pub on Albert Square.The episode was actually filmed back in March when Prince Charles and Camilla visited the set of Eastenders, and mingled happily with plenty of the show’s famous faces. Get exclusive celebrity stories and fabulous photoshoots straight to your inbox with OK!'s daily newsletter.

EastEnders star Clair Norris joined her soap colleagues as she took to the British Soap Awards on Saturday.The actress, 24, who plays Bernadette Taylor in Albert Square, looked world’s away from her on screen character as she stepped out for the do. Clair looked stunning in a white dress that flowed to her calves and came in an elegant floral print.

The stars of the soap world are making their way to this year’s British Soap Awards. After a two-year absence due to the coronavirus pandemic, the British Soap Awards is returning for 2022 and will see the UK’s biggest soaps and their casts compete against each other for a variety of awards.This Morning presenter Phillip Schofield is returning to host the awards, which sees nominations across Coronation Street, EastEnders, Emmerdale, Hollyoaks and Doctors.

EastEnders fans couldn’t help but comment on popular character Sharon Watts' youthful look with some claiming the actress, Letitia Dean, looks “20 years old”. Letitia, 54, joined the cast of the hit BBC soap when it started in 1985 and after her latest return to the Square following her character’s holiday to Australia, fans can’t get over her youthful look. Sharon returned to Albert Square with a bronzed tan, long blonde hair and flawless make up causing fans to gush over her incredible look.

Any EastEnders fan worth their salt is unable to hear the name "Ricky" without thinking of Patsy Palmer’s character Bianca Jackson hollering it halfway across Albert Square at the top of her voice. So fans of the much-loved character, played by Sid Owen, went into a state of extreme excitement last night, when the evil and conniving Janine Butcher made a call to her big brother Ricky and left him a voicemail, asking her to lend her money to get her out of a jam.

Since her big TV break, Emma has gone on to appear in Spooks and a series of on stage plays, including Grease.She also competed in the seventeenth series of Strictly Come Dancing back in 2019.The soap star was paired with professional dancer Anton du Beke.Following her time on the hit BBC show, Emma admitted she felt "like the nana" due to the age gap between her and her Strictly live tour partner Graziano Di Prima, after competing with Anton Du Beke, who is 11 years her senior.Speaking of the differences she noticed between dancing with Anton, 53, and Graziano, 25, Emma told Express.co.uk at the time: “I’m a lot older than Graz so I feel like the nana, but I’m just very fortunate.“Not many of the girls here have got to dance with two brilliant dancers,” Emma added.Opening up about working with Graziano, Emma continued: “It’s wonderful, I just feel like a very lucky lady. I’ve had the King of Ballroom and now I’ve got this talented Italian and I’m learning so much from him. “We’ve got a little bit of Latin going on in one of the group numbers and this one [pointing to Graziano] is so brilliant at it, so I’m still learning which is great.”

EastEnders has been full of drama this week as Janine Butcher attempts to cover the truth about her car crash after she moved Linda Carter to make it look like she was driving in shock scenes. Only recently, the pair were involved in a horror car crash with Janine smashing into a tree after she lost control of the car after avoiding an oncoming lorry due to the duo arguing over their love interest Mick Carter, played by Danny Dyer.

EastEnders is set for explosive scenes as Janine Butcher attempts to cover the truth about her car crash after she moved Linda Carter to make it look like she was driving in shock scenes. Only recently, the pair were involved in a horror car crash with Janine smashing into a tree after she lost control of the car after avoiding an oncoming lorry due to the duo arguing over their love interest Mick Carter, played by Danny Dyer. While on Tuesday's explosive episode, Janine, played by Charlie Brooks, moved a drunk Linda, played by Kellie Bright, to make it look like she was driving, which eagle-eyed fans had already predicted.

This week on EastEnders sees relationships put to the test as a day out for mother and daughter Nancy (Maddy Hill) and Linda (Kellie Bright) ends in disaster. After a huge argument, their car breaks down and Nancy storms off back to Albert Square and when scheming Janine (Charlie Brooks) discovers what’s happened, she heads off to find Linda. Realising Linda is now drunk, Janine gets the car going and sets off to drive them home.

EastEnders star Danielle Harold is in the midst of her own real life drama after reportedly being axed from the London soap. She has played teen mother Lola Pearce after first appearing on the show in 2011, fending off her fair share of on-screen dramatics including an iconic storyline where she returned to con fan-favourite Phil Mitchell. Danielle, who turned 30 just one week ago, was said to be "teary" and "in pieces" after the shock firing, which she didn’t see coming.

EastEnders fans have predicted that Janine Butcher will put drunk Linda Carter behind the wheel after the pair were involved into a horror car crash in Monday night’s episode. The explosive scene saw the pair smash into a tree with Janine losing control of the car after avoiding an oncoming lorry. Just moments before the collision the duo were arguing over their love interest Mick Carter, played by Danny Dyer.

Charlie Brooks has teased Janine Butcher and Linda Carter’s car crash in EastEnders. In Monday night’s episode (6 June), viewers will witness the horrific scenes as Linda’s car spirals off-road, careering into a tree. Speaking about the dramatic scenes, actress Charlie, who has played Janine since 1999, said: “We had such fun [filming the stunt].

It looks like EastEnders star Danielle Harold has been axed from the long-running soap after 11 years of playing Lola Pearce on and off. A source has told The Sun that the axing is part of a massive shake-up for the show, and 30 year old Danielle was said to be "teary" and "in pieces" after the shock firing, which she reportedly didn’t see coming. The source claimed that she had not expected to be given the chop as her character is popular with the show’s viewers.The insider also revealed that the show’s bosses are not planning for the character to return, which more than likely means that the character is set to be killed off.