Former EastEnders' star takes lead part in Sittingbourne panto
Published: 11:00, 02 August 2013
Updated: 12:06, 02 August 2013
From Albert Square to Central Avenue.
Former EastEnders’ actress Melissa Suffield was in town last week to promote this year’s pantomime Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
The 20-year-old will play the lead role when the show is performed at The Wyvern Hall, at Swallows Leisure Centre, Sittingbourne, in December.
It’s a far cry from when she used to grace our screens in the BBC1 soap. Melissa played Lucy Beale for almost six years, until she fell out with producers over her “unruly behaviour” in 2010.
She was hauled in front of bosses when she was 17 after she was snapped leaving an over-18s nightclub at 4am.
But she insists she was never the “wild child” she was portrayed to be.
She said: “I hadn’t even been drinking which was the extra kick in the teeth.
“They always said ‘call us first’ [if the media have a story on you] so I did. If I’d kept my mouth shut they probably wouldn’t have even known about it. My contract was due to end in the June or July and they said they were um-ing and ah-ing and I felt there was something better out there for me.
“Looking back now I regret that happened but I don’t regret the outcome. I’m happier now than I was back then.
“I’ve got a thick skin anyway but I have always remained as professional as possible in any job. I always give 110% at work, I’m never unruly.”
Since leaving the show Melissa has presented BBC2’s Your Body: Your Image, appeared in Casualty and in several pantos.
At the moment she’s happiest renovating the property she and her boyfriend, musician James Richards, 27, have bought together in Twickenham. The pair have also set up a function band, which is currently unnamed, with James playing bass guitar and Melissa singing.
She added: “I do a lot of things to keep myself busy like other jobs in shops near me just so I’ve got a back up. I’m still young, I could change my mind [about acting] completely. I also play lots of instruments, I make clothes and I’ve been making furniture for our house.”
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Hayley Robinson