THE real age of an EastEnders legend has been revealed as she celebrated her birthday after being axed from soap.

The actress first made her debut on the BBC One serial drama in 2017 to much acclaim from viewers.

Lorraine Stanley played the role of Karen Taylor until last year when bosses decided to axe her character in 2023.

Her character initially fled to Spain before returning for a number of short stints in 2024 after the death of her on-screen son Keanu (Danny Walters).

A year after her last appearance on EastEnders, the star looks happier than ever as she celebrated her 49th birthday with her family.

She took to Instagram with a number of snaps as she posed with her partner, Mark Perez, and her daughter Nancy, 10, on the doorstep of her home.

The former actress flaunted her five-stone weight loss as she donned a sleeveless pastel blue dress with flared arm panels.

She put on a leggy display in the thigh-length summer ensemble which was emblazoned with floral detail as she wore chic white platform sandals.

Lorraine captioned the post: “Well hello 49!!! So many exciting things happening this year!!

“I feel so lucky. Thank you for all the love.”

In an apparent dig to her days on the soap, she wrote: “I’m the happiest I’ve been in years!!!”

However, her former co-stars and her fans flooded the comments section with well wishes.

Kellie Bright – who still stars as Linda Carter on the soap – wrote: “Happy Birthday gorgeous woman.”

Former I’m A Celebrity campmate Danielle Harold simply left a love heart face emoji.

While a fan gushed: “Happy birthday princess.”

As someone else asked: “What’s your secret???? You look INCREDIBLE! Happy birthday gorgeous woman xxx”

While a fifth person gushed: “Happy Birthday to one of the best.”