A FORMER EastEnders star has slammed the soap’s ‘ridiculous storylines’ and revealed why she really left the show.
EastEnders viewers know Nina Wadia for playing Zainab Masood in the BBC soap for six years.
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🌐 𝑾𝒆𝒃𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒆: 𝑪𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒘𝒔.𝒊𝒏𝒇𝒐 – 𝑶𝒇𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝑵𝒆𝒘𝒔 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒍
Zainab arrived in 2007 before eventually leaving Walford behind in 2013.
Over a decade on, Nina has addressed the reasons behind her decision to leave.
During an appearance on Channel 5’s Vanessa, she explained to host Vanessa Feltz: “When the storylines get so ridiculous and so difficult, you kind of think ‘I’m out'”.
The actress continued: “The reason I left was because the storylines were getting ridiculous.
“That was one of the reasons I left. There were several, but that was one of the main reasons.
“My husband Masood was going to have yet another affair.
“And I was like, ‘How can I react any differently [to the] way I reacted before when he told me he was having an affair?”
Nina revealed Zainab’s initial brief had been “Pauline Fowler, but funny.”
Having provided levity and comic relief for two years, she was confused to receive a domestic violence storyline.
The star continued: “You thought, ‘How can I be funny with that storyline? I don’t understand.’
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“I think that’s what happens when you have a change at the top, with the execs, they bring in their vision.
“Someone who hasn’t really been paying attention to what your character’s been doing – all of a sudden, you’re asked to do something absolutely ridiculous.”
Nina later added: “That’s why I wanted to come out of it for a while.
“Hopefully, at some point, they invite me back, it’ll be for something more interesting to do.”
Vanessa pointed out Zainab hadn’t been killed off – meaning Nina could potentially return to the soap one day.
The actress replied by saying: “They wouldn’t kill her off.
“I did ask to be killed off because I thought, ‘Yay, I’ll get a big storyline if I get killed off’.
“But they were like, ‘No, we want her back someday.’ So, who knows?”
Among Zainab’s most notable storylines was discovering oldest son Syed (Marc Elliot) was secretly gay.
EastEnders’ 40th anniversary cameos so far
With the 40th anniversary of EastEnders coming up, fans are looking forward to some more incredible cameos from iconic faces of Walford’s past. But who have we had so far?
Other aspects of the EastEnders 40th anniversary celebration include: A wedding between fan favorites, A huge explosion at the Queen Vic, and A live interactive episode.
Viewers also watched her relationship and family life with Masood Ahmed (Nitin Ganatra), their marriage breakdown, and her abusive relationship with Yusef Khan (Ace Bhatti).
Last year, Nina told The Sun about her hopes for Zainab to return for the soap’s 40th annviersary.
She shared with us: “I loved that show. I loved my time on it. I know they’ve got a big anniversary coming up, and I’m waiting for the call.”
EastEnders airs on BBC One and iPlayer.
🌐 𝑾𝒆𝒃𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒆: 𝑪𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒘𝒔.𝒊𝒏𝒇𝒐 – 𝑶𝒇𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝑵𝒆𝒘𝒔 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒍
