EastEnders’ Lorraine Stanley admits exit was like ‘break-up’ as fans demand return
Lorraine Stanley has opened up about her 'sad' departure from the BBC soap as viewers make the same comment
Former EastEnders star Lorraine Stanley has likened her departure from the programme to “a break-up”, despite viewers clamouring for her comeback.
The 49-year-old actor joined Walford as Karen Taylor in 2017 and remained for seven years. The character immediately captured audiences’ affections with her caring disposition, dedication to her offspring, and trademark loose-fitting clothes combined with unkempt locks.
Nevertheless, despite Karen’s appeal amongst fans of the BBC drama, she was axed in 2023 following a convoluted staged-abduction storyline involving her son, Keanu Taylor (Danny Walters), and his partner, Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean), plus their boy, Albie Watts.
Her concluding episodes were broadcast in December 2023 after she fled with her surviving relatives and a substantial sum pinched from Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden).
The Taylor family arrived in Walford back in 2017
Discussing her departure from the drama, Lorraine revealed how she recognised her stint as Karen was drawing to a close as her fellow cast members were exiting the programme.
“It was like a break-up, it was like a relationship, it was like being dumped by your boyfriend,” she revealed to Secure The Insecure Podcast.
“Looking back now, I was really, really gutted. It was really sad. You sort of see it, ebbing away actually, because Danny was killed, and Chantelle was killed, and then Zack left, Keegan, so I had a sense of breaking away.”
Lorraine played the iconic Karen Taylor in EastEnders for seven years(Image: BBC/Kieron McCarron/Jack Barnes)
Lorraine continued, “Then I didn’t want to watch the show for a bit because it’s like watching your boyfriend with a new girlfriend, do you know what I mean?”
Supporters have since rallied to Lorraine’s defence and are calling for her return to EastEnders as Karen Taylor, with one person posting on Instagram: “One of the worst decisions in my opinion is loved your characters, maybe someone will rectify that mistake one day xx.”
A second declared, “Never should have happened. A massive mistake. Lorraine brought real authenticity and grittiness to the role, the sort that didn’t necessarily need a storyline! We love Karen.”
“Miss you on EastEnders”, admitted one admirer as another stated: “You’ll be back.”
Lorraine Stanley is starring in a new television series (Image: lorraine_stanley_/Instagram)
Lorraine is now preparing for a spectacular return to television, and her jaw-dropping transformation as she embarks on her latest role is certainly going to create a stir.
She was recently photographed throwing herself into filming for gritty new British drama series Cash In Hand, and it appears destined to be an absolute cracker, reports The Mirror.
The forthcoming series exposes the clandestine world of Essex workers – the traders, fixers and daily-wage hustlers who keep the county functioning in ways you won’t discover on any balance sheet.
Smack in the centre of it all is Lorraine, plunging headlong into the chaos with that distinctive blend of resilience and wit that made her a viewer favourite on Albert Square.
EastEnders airs Monday to Thursday on BBC One and iPlayer
