It may have been 19 years since Tiffany Butcher was dramatically killed off at Christmas in ‘EastEnders’, but the popular character has remained in the forefront of fans’ minds over the years.
Now, the actress who played her, Martine McCutcheon, has admitted she is open to a role in a rival soap.
The star has said she would like to see if she’s still got the skills to keep up with working on a soap, as she believes it’s still the hardest thing she’s done in her 26-year career.
Asked about the possibility of joining the likes of ‘Coronation Street’ or ‘Emmerdale’ during an appearance on ‘BUILD’, Martine told HuffPost UK’s Matt Bagwell: “I wouldn’t rule anything out because I know there’s a real snobbery about soap, but for me, it was the hardest thing I ever did.
“Hats off to those guys because they make stuff look believable - some days more than others because you only get one take sometimes - but it’s intense. You do 20 scenes in one day, so if you do that, you can do anything.
“So, just to know if I’ve still got it, it might be quite nice to do,” she explained.
“I love all the actors that are involved. They’re all lovely people and they’re great people to work with, and that’s lovely as well.”
Asked if she would like to play a character who was vastly different to Tiffany, Martine said: “I would just love to play anything that just makes me feel excited about the part, so it is the situation the character would be put in probably.”
Despite ‘EastEnders’ helping her to launch a successful pop career and bag a starring role in ‘Love Actually’, Martine admitted she no longer keeps up with the BBC soap, but there were times when she wished she could have returned.
“There were times financially when I was like, ‘I could really do with going back to ‘EastEnders’,” she explained. “But I think long-term, it was a blessing in disguise because I wouldn’t have gritted my teeth and aimed high and gone for the things in my mind I always wanted to do, which was theatre, movies, music.”
While 22 million people tuned in to Martine’s exit on New Year’s Day 1999, the show now attracts a much more conservative audience of about seven million.
The last year has been particularly difficult, with fans blasting dull storylines, snubs at various awards shows and having the sudden exit of the executive producer to contend with.
However, Martine insisted the soap will manage to turn their fortunes around.
“Sometimes you just have to ride it out,” she said. “So much is changing an evolving with more channels and having reality TV now. All the shows go through those times where their the most popular and they win the awards, and then it goes full circle again.
“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, and I don’t think it’s broken.”
Watch the full interview with Martine, where she discusses her new album and talks about the possibility of another ‘Love Actually’ film, in the video below...