EastEnders’ Patsy Palmer proud of ‘most fantastic’ soap sister Natalie Cassidy
By Casey Cooper-Fiske, PA Entertainment Reporter
Patsy Palmer has paid tribute to EastEnders co-star Natalie Cassidy after the actress announced she would be leaving the BBC soap after more than 30 years.
Palmer, 52, who plays Bianca Jackson, the on-screen half-sister of Cassidy’s character Sonia Fowler, said she was proud of the actress’s work, business ventures and family.
Cassidy, 41, said she was “extremely sad” but “very excited” when she announced her departure last week.
A post shared by Patsy Palmer (@patsypalmerofficial)
In an Instagram post, Palmer said of her co-star: “I have seen her grow into the most fantastic woman over the years, and so, so brilliantly funny, and now she’s making sure I am safe and comfy when I am here, so far away from my family in LA.
“She often gives me a lift nowadays from work to stay with her, making me dinner, or to the hotel, and I am truly grateful to call her my sister on-screen and off-screen.”
In the post, she spoke about their shared beginnings at the Anna Scher Theatre School in London, describing Cassidy in her youth as an “old head in the cutest shoulders”.
Palmer said she was her “biggest protector” when Cassidy was young, recounting how they would travel together in their early days on EastEnders, where they would “sing and laugh and learn lines”.
She added: “I was determined to make Natalie know that she could do it and she has again and again.”
Cassidy replied to the post, saying: “Thank you so much @patsypalmerofficial this is just beautiful. I love you.”
Palmer added: “I love you beautiful.”
Cassidy’s character is pregnant with Reiss Colwell’s (Jonny Freeman) baby in the series, unaware that he killed his ex-wife Debbie (Jenny Meier), a crime for which Sonia was charged before a video emerged of Bianca confessing to the crime.
Sonia, known for her poor trumpet playing as a child, had key storylines including being bullied after falling in with the wrong crowd at school, and her teenage pregnancy with Martin Fowler, who she went on to marry.
Cassidy made her first appearance in the soap in December 1993. She left in 2007 before coming back to Walford between 2010 and 2011, with another return in 2014.