Former EastEnders actress Lorraine Stanley has said she regrets undergoing weight-loss surgery, despite losing seven stone after fearing a heart attack. The 48-year-old, who played Karen Taylor on the BBC soap, had a gastric sleeve procedure that removed 75 to 80 per cent of her stomach.
In a recent interview, Stanley said she would “100 per cent” have preferred to lose weight through diet and exercise alone, acknowledging that surgery was not the long-term solution she once believed. She reflected that her weight increased during her time on EastEnders, partly due to the security of a steady income, adding: “I think I had too much money. It’s better not working, because I haven’t got the money to eat out every day.”
Stanley had previously described the surgery as “hands-down the best thing I’ve ever done” after weight-loss injections stopped working. However, she now says lasting change has come from lifestyle adjustments, including working with a nutritionist and fitness coach, altering her diet and giving up alcohol.
The actress received praise from former co-stars after sharing a photo of her new look on Instagram. James Bye commented: “Look at you skinny minny,” while Kellie Shirley wrote: “Gorgeous inside and out!” Stanley joined EastEnders in 2017 and won Best Newcomer at the British Soap Awards the following year. She left the soap in 2024.
