Natalie Cassidy has opened up about the unexpected challenges of life after leaving EastEnders, admitting the transition was 'really hard' after more than 30 years playing Sonia Fowler. The actress reflected on her career during an appearance on Kate Thornton's White Wine Question Time podcast, where she discussed why she believes she avoided being defined solely by her iconic soap role.
Life After Albert Square
Cassidy, 43, joined EastEnders as Sonia Fowler in 1993 after her first professional acting role as a child in The Beggar's Opera. She became one of the soap's most recognisable stars, playing Sonia on and off for over three decades before leaving in April 2025. Since her exit, she has remained busy with projects including her podcast Life with Nat and the BBC documentary series Natalie Cassidy: Learning to Care, where she trained to become a carer.
During the podcast, host Kate Thornton noted that few actors successfully move on from a long-running soap role to build a career elsewhere. She told Cassidy: 'Look, you know, not a lot of people leave Albert Square in the back of a cab and are not ever heard off again, right? Not so much you, my friend. You are one of the handful that have managed to go on and scale new heights outside of what should have been a role that defined you and stopped you working elsewhere because 30 years, I mean, I'm amazed you wake up even knowing who you are, not thinking that you're Sonia.'
A Conscious Effort to Stay Visible
Cassidy admitted she feels proud of how she has handled life after the BBC soap but acknowledged the difficulty of moving on from such an iconic role. She said: 'I know. I feel really proud actually, Kate, because you're right. It's really hard to come out of a soap after all those years and listen, I think the big thing is I've always not minded being myself.'
The actress explained that throughout her time as Sonia, she made a conscious effort not to hide behind the character, continuing to appear on quiz shows and participate in interviews. 'So throughout all the years of playing Sonia, I've always done a quiz show or I like being interviewed,' she said.
Thornton praised Cassidy for never hiding behind Sonia, to which Cassidy replied: 'No, and a lot of actors do. Absolutely right. But there are lots and lots of actors who, that's why they act. They want to hide behind something, you know. And I often think because I fell into it and it was, you know, I was in the right place at the right time in 93. I was 10, like you said. And I fell into the role of Sonia, but I've kept it.'
Feeling Out of Place in the Industry
Despite her success, Cassidy revealed she still sometimes feels out of place within the entertainment industry. She said: 'And that is talent and being on time and professionalism and all of that. But I also always look around this industry and go, I don't really belong here.'
When Thornton asked if she was still waiting for 'the tap on the shoulder', Cassidy explained that her feelings were not due to a lack of confidence in her abilities. 'No, it's not a kind of, I don't feel that I'm not good enough to be here. I just find that there's a lot of people with a lot of egos and I could have easily just worked in a shop,' she said.
