Natalie Cassidy has revealed that she is training to be a carer, inspired by her experience looking after her father until his death in 2021. The actress, 43, left EastEnders for good last year after 32 years playing Sonia Fowler on the BBC soap, having arrived on Albert Square in 1993 when she was just 10 years old. She has now embarked on a completely new career path, returning to education to train as a carer while being filmed for a new BBC docuseries.
Natalie moved her father Charles into an annexe at her family home to care for him, with the help of a professional carer, until he passed away at the age of 84. Recalling their final moments together, she told the BBC: 'The final moments were breathtakingly hard but quite incredible really. I just remember holding his hand and stroking his arm, and saying, "It's OK, you can go now, we're all good, you've done your job."'
The experience inspired her to take up the profession, and her journey towards becoming a carer has been documented in Natalie Cassidy: Caring Together, which aims to 'shine a light' on Britain's struggling care system amid financial pressures and staff shortages.
A New Career Path
Speaking about her decision to leave her glamorous showbiz job behind, Natalie told the BBC: 'Caring for Dad right up until the end of his life, and losing him, was one of the most painful things I've ever had to do. But the people I met have changed my life and are so inspirational. That's what spurred me on to do this. I've only ever had one job, but I've always wondered what I would have done if I wasn't an actress.'
She added that 'caring has really been a thread through my life from very, very young', explaining how her nan lived with her when she was a child while being cared for by her mum.
Opening up about the documentary on The One Show on Thursday, she explained it had been 'a real important passion project' and a reminder that 'there are good people around'. She said: 'Everybody within that care system - volunteers, charity workers, nurses - has so much empathy. Everybody is caring, so you just have the best time.'
Returning to the Classroom
The documentary sees Natalie returning to the classroom for the first time in almost three decades - after leaving school at the age of 16 - to get a Level 3 BTEC in health and social care. The year-long course involved studying autism, first aid, and dementia, as well as gaining hands-on experience with placements at a care home, a childhood diabetes unit, and with St John Ambulance.
While she insisted she had 'the best time' filming the eight-part series, she admitted being nervous about going back to school in her 40s. 'It was very daunting because I thought, "I'm going into a classroom here with a load of students. I'm 42. What are they going to make of me?"' she recalled. 'But they took me under their wing, I became part of the team - it was wonderful getting to learn again. I haven't been at school since I was 16, EastEnders all the way, so it was lovely to get back into a bit of education as well. It became a bit of a running joke, we'd finish a day and we'd say "wasn't that the most special day?"'
Natalie said she was awed by the empathy of the teenagers that she trained alongside, stressing: 'There are millions of unsung carers just doing their business and going about it and they don't talk about it.'
Emotional Moments
She found herself most drawn to palliative and elderly care, and said her highlight of the whole experience had been her time volunteering at a dementia home, where she bonded with a former nurse who has Alzheimer's. 'Monica was such a lovely lady. I really, really, really enjoyed the dementia home. I genuinely came away from them and thought, I'm really going to miss them, I want to be with them again. I want to spend more time with them,' she gushed.
However, Natalie admitted that parts of her training journey were very emotional as they brought up painful memories of caring for her dad, declaring that 'grief changes you as a person'. 'Of course it made me miss my dad,' she said. 'Grief never stops - you don't grieve for someone and then it's over. It just changes. You change as a person - it shapes who you are, it shapes how you look at the world. You just get better at coping with it.'
Natalie shared the sad news of her father's death in May 2021 with a heartfelt tribute on Instagram, calling him her 'whole world' and saying she was 'not sure what I'm going to do without him'. She wrote: 'I lost my precious daddy three weeks ago today. He was my whole world and I'm not sure what I'm going to do without him. All I know is my family, friends and work will make it easier.'
Leaving EastEnders
Natalie bid goodbye to Albert Square in April last year, saying she was 'extremely sad' to be going and would 'never forget' the show. In a statement, she said: 'I feel extremely sad to be writing this, but also very excited. After another 11 solid years back on The Square, I have decided it's time to move on to pastures new. EastEnders is in my bones so I will never forget where I started my career and I will continue to love the show.'
However, she acknowledged that the door has not been permanently closed for Sonia, with the writers allowing the possibility of her making a return. Reflecting on her long association with the soap, she said: 'Sonia's been around since 1993. People have grown up with her. It's nice to have a rest. Who knows, maybe another eight years now.'
She also spoke about life in the public eye, saying fame was never something she actively pursued but has become her normal after landing the role of Sonia at 10. 'I've never known any different. Can't remember really not being recognised or being chatted to – it just sort of is what it is,' she said.
