Former EastEnders Star Kellie Shirley Joins Casualty in Dramatic New Role

Former EastEnders actress Kellie Shirley is making waves as she prepares for her debut on the popular medical drama, Casualty. Best known for her role as Carly Wicks in the BBC One hit, Kellie has taken on a new challenge by securing the role of nurse Sophia Peters, 12 years after leaving Albert Square.

Anticipation is building as Kellie’s first scenes are set to air on Saturday, July 27. To generate excitement, she kicked off a promotional tour, starting with an appearance on ITV’s Lorraine. Christine Lampard, filling in for Lorraine Kelly, hosted the interview where Kellie discussed her new role and teased what viewers can expect from her character.

While keeping Casualty’s plot details under wraps, Kellie shared some behind-the-scenes insights. She admitted to being “a mess” during filming due to the intense nature of her storyline, according to the Mirror. Having recently become a mother, with her six-month-old baby often accompanying her on set, Kellie found her first storyline particularly challenging as it involved the death of a young child.

In her conversation with Christine, Kellie reflected on the emotional difficulty of the role, saying, “My first storyline was really quite heavy. It was about – I don’t want to spoil it too much but it has been out – a baby who passes away. “It was really hard to play these scenes because I was thinking about my role as a nurse, you have to be very professional, she’s probably come up against this before and seen things like this before.”

The actress added, “But for me, I was a bit of a mess because I had my baby in my dressing room when I was going in-between takes and feeding him and then having this little baby on set…” Christine empathized, saying, “It was hard to switch off. I’d be absolutely the same.” BBC viewers will remember Kellie for her iconic role as Carly Wicks, the daughter of Shirley Carter, played by Linda Henry. She held the role for two years from 2006 before leaving, only to return in 2012 to reprise her character.

In 2008, Carly left Albert Square with Denise Fox (Diane Parish) to travel the world following her father Kevin’s death. Carly’s journey eventually led her to Australia, and she returned to EastEnders in 2012 with a baby boy, sparking a dramatic storyline involving her mother, Shirley. Kellie Shirley’s move to Casualty marks a significant new chapter in her career, and fans are eagerly awaiting her debut in the long-running medical drama.