Tony Clay was worried he "might not get on with" co-star Max Bowden.
Tony Clay
The 'EastEnders' actors' characters have hooked up on screen as lovers Callum 'Halfway' Highway and Ben Mitchell, and the soap star's concerns were dismissed once the pair established their "lovely chemistry" on set.
Speaking to Inside Soap magazine, he said: "With Max, there's always going to be this worry at the start that you might not get on with the other person, but me and him have a great relationship.
"We have a lovely chemistry and, although we make each other laugh a lot, there's always a level of professionalism there when we have big, intense scenes."
Tony - whose character is engaged to Whitney Dean (Shona McGarty), but is also involved with Max's alter-ego Ben - has been enjoying the fan reaction to his latest plot.
He added: "I'm grateful to be sharing this 'Ballum' journey with Max, especially since we are both relatively new to 'EastEnders'.
"We feel as if we are part of a movement here, and hearing the fan reaction is just great.
"Everybody wants to know they are doing a good job, and the response has given us that self-belief. It's a beautiful thing."
Tony has been well looked after since he made his debut on the soap on New Year's Day last year, and he believes some of the stars thought he might need taking care of when they saw the "mad haircut" he got for the role.
He previously said: "They're like my surrogate 'EastEnders' family. Kellie [Bright] is such a warm and lovely person, and has really looked out for me.
"To be fair, everyone has been my mentor since I've been on the show. I think people took one look at my mad haircut and thought, 'We need to look out for him.' "
Tagged in Shona McGarty