Jacqueline Jossa has admitted her role in 'EastEnders' helped her get through the pain of her dad going to prison.
Jacqueline Jossa
The 28-year-old actress - who played Lauren Branning on the BBC soap from 2010 to 2018 - told of how her dramatic character was "therapeutic".
She said: "If I had something personal going on, like my dad went to prison all while I was on 'EastEnders'. I was lucky enough that I could come onto set and cry my eyes out and scream and shout.
"And then I’d go home and feel alright but when that was taken away and when that was gone I didn’t have that release, and it was all in here."
The soap star - who went on to win 'I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!' after spending almost a decade in Albert Square - used to focus on her character so much during her 'EastEnders' days she questioned who she was as Jacqueline after she departed the role.
Speaking on Vicky Pattison's 'The Secret To...' podcast, she said: "I spent more time on Lauren than I did on me. I was so focused on what brings her [Lauren] to drink, I got so into it. And all I would think about is what the next script would be, I loved it so much.
"When that was gone, I was like, 'Who am I now?’ It’s all on me now.
"My heart lies with acting just because that's what I know.
"It took me a while to find confidence within myself, I could walk into be Lauren Branning tomorrow and f****** smash the s*** out of it and have so much confidence in what I was doing.
"But in myself I wasn't, its taken a lot to get there."
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