Zaraah Abrahams asked for her 'EastEnders' debut to be moved to Boxing Day because she felt the "pressure" attached to being a part of the soap's Christmas Day special.
Zaraah Abrahams as Chelsea Fox
The former 'Waterloo Road' actress is to make her first appearance as Chelsea Fox on December 25th, but the 33-year-old star admitted she was "extremely frightened" when she discovered her plot is part of the festive schedule and she "doesn't want to let anybody down".
She said: "I was honoured but also extremely frightened. I said I think we should do it the next day as I didn’t want to let anybody down [laughs].
"Everyone looks forward to 'EastEnders' on Christmas Day, it’s a lot of pressure!
"'EastEnders' has such loyal fans so I want them to be happy on Christmas Day."
Zaraah was "really excited but very nervous" when she found out she had landed the role of Chelsea - the daughter of Denise Fox (Diane Parish) - and that continued on set as she got a dry lip when she was acting out a scene and had to do it again.
She added: "She’s an established character and so to be offered the role, it was just really exciting. The Fox family have been on the show for so long. And for me to be part of such an iconic family, it’s a really big deal.
"I was really excited but very nervous. It’s been a trying time for everybody in the creative industry. Luckily I’ve been able to work from home doing voiceovers as it’s been really busy, but to be offered such a consistent role at this time, I’m just really grateful.
"My first day on set was fabulous. I was working with a director that I worked with on 'Waterloo Road' a thousand years ago. So to see such a familiar face was really nice. My first scene was with Rudy [Rudolph Walker] who plays Patrick.
"So although I was really nervous I was surrounded by such warm and lovely people. It was really nice. I got a dry lip and I was like, 'Can we go again? My lip is stuck to my teeth!' But it was great."
The return of Chelsea - who was originally played by Tiana Benjamin from 2006 to 2010 - will be a double shock for Denise after it was recently confirmed Don Gilet will reprise his role as her ex and Chelsea's father, priest-turned-serial killer Lucas Johnson.
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