EastEnders star Natalie Cassidy has spoken out about feeling ‘fat-shamed’ when she appeared on Strictly Come Dancing.
The actress, who plays Sonia Fowler in the BBC soap, took part in the dancing competition in 2009.
She was partnered with Italian professional dancer Vincent Simone and eventually finished in a respectable fifth place.
But looking back, the 38-year-old soap star said she felt ridiculed when she was asked to perform a move that was usually done by male dancers.
She told The Sun : “I was about 4 stone bigger than I am now. Vincenzo was quite little.
“And I remember one week, it was like ‘oh, we’re going to do this dance, but you’re going to pick up Vincent.’
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“I think about it now and think, ‘oh that was out of order. That was a bit out of order to me.’ You couldn’t do that now.”
Despite the comment, Natalie said she wouldn’t change her time on Strictly – and would even do it again.
Describing how she loved the “glitz and glamour”, the mum-of-two said it was the “best job outside of EastEnders”.
“We had the best time and I loved it,” she added.
Since appearing on Strictly Natalie has embraced a healthier lifestyle and now looks trimmer than ever.
She credits this to a new diet, running and a complete ban on fast food – after admitting she has struggled to diet safely in the past.
Before Strictly she had been a bit of a yo-yo dieter and put weight back on after slimming down for her 2007 fitness DVD, Natalie Cassidy’s Then and Now Workout.
She has since reclaimed her figure after losing around four stone since her Strictly days and says she is happier and healthier than ever.
These days Natalie rocks a more glam look and was recently seen posing with her rarely seen fiancé Marc Humphreys.
Sonia has been with Marc – who also works on EastEnders, but as a cameraman – since 2014.
They couple got engaged in October 2015 and became parents to daughter Joanie in August 2016, but the pair have yet to tie the knot.
Natalie, 38, also has another daughter, Eliza, from her previous relationship with ex-boyfriend Adam Cottrell.
While Natalie’s Instagram feed is full of photos of her children, Marc hadn’t featured on it since they rang in the New Year together.
Sharing the news Joanie had recently turned five, the actress posted a photo of her youngest daughter asleep on a bean bag with a balloon behind her to mark the occasion.
“Love you gorgeous girl. A great birthday had. Thank you to all who celebrated with us today. Can’t believe my little one is 5. Time flies when you’re having fun,” Natalie wrote.
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