Former EastEnders star Nina Wadia teases possible return
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Ex-EastEnders star Nina Wadia has confirmed the door is open for a possible return to the soap as Zainab Masood.
Wadia, who's set to narrate children's TV stop-motion series Tweedy and Fluff, has recently said she is "sure" she would go back to Albert Square at some point. The actress and comedian played Zainab between 2007 and 2013, leaving the BBC show behind to pursue other acting roles.
"Part of me needed to leave and I was devastated," Wadia told OK! magazine. "I didn't suit being in the same character for that long and I was finding myself climbing the walls with just playing Zainab.
"They were kind to me on the show in that they didn't kill her off and I'm sure at one point I will return."
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Wadia, who has appeared in shows such as Death in Paradise and Netflix's The Sandman since leaving EastEnders, admitted Zainab is still one of the characters for which she gets recognised the most.
"I still get called Zainab when I'm out and about," she said, adding that soap fans often ask her whether she'll make a comeback.
"I still get asked when I'm going back to EastEnders, and if I love Masood even though I left over a decade ago!"
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The Count Abdulla star also got candid about the negative sides of being a regular on a soap.
"I'm really happy to have done EastEnders, it took my profile to another level," she said. "But the negative side of doing soap is that you never know how long you should stay in it, because it can kill your career as well."
Wadia previously discussed her experiences after leaving EastEnders, saying she felt she had become so closely associated with her soap role that "no casting director would touch me".
EastEnders airs on Mondays - Thursdays at 7.30pm on BBC One. The show also streams on BBC iPlayer.
Read more EastEnders spoilers on our dedicated homepage
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