EastEnders star Danielle Harold revealed she accidentally learned all the wrong lines when it came to filming her first scenes on the BBC soap.
The actress, 31, was cast as Lola Pearce in 2011 and portrayed the granddaughter of long-running character Billy Mitchell (Perry Fenwick) on and off for more than a decade.
Last year, Lola was diagnosed with an aggressive and fast-growing form of brain cancer which she later discovered was terminal.
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After learning her treatment was no longer working, Lola’s health quickly deteriorated and she passed away in emotional scenes aired on Wednesday (May 31).
(Image: BBC)
Reflecting on Danielle’s first days on the BBC soap, Perry, 61, explained he had a meeting with his on-screen family member, but it became apparent she had made a mistake.
“First day she learnt all the wrong lines,” the actor told Daily Star.
“I had a little meeting with her and I said, ‘Be on time, hit your marks and make sure you know your lines. They are the basics of being in a soap. If you happen to be a good actor as well, that’s a bonus,” he laughed.
(Image: BBC)
Perry, who made his first appearance as Billy in 1998, added: “When she came in we ran through lines and we started reading and [Danielle] went, ‘What’s that?’”
Danielle chimed in: “I went, ‘What?’ It was a scene with me, you and Jo Joyner and he started speaking and then she started speaking and I went, ‘Oh no’.
“I went, ‘I’m so sorry but what are you lot talking about? I’ve not learned any of this’. And then we realised I’d learned all the wrong scenes for the day, so I didn’t learn anything I was supposed to for that day.”
(Image: BBC)
“I literally just had to do it all on the spot,” she admitted.
Despite the incredibly close bond they’ve built over the years, Perry admitted he wasn’t thrilled when Danielle was first cast as his grandaughter.
He said: “On her first day, they said to me that they were casting this young girl as my granddaughter. Well I wasn’t chuffed about that! I wasn’t excited about her coming in to be honest.
“So I asked, what’s she done before?’ And they said, ‘She’s never acted before’. Alright, cheers. But they were right because they said, ‘We think she’s a rough diamond but you’ll be able to polish her up.”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
