‘BEING BACK ON SET IS DIFFICULT'

EastEnders star Diane Parish on returning to work and the friendship she treasures.

Having played Denise Fox in EastEnders since 2006, you’d think Diane Parish would be right at home in Walford. But, as she reveals prior to her forthcoming appearance in Secrets From The Square, she’s finding life on set a bit trickier than anticipated.

That’s because the cast are back to work for the first time in months, as lockdown eases and the country slowly returns to normal – but social-distancing measures are causing a headache for the normally tactile actors. Still, as Di, 50, admits, she’s grateful to have a job to go back to at all.

Here, she tells us all about getting back to work, and doing Secrets alongside her BFF Tameka Empson, who played Denise’s larger-than-life sister Kim Fox in the soap until last year. The ladies sit down with Secrets host Stacey Dooley to reminisce about their time on the Square – and it’s clear Di was thrilled to be reunited with her old pal. Tell us more, Di…

Hey Diane! First of all, what was it like to be back on set?