DOT'S LOT

She has been a mainstay of BBC soap EastEnders for 35 years, playing the much-loved character Dot Cotton, but June Brown says she’d rather be in Folkestone now than Walford

- Bernard Bale

Has she gone for good or will she return? That was the question buzzing through the media when June Brown announced that her alter-ego, EastEnders icon Dot Cotton – or Dot Branning if you prefer – would be no more.

Will she miss Walford? Not as much as she would miss Folkestone. “I lived in Folkestone for years with Robert, my second husband,” says June. “I wasn’t born there – that was in Suffolk – but I have always felt that some of my roots are in Folkestone.

“I used to go and see things at the Leas Cliff Pavilion and then appeared there myself.

“When I heard a few years ago that is was in danger of closing, I just had to support the campaign to keep it open.

“I must say that where we lived was a bit odd. It was an old house and a bit spooky in a way. I suppose it depends on what you believe, but I believe in inexplicable things.

“We used to find that things had moved and it wasn’t us going daft. I put a spoon down once and couldn’t find it. I mentioned it aloud and the next thing I knew a saucepan lid started to rattle. When I lifted the lid it stopped shaking and there was the spoon!

“There were other things too, but it was all part of living there and it didn’t really bother us.”

June still has a home there and has no plans to move back to Suffolk. “I have been a fan of Kent for many years, who wouldn’t be? It’s not known for its fruit and hops for nothing, it’s a beautiful, fertile county with nice people, a great heritage, a nice coast and some lovely theatres too.”