FormerEastEnders star Lorraine Stanley has reflected on her weight loss transformation, revealing she lost seven stone after fearing she would have a heart attack.
However, the actor, who played Karen Taylor in the BBC soap, said she regrets having surgery to remove 75-80 per cent of her stomach, stating in hindsight she wishes she had “done it with diet and exercise”.
In a new interview, Stanley said she got “really big” while starring in EastEnders due to her salary.
“I think I had too much money,” she told The Sun, adding: “It’s better not working, because I haven’t got the money to eat out every day.”
The actor recently opened up about her weight loss, revealing she underwent surgery after becoming “immune” to jabs.
“I went to a London clinic, paid an awful lot of money and had it done,” she previously told New, calling it “hands-down the best thing I’ve ever done – both for me and for my family”.
After the gastric sleeve operation, Stanley has been assisted by a nutritionist and fitness guru. Since then, she has changed her diet and given up alcohol.
After sharing a photo of her new look on Instagram, EastEnders actor James Bye, who recently left the soap, commented: “Look at you skinny minny,” while Carly Wicks star Kellie Shirlie added: “Gorgeous inside and out!” Others said she looked “incredible” and “amazing”.
After launching her acting career in 2000, Stanley had small roles in several BBC shows, including Casualty, Holby City, and Call the Midwife, before landing EastEnders in 2017.
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The following year, she won Best Newcomer at the British Soap Awards.
Her other credits include the films London to Brighton (2006) and Made in Dagenham (2010). Shortly before starring in EastEnders, Stanley appeared as a barmaid opposite Tom Hardy in Legend, a film about the Kray twins.
Stanley appeared in eight episodes of EastEnders in 2016, one year before she joined the soap on a permanent basis, playing the small role of Thelma Bragg.
Twelve years earlier, she played a young version of Laila Morse’s Mo Harris in spinoff Pat and Mo, which revealed the backstory to a feud between Mo and Pat Butcher.
But it’s the character of Karen Taylor that Stanley is best known for, having played the role until 2024.
In 2019, the actor, who has a nine-year-old daughter, said it was “nice” to have a permanent role in EastEnders after years of securing bit parts.
“I’ve kind of done everything, but only one episode, so I named myself One-Ep Lou, and it’s nice to have a bit of stability as an actor,” she previously told Channel 4 series Sunday Brunch.
“You appreciate it so much more. Now I appreciate what I’ve got, as opposed to it just being on a plate. I’ve struggled all the way through it – it’s a difficult career.”