Kacey Ainsworth may have played meek Little Mo Slater in EastEnders, but she’s certainly not backward in coming forward in her real life.
The actress, 50, has publicly thrown shade at one of the BBC’s most popular TV shows, claiming that taking part in Strictly Come Dancing is the equivalent of career suicide.
Read more: EastEnders fans ‘grossed out’ by Phil Mitchell’s masturbation confession
Kacey, who admits she is “way too honest”, spoke out against the show, saying it “shuts doors” rather than opens them.
Currently starring as Cathy Keating in ITV’s Grantchester, she revealed the dancing show can damage careers because it might lead to the contestant not being taken seriously afterwards.
Speaking on the Series Linked TV podcast, she made it clear she would never take part in the show, saying: “You wouldn’t get any roles. It does shut more doors than it opens.
“You’d end up doing My Celebrity Dog’s Wotsits Are Bigger Than Your Celebrity Dog’s Wotsits.”
Read more: Former EastEnders star back on TV after life-or-death battle
Harsh, but fair?
Kacey, who recently revealed her son is autistic, went on to say: “Unless you want to do musicals and stuff and no one’s ever seen you do anything like that before and you can sing, then that’s great.
“I only say that because I’ve had lots of friends who’ve been on it and they’ve all said to me that doing reality shows, not necessarily just Strictly, but doing reality shows has really flatlined their careers.”
Speaking about her time on EastEnders, she said that fans “don’t want you to leave there” and that it’s difficult to shake off the EastEnders tag.
She explained: “You can get away with it if you come from Corrie. So Sarah Lancashire, Suranne Jones, they never put ‘ex-Corrie’.
“But people like myself and Tracy-Ann Oberman, who’ve left EastEnders and created extensive careers outside, we’re always with that moniker.
“But it doesn’t bother me that much. I don’t know whether there’s a snobbery. You always get the feeling that there’s a bit…
“I remember one BBC executive saying to me: ‘You’ve got ideas above your station.’ I remember thinking to myself: ‘What station is that? What do you mean?'”
Kacey is currently involved in a hard-hitting storyline in Grantchester, as her character Cathy struggles in the aftermath of being sexually assaulted by a work colleague – unbeknownst to her husband Geordie (Robson Green).
During her six years on EastEnders from 2000, Kacey’s portrayal of abused wife Mo received many awards and won the hearts of viewers.
Never before has a soap character’s death, when Trevor died in a house explosion in 2002, been met with so many cheers of glee!
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