EastEnders’ Jacqueline Jossa shares biggest fear over Lauren’s ‘home wrecking’ storyline
EastEnders Jacqueline Jossa, who plays Lauren Branning, has caused plenty of drama since her return - including a drunken one-off bonk with her pregnant best mate’s fiancé
EastEnders’ Jacqueline Jossa has opened up about the naughty shenanigans her character has been getting up to in the soap.
The actress shot to fame playing Lauren Branning on the BBC soap – making her debut in 2010. And it’s fair to say, Lauren has been involved in several big storylines – especially at the moment.
Fans will recall how the character made her return this year after six years away. Lauren rocked back up to Walford with cousin Penny Branning (Kitty Castledine).
And it didn’t take long for things to kick off. A few weeks ago, Lauren ended up sleeping with Zack Hudson (James Farrar) the fiancé of her pregnant best mate Whitney Dean (Shona McGarty).
Zack and Lauren had vowed to keep their bonk a secret but after Whitney gave birth last week, her adoptive daughter Britney overheard. At first, she was planning to not say anything, as she didn’t want to destroy Whitney and ruin her “happy ending”.
But at Whitney and Zach’s wedding, and right before they said their “I dos” in front of everyone, including Lauren, Britney blurted out the truth.
Fuming, Whitney then lashed out at Lauren, slapping her with her bouquet before grabbing her by the hair, and dragging her across the floor. Lauren managed to get up and run off.
Now, Jacqueline has opened up about how Lauren is dealing with all the lies and secrets. And it seems she’s a chip off the old block, especially with Max Branning as her father.
Jacqueline was quizzed by RadioTimes.com whether she has fears of being just like her womaniser dad Max, who was played by Jake Wood. Jacqueline replied: “Yes, it does.
“It’s so funny because I randomly watched an episode from 2012 from the archive on BBC iPlayer, and Lauren was drunk and was having a moment, saying, ‘I’m going to turn out just like my dad!’ I thought, ‘OMG, yes, she has!’”
Jacqueline added: “This is a huge part of Lauren’s regret and a huge part of why she did it in the first place. She knows she’s capable of being a good person, but when she’s hurt, she wants to hurt others, and she gets that from her dad.“
Jacqueline then noted how it is “a huge arc in Lauren’s story” and dad Max is a huge influence on everything she does – “for better and worse.” She explained: “When it’s better, she’s thinking, ‘I don’t want to be anything like him’, and when it’s for worse, it’s when she can’t help herself becoming more and more like Max.”
