EastEnders icon Natalie Cassidy has revealed the one thing that would bring her back to the soap. Back in January, the actor announced that she would be quitting the square, having played Sonia Fowler on-and-off since 1993.

After nearly three decades, the soap star made the sad announcement that she was leaving, saying she had decided to “move on to pastures new”, with her final scenes airing back in April.

Opening up about her departure from the beloved BBC soap, Cassidy shared with Prima what it would take to get her to reprise the role that made her famous.

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“It’s been freeing leaving EastEnders. I feel liberated and just happy,” she said, adding: “Albert Square will always hold a place in my heart, and I love it there. There could be a storyline where I come back for a week – those things are great.

“But it took up a lot of time. I used to be learning lines in the evening, and that’s gone now. And then I’d be up at six in the morning… It did take a long time, whereas now, my evenings are free, unless I’m recording a podcast at home.”

Speaking about how different her life has been since her departure, Cassidy said she has enjoyed being able to reinvent herself now that she isn’t confined to the role.

“Sonia isn’t the most glamorous of characters, bless her, but I wanted to stay true to her character, so I never got extensions put in, or dyed my hair. She was just a worker who didn’t have a lot of money.”

Cassidy, who recently won the fifth season of Cooking with the Stars, previously spoke about her decision to leave EastEnders last month, with the actor sharing that she was “happier doing the things I’m doing now”.

“I always feel like I have to say it, I loved it, I’m grateful for it, but I did fall into it and that was that, and that’s what I did for 30 years, I don’t know if I was meant to do that,” she added.