'Enders star recalls 'amazing' first day

EastEnders star Cheryl Fergison has revealed that she had to pinch herself when she first walked into the Queen Vic.

The actress, who has played Heather Trott since June 2007, said she had been a fan of the BBC soap for years and could not believe she had landed a part.

She told the Press Association: "On my first day I went out into the Square in my lunch hour and sat on Arthur's bench. I had a little chat with my mum, who has passed away, and I said, 'You would have been so proud'. She would have been - she was an avid EastEnders fan. I said, 'I know you're looking down. This is the best day.'"

Although her life has remained largely the same since joining the show, the 43-year-old admitted that she is frequently recognised by fans.

She said: "I have a son who is eight and I'm married. We live on a council estate and we haven't moved or anything, because we've really tried as best we can to keep things normal. However if we go on a family day out, after about an hour people tend to start coming up.

"A lot of children recognise me before their parents do. If I'm walking around the supermarket the kids will tug their mum and say, 'Look! There's Heather!' I think they have an affinity with her in some ways."

She added: "I think people also like the fact she's normal and we haven't seen that for a long time in soaps. People come up to me and say, 'It's really nice to have a real woman on telly.'"

Heather walks down the aisle with fake fiancé Minty in tonight's episode of EastEnders, which airs at 7.30pm on BBC One.