Richie speaks about strange Walford fans

Former EastEnders star Shane Richie has admitted that many of the soap's fans often lose touch with reality.

The actor, who played Alfie Moon on the show, revealed that members of the public - and even well-known companies - were overly concerned about the welfare of pensioner Nana Moon, who was played by Hilda Braid.

"You'd be surprised by how many people genuinely believe the EastEnders storylines," Shane told the Daily Star. "With the Alfie and Nana Moon thing, we were actually sent brochures from real-life retirement homes: 'Dear Mr Moon, we understand your nan is unwell...' You sort of think: 'Wow'."

He added: "We were even offered a Caribbean cruise. A famous cruise company wrote and said they'd happily take the whole Moon family if they needed a break from the Square. Can you imagine? I'd have had to walk around the ship pretending to be Alfie for two weeks, looking after Nana Moon."

Richie starred on the soap from 2002 to 2005. He recently confirmed that he would be willing to make a comeback to the Square in the future.