EastEnders' Lacey Turner reveals "the only way" she'll get through Strictly Come Dancing nerves

Lacey Turner may be used to being in front of a camera following her time on EastEnders, but the actor faces a whole new challenge soon when she takes part in the 24th season of Strictly Come Dancing.

The star is one of 15 famous faces hoping to get their hands on the Glitterball Trophy, with the long-running BBC series entering a new era as Emma Willis, Josh Widdicombe and Johannes Radebe replace Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman as hosts.

With the celebrities set to find out who their professional partner will be during Saturday's (19 September) launch show, Turner has admitted to feeling nervous ahead of her stint on the dancefloor.

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"I'm excited to learn something new and to be a part of this whole glittery shenanigan. But I am absolutely terrified and hoping that will go once I'm in the training room and I can get into it," she said.

Turner has even come up with a plan to get her through the first live show, with the actor explaining: "I'm going to create a character that I can play on a Saturday night, as that's the only way I'll get out there I think!"

Turner, who plays Stacey Slater on the BBC soap, also shared her excitement about taking part, and shared that she was now "brave enough" to put her best foot forward on the iconic dance floor.

"I've always wanted to do it, but I've just never been brave enough," she said. "I've had a friend do it every year, so I know how hard it is. A lot of my friends are physically fit, and they have been exhausted.

"So, whilst I'm not working on EastEnders this year, I thought it might be a good time to do it because I'm not sure I am physically or mentally fit enough to do both jobs at the same time as well as run a household with three feral children!"

She also shared that she was looking forward to training with her professional partner, though wasn't too excited at the prospect of sitting in a chair while makeup is applied ahead of the live shows.

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As for her main aims, the actor said that she just wanted to have as much fun as possible, and also hoped that viewers may see a different side to her other than the character she plays in Walford.

"It would be nice for people to maybe see me as me," she said. "You play the same character for 21 years, and there are obviously bits of me in Stacey, but we are so different. Hopefully on Strictly, people will be able to separate me from the character."

Strictly Come Dancing returns on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on Saturday 19 September.

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Reporter, Digital Spy George is a freelance writer who specialises in Movies and TV. After graduating with a degree in Film Studies and Journalism from De Montfort University, in which he analysed the early works of Richard Linklater for his dissertation, he wrote for several websites for GRV Media.  His film tastes vary from blockbusters like Mission: Impossible and John Wick to international directors such as Paolo Sorrentino and Hirokazu Kore-eda, and has attended both the London and Berlin film festivals.