Filming last scenes on EastEnders had us all in tears – but one scene in hospital lifted my mood, says Danielle Harold
FOR more than a decade Danielle Harold rushed to read her EastEnders scripts, keen to find out what lay in store for her bubbly character Lola Pearce-Brown.
But it took the actress weeks to muster the strength to look at her final scenes, knowing Lola was going to die from a brain tumour — and she would be leaving the BBC One soap for good.
In an exclusive interview with The Sun on Sunday, Danielle said: “I didn’t want to read my final script.
“We pick them up from the script desk if we are in work and my final ones were sat there for ages!
“They kept asking me if I’d taken them yet, and I was like, ‘No, I don’t want to’.
“I left them there until I was ready.
“Then I had them at home for a few days — it took me a good two weeks before I was able to read them.
“I made myself a cup of tea, sat down in my living room and thought, ‘Right, just do it.’
“I got to the second page and was in absolute bits.”
Filming her final scenes, with hairdresser Lola in palliative care, took an emotional toll.
But amid the heartbreaking storyline, Danielle, 30, managed to find lighter times with on-screen husband Jay Brown, who is played by Jamie Borthwick.
She said: “Everything has been so sad and so serious but we have had some moments that we’ve been quite grateful for, and they have helped to lift the mood on set.
“We were doing one scene and Lola is supposed to be asleep in the bed.
“Jamie, who plays Jay, was leaning on the bed crying. It was all so heartbreaking.
“But then his knee accidentally pushed the button of the hospital bed so I started going down really slowly.
“I was trying not to laugh. Jamie had no idea what was happening and then I just burst out laughing, as did all the crew.
“But we’ve been so grateful for those little moments. You need that when you’re working on a storyline like this.”
Danielle’s cast-mates have been touched by the tragic plot, many fighting back tears during their farewell scenes with the actress.
It’s been an emotional time — not least for those who portray Lola’s Mitchell family relatives, Perry Fenwick, who stars as her on-screen grandfather Billy; Max Bowden, who plays Ben; and soap veteran Steve McFadden, as Phil.
Danielle said: “We’ve all been in absolute bits. During those final few weeks I wasn’t able to look at Perry without crying.
“I told Steve, ‘You’d better cry.
“Whatever scene you’ve got I want full-on crying.
“Like you’re the most heartbroken you’ve ever been. You love Lola, remember!’
“He smiled. And when it came to his scene he was just incredible.”
Danielle was only 18 when she joined the BBC One soap as part of the notorious Mitchell family in 2011.
But for the past year she has known she is leaving Albert Square after executive producer Chris Clenshaw told her about Lola’s hard-hitting storyline.
Since then they have worked closely with Brain Tumour Research and Macmillan Cancer Support to ensure every element was as true to life as possible.
Danielle said: “It was hard to prepare for those final scenes.
“The medical advisors are there, step by step they’re helping me.
“I’ve been wearing bigger clothes to give the illusion of losing weight.
“It’s been really hard, the way Lola has physically been broken down.
“It’s hard looking at yourself, seeing yourself looking so ill. But it has to be real.
“As difficult as it is to watch, we had to make it as realistic as possible.
“It’s so important we get it right and that we tell the story as sensitively and accurately as possible.
“That’s the beauty of soaps, as they allow us to tell stories to that granular level of detail.
“This has been the biggest storyline of my life and, as an actress, it’s been such a huge privilege to have been trusted with something so important.
“But there’s also been so much pressure to get it right.
“We’ve worked really hard and I just hope we’ve done it justice.
“Of course it’s bittersweet as I knew my time at EastEnders would come to an end but I’m so proud of everything we’ve done telling Lola’s story.”
Danielle says that although she has struggled to cope with the responsibility, she knows that by doing the storyline she has helped to save lives by raising awareness of brain tumours.
She said: “It’s hard to let go and shut off after filming. It’s really intense and sad.
“I listen to music and try to relax in a bubble bath but you can’t stop thinking about the people that are actually going through it.
“It makes you realise how grateful you are to be healthy and to appreciate life even more.
“I’ve had so many messages from people saying that they’ve only gone to get checked out because of Lola’s storyline and they’ve caught the tumour early.”
Brain cancer is one of the biggest killers of people under 40 and Danielle has met up with sufferers to make sure she portrays the story correctly.
One is Kylie Weatherby, of Thetford, Norfolk, who was 36 weeks’ pregnant with twins when she was diagnosed with a brain tumour.
Danielle says Kylie, 34, helped her with the “small details”.
She said: “As a young woman she always makes sure she has her lipstick on, which is something we kept with Lola.
“What’s been so hard about this story is knowing that it is happening in real life to so many people.”
Later this month viewers will see the residents of Albert Square say goodbye to Lola as she receives palliative care at home, with her family by her side.
Danielle said: “It’s got a real sense of community about it. Everyone comes together.
“There will be a few surprise goodbyes, relationships she’s had over the years that the viewers might have forgotten about.
“We’ve also got a really special moment where Lola finds the strength inside her to give her ‘Pops’ Billy one last message.
“It was something that felt right when we were rehearsing so I asked the medical advisor if Lola would be able to find that final bit of strength to say those last words, and it did happen.
“It’s a really special moment.
“Everyone was crying. When all the crew are crying you know you’re doing it right. We’ve had them all crying.”
Danielle is fiercely loyal to the show.
When she first joined, icons including June Brown, Dame Barbara Windsor and Pam St Clement — who played Dot Cotton, Peggy Mitchell and Pat Evans — helped her, and she says she “learnt from the best”.
She added: “I love the show, and will still watch it when I leave. I’ve got to see how they all cope without Lola, especially Jay and Ben.
“I have not looked for a new job.
“Normally you do but I didn’t want to take the focus away from what I was doing, because the storylines have been so important.
“I’ve worked with so many people during all the research and they deserved for me to give it my all until the bitter end.
“And then I can close the door on it and think about what’s coming next.”
For now, she cannot wait to attend next month’s British Soap Awards in Manchester — having been shortlisted for Best Leading Performer.
She admits: “I am so looking forward to the awards.
“It’s the first time I’ve ever been nominated and I feel so grateful just to have made it on to the shortlist.
“To actually win it would mean the absolute world.
“Not just for me but for all those incredible ladies that I’ve met who are going through it in real life as well as the charities that have helped us every step of the way.”
- EastEnders is on BBC One at 7.30pm. Readers can vote for Danielle to win Best Leading Performer at the British Soap Awards at britishsoapawards.tv.