Veteran actor says she’s left the soap, but BBC say the door is open for the mainstay’s return

This article is more than 6 months old

This article is more than 6 months old

June Brown has announced that she has left EastEnders after 35 years of playing chain-smoking Albert Square favourite Dot Cotton.

The 93-year-old actor, whose stint on the soap began in 1985, said she had left the long-running soap “for good”.

Speaking on the Distinct Nostalgia podcast, Brown said: “I don’t want a retainer for EastEnders, I’ve left. I’ve left for good.

“I’ve sent her off to Ireland and that’s where she’ll stay. I’ve left EastEnders. I did make up a limerick. It’s a bit dirty. I went back to do a good story. Alas and alack, when I got back it had gone up in smoke.

“Well that is no joke. I got a small part, a very small part. And that ended up as a big wet fart. Alas and alack, I will never go back.”

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The veteran actor arrived on the square shortly after the soap began in 1985, and aside from a break between 1993 and 1997, has been a stalwart ever since. Some of Dot’s biggest storylines have explored issues including euthanasia, cancer and homophobia.

A keen gossip on the square, she ran its launderette for many years and was a confidant for many characters. The devout Christian would often be found reciting quotes from the Bible in her often unprompted advice for long-suffering neighbours.

During her podcast appearance speaking to former co-star Rani Singh, who played Sufia Karim in the BBC soap, Brown said leaving the show felt like a bereavement.

“I was feeling down a few days ago,” she said. “I thought, ‘What’s the matter? Why do I feel so sad?’ It’s almost as if I’ve been bereaved.

“I’ve played two people simultaneously for 35 years. Really Dot wasn’t me, but spiritually she probably was.”

Brown won several awards for her portrayal of Dot, including a lifetime achievement honour at the 2005 British Soap Awards. In 2009, she was nominated for the best actress prize at the TV Baftas.

The soap is marking its 35th anniversary this week. In Brown’s last storyline with her character she took a holiday to Ireland after her step-grand daughter Sonia Fowler had stolen £8,000 from her bank account in order to help her ex-husband Martin Fowler.

The latest generation of the Cotton family is Dotty, the daughter of notorious villain Nick, who was played by John Altman. Dotty recently discovered that her father was killed by Dot after overdosing on the heroin that she had given him in 2015.

However the BBC indicated that it might not be the end for the EastEnders mainstay. An EastEnders spokesperson said the “door remains open” for Brown to return.

A statement said: “We never discuss artists’ contracts, however as far as EastEnders are concerned the door remains open for June, as it always has if the story arises and if June wishes to take part.”

Ian Beale, played by Adam Woodyatt, is the soap’s longest-serving actor and the only remaining original character to have appeared continuously since the first episode on 19 February 1985.

• This article was amended on 3 March 2020. Dot had £8,000 stolen from her bank account, not £5,000 as an earlier version said. This has been corrected.