Sonia and Stacey.. on the telly
Natalie on June ‘When she was 82 she would be out in a nightclub, she was amazing’ ‘I like sitcoms & stand-up, a good quiz like Mastermind’ ‘Why would I want to watch A&E shows at home?’
When two stars of the small screen had a chance meeting on ITV’S Loose Women last November, it was the start of a beautiful friendship, and now a new podcast.
Guest panellist Joanna Page, best known for her title role in comedy Gavin & Stacey, met Natalie Cassidy, who plays Eastenders’ Sonia Fowler, on the daytime show.
“We clicked immediately,” said Joanna, 46, in that familiar Welsh lilt. “We chatted a bit after she’d done her interview and I thought she was gorgeous.”
“And I thought the same,” chips in Natalie. “It’s the start of a longstanding friendship.”
In Off The Telly, their podcast launching on BBC Sounds today, the pair will talk about three or four shows each week, starting with Gladiators, The Apprentice and Netflix smash One Day.
Two people with strong opinions, Joanna and Natalie seem like a good fit to share their small screen observations.
Natalie said: “We’ll record the podcast on a Sunday or Monday to keep it topical and discuss programmes viewers will have watched the previous week.”
Having been in the TV industry for so long, both of the stars bring a wealth of knowledge to their listeners, plus as working mums, they spend a lot of time at home watching the box.
After three decades in Albert Square Natalie, 40, is now one of soap’s stalwarts. Walford is where her loyalty lies and where she has so many friends.
In emotional scenes, Sonia was heavily involved in the Dot Cotton funeral storyline last year. Dot was played by actress June Brown, who passed away in 2022.
Natalie said: “It was very, very difficult for me, because obviously I’ve lost a dear friend.
“She taught me a lot and we had a lot of laughs over the years.
“When she was 82 years old she’d be partying in a nightclub, and she was just so amazing.”
Natalie felt honoured to lead the episode of Dot’s funeral, and she said: “There was a lot resting on my shoulders, I think I did her proud.”
She has two daughters, Eliza, 13, from an earlier relationship, and seven-year-old Joanie, with fiance cameraman Marc Humphreys.
Joanie is tucked up by 8.30pm with Eliza following about half-anhour later. Then Natalie and Marc sit down to watch Dragons’ Den, The Apprentice or The 1% Club.
“That’s our time together.” Top of their viewing has been ITV drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office.
“After all those years of the subpostmasters being falsely accused, it took a TV programme to get it discussed in Parliament. That just shows you the power of telly,” Natalie says.
But her first love is comedy, she adds: “I like sitcoms, stand-up. I still watch repeats of Friday Night Dinner if Joanie’s not around. I also like a good quiz like University Challenge or Mastermind.”
But she dislikes shows such as 24 Hours in Police Custody or A&E. “If
‘It’s gone crazy with the rumours.
It’s sweet that people still love it’
she loves ‘White Lotus was fabulous. I also like Nordic crime dramas’ she hates ‘Dickinson’s Real Deal is old-fashioned
and boring’
ever going to be in A&E, it would be a bad experience,” Natalie says.
“Why would I want to watch something like that at home?”
Joanna has four children Eva, 13, Kit, eight, Noah, seven and Boe, two, with her actor husband James Thornton, 48.
Having settled the other three, she lies next to the twoyear-old, pops on her headphones and starts watching shows on her phone.
She said: “I’m still breastfeeding so I tend to stay in bed and watch TV on my own and leave my husband downstairs.
“I just loved the Nordic noir crime drama series, The Bridge.
“I used to watch it with James – but he’s too slow. He was forever getting me to explain what was going on.
“And White Lotus was fabulous. They’re filming a third one now, set in Thailand. I can’t wait.
“[But] I can’t watch Dickinson’s Real Deal. It’s old-fashi’m ioned and boring.” While Natalie still has her day job on the Square, there are whispers of a Gavin & Stacey reunion.
It may mean Joanna reprises her role in another Christmas special. The one in 2019 was a huge success. She said: “It’s all gone absolutely mad with those rumours and it’s so sweet and lovely that everybody still loves the show.
“But cross my heart, I honestly don’t know. I’d never ask Ruth [Jones] or James [Corden] if they’re planning on writing any more. That would look a bit sad, wouldn’t it?
“But would I do the show again? I’d absolutely jump at it.
“It was a fantastic job with a fabulous cast. We had a right laugh from start to finish.
“My children recently watched the first Christmas special which they loved.”
Even Natalie’s keen, admitting: “I asked Joanna about it and she wouldn’t tell me, but I
really hope rumours are true.”
Family viewing like The Masked Singer, Ant and Dec, and Strictly Come Dancing will make for lively discussions, especially as Natalie and Joanna both have insider knowledge.
“I was on Strictly in 2009,” recalls
Natalie.
“I loved every minute. It was the most exciting, terrifying thing
the
I’ve done. The music would strike up and there was no saliva in my mouth.”
But Joanna’s not sure about accepting an invite to join the show, saying: “They’ve asked me often enough but I was always too busy having babies.
“Now, I’d worry about the strength of my pelvic floor.”
Off the Telly is available now on BBC Sounds.