Casualty Will Lily leave alone?
AS LILY TAKES HER LEAVE, CRYSTAL YU TELLS US IT’S AN EMOTIONAL EXIT FOR HER UPTIGHT ALTER EGO…
Lily has to break her own heart to leave the ED – and I had to break my own heart to leave Casualty!” We’re on the phone to Crystal Yu who, despite this sad departure, is feeling “good and excited” having recently finished filming her final scenes as frosty registrar Lily Chao. This week brings an emotional farewell for the much-loved character, as Lily and Crystal say goodbye to Casualty after four fantastic years…
So how were you feeling on your last day, Crystal?
I was attempting to be a bit Lily Chao – trying to be strong! It was my decision to leave, yet when I told the team I just cried my eyes out. I’d been offered another year on my contract, and I wanted to stay as I love Lily and I’ve loved being on Casualty.
But because we film in Cardiff and I’m based in London, I’ve been away from home for more than four years.
Did the Casualty cast and crew give you a good send-off?
Yes, I had a beautiful leaving do! So many people turned up – Rebecca Ryan, who played Iain’s sister Gemma, came all the way from Manchester. And lots of our supporting artists came from way back when we filmed in Bristol. I felt so loved!
Did you steal any Lily souvenirs before you left the show?
Well, the costume team kindly framed some of Lily’s stuff for me. But everyone at Casualty knows how much I love my food, so they organised afternoon tea at The Dorchester in London for me! Gifts aside, I learned a lot from everyone on the show – I was constantly amazed by the talent I was surrounded by.
Lily and her paramedic boyfriend Iain had finally made their romance official when his ex Sam returned to the hospital. Lily’s jealousy prompted ructions between the pair – so when she interviews for a research position in Hong Kong this week, we’re keen to know if she’s trying to escape, or waiting for Iain to beg her to stay…
Is Lily hoping that she and Iain have a future together?
Lily has probably never fallen in love in the way she’s fallen for Iain. Before, she’s always been very logical about choosing her partner – but Iain caught her off guard. With any relationship, though, it’s all about trust and openness. For the very first time, Lily is feeling really insecure.
Would Lily be prepared to give up on the research post for Iain?
She’s grown up so much over the past four years, and has learned that you can’t plan for everything. Of course, this post is everything the old Lily would have loved – the intellectual challenge, advancing her career. But there’s now a massive part of her that’s willing to let the post go if everything is working well with Iain.
We’ll have to wait to see what pans out for Lily and Iain. But while we know Lily’s off for now, would you like her to return to the ED one day?
It would be great! Lily isn’t done yet – she’s still very ambitious. She’s always wanted to be Connie, and Connie inspires her on a daily basis. So who knows, maybe one day Lily could come back for Connie’s job…
Lily has learned that you can’t plan for everything…