When news broke in the summer that Karen Taylor would be leaving EastEnders towards the end of the year, the actress who plays her, Lorraine Stanley, took to Instagram to share her sadness.
‘Thank you to Daran Little for creating the Taylors and to the BBC for giving me the opportunity to play such a fabulous character,’ she wrote.
‘I’ll be sad to be saying goodbye to Karen Taylor and will miss all the cast and crew at EastEnders.’
Fans and co-stars alike were quick to express their support and love for Lorraine and she said, ‘your kind words of support have been amazing!!! I’m going to miss my Taylor/Baker famalam Clair Norris, Danny Walters, Roger Griffiths and Matthew Morrison. Much love.’
She also thanked co-star Gillian Wright, who plays Jean Slater, for a special gift. ‘I love my hat you made @therealgillianwright. It’s so warm and cosy and fits perfectly,’ she said.
Lorraine stated that she was excited about her post-EastEnders life, saying ‘I’m looking forward to my next chapter and excited about being a jobbing Actor again & starting new ventures.’
It seems that she’s taking steps to get into that new life, having embarked on a new fitness regime.
Working with her friend, personal trainer Louise Appel, Lorraine posted some snaps on her Instagram stories showing herself kitted out in gym gear and looking toned and healthy – a far cry from her frumpy character Karen.
‘I’m feeling fantastic!!!’ she captioned the pictures, adding ‘#fitat40something #weighttrainingforwomen #igotthis.’
We still don’t know exactly how Karen will exit the show, but in coming episodes it looks like the lies that she and Keanu Taylor (Danny Walters) concocted about the recent ‘kidnap’ of Albie will come back to bite them.
Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean) currently remains unaware Albie’s disappearance was orchestrated by Keanu, Karen and her brother-in-law Malcolm, who looked after Albie while the ordeal unfolded.
With Karen worried that Sharon will find out the truth about Albie’s kidnap, things are set to get even more complicated as Malcolm turns up to a birthday party that Mitch Baker (Roger Griffiths) organises for Karen at the Vic – and Albie seems strangely comfortable and happy in his company.
Could Malcolm be about to spill the beans to Sharon?
A number of theories have been flying around about Karen’s eventual exit.
While some believe she may be killed off, others wonder if she may leave the Square broken hearted. After all, her son Keanu is at the top of many fans’ list of suspects to be killed off at Christmas.
