Nicola Stapleton (Mandy Salter) returning

[Perdita]

MANDY Salter makes an explosive return to EastEnders when she escapes from her pimp - with unlikely hero Ian Beale's help.
The Walford wild child makes her dramatic comeback to the soap after 17 years away from the soap later this year.

As TV Biz revealed last week, troubled Mandy - played by Nicola Stapleton - will appear on screens as a stripper in her first scene back on the BBC1 show.

And unlucky-in-love Ian Beale - who will resort to kerb-crawling in a future storyline - is stunned to see Mandy in a fight with her pimp after leaving a strip club.

After she spots the businessman, played by Adam Woodyatt, he comes to her defence and tries to break up the brawl.

But while acting as her knight in shining armour he gets punched in the stomach by the pimp.

After Mandy knees him in the groin, she drags Ian away and they make a quick getaway in his car.

Mandy left the soap in 1994 a few weeks after her boyfriend Aidan Brosnan, played by Sean Maguire, went back to Ireland.

Since then, actress Nicola, 36, has appeared in Bad Girls, The Bill and Casualty, as well as Emmerdale and Hollyoaks.

Announcing her return to Albert Square, an EastEnders spokesman said: "Mandy's grown up a bit but she's still fun, chaotic and wild - with a spiteful streak.

"She is a manipulative force of nature, so it's likely that she'll be causing trouble for at least one of Walford's residents."

Insiders say Mandy - whose exes include Ricky Butcher, who she bedded in a one-night stand - is set to get her nails into the men of the square.

Nicola has previously claimed that she has been asked to return several times before but never felt ready.



Read more: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage...#ixzz1SWUI8iqO

[Perdita]

EastEnders returnee Nicola Stapleton has teased that Mandy Salter's Albert Square comeback will have a big impact on Ian Beale.

Stapleton announced that she had signed up to reprise her role as Mandy earlier in the summer, 17 years after her last appearance in Walford.

Tabloid reports have since revealed details of Mandy's return plot, which will apparently see Ian (Adam Woodyatt) visit a lap-dancing club and spot her working as a stripper.

Subsequent scenes are expected to show Ian vowing to help Mandy turn her life around, offering her a place to stay.

Speaking of the plot for the first time, Stapleton told TV Times: "Mandy has got her eye on every man in the Square - but with Ian it's just a friendship.

"She lifts his spirits and has a big effect on his life."

EastEnders bosses have billed Mandy as a "manipulative force of nature", tipping her to cause a stir in Walford with her "fun, chaotic and wild" personality.

[tammyy2j]

Maybe a mod could please rename thread to - Nicola Stapleton (Mandy Salter) returning

[Perdita]

Nicola Stapleton has expressed delight over her return to EastEnders, revealing that she is excited over future plans for her character.

The actress recently reprised her role as Mandy Salter, who will head back to Albert Square later this month after 17 years away.

Viewers will learn that Mandy is working as a stripper in her EastEnders comeback episode, before Ian Beale offers her a place to stay, vowing to help her turn her life around.

Speaking to All About Soap about her EastEnders return, Stapleton explained: "I never said I'd never come back to the show and I always thought that Mandy would pop her head back up at some point. But as the years went on, I began to think it was a bit less likely, so I'm thrilled we've been able to make it happen."

"EastEnders does take over your life, but when we discussed the things they had in store for Mandy, I got really excited," she continued.

Stapleton hinted that there could be some intrigue surrounding how Mandy has spent her time since departing Walford in 1994.

"Because we haven't seen her for so long, we don't really know what she's been doing - it's a mystery to be revealed further down the line," she said. "Now she's in her 30s, she's a bit older and wiser but still only relies on herself. She's the sort of person who uses what she's got to get by."

EastEnders airs Mandy's return on Monday, August 29 on BBC One.

[Perdita]

EastEnders returnee Nicola Stapleton has explained why Ian Beale becomes a saviour for her character Mandy Salter in a forthcoming story.

Mandy will be back on screens later this month after 17 years away from Albert Square and she has been tipped to immediately feature in a plotline alongside Ian, played by Adam Woodyatt.

As first reported last month, Mandy comes face-to-face with Ian while she is working as a lapdancer in a strip club, before heading back to Walford when he offers her a place to stay and help turning her life around.

Discussing why Ian wants to assist Mandy, Stapleton told Soaplife: "I think this is the most exciting thing that has happened to Ian in a long time. There's banter between them and she has a real energy that lifts his spirits. They have fun and Ian agrees to put her up."

Meanwhile, asked whether Mandy has any family, the actress replied: "Not that we know of at the moment… When we meet her she's very much on her own living hand-to-mouth. I think there's a part of her that wants to be maternal as she gets on really well with Bobby, who becomes her little mate."

Stapleton recently ruled out a romance for Mandy and Ian, promising that the relationship will be "just a friendship".

[lizann]

Is she Lola's mum?

[alan45]

Eastenders actress Nicola Stapleton has revealed that her villainous character Mandy Salter will remain in Albert Square until 2012.

Teenage tearaway Mandy garnered a reputation as one of the BBC soap's most hated characters during her original stint on the show between 1992 and 1994.

Speaking ahead of her return to Eastenders on Monday, Stapleton said that although Mandy is older, she has not grown out of her desire to "shake things up".

"She dresses very skimpily and uses her body to get what she wants," the 37-year-old told The Sun. "She's very minxy and incredibly flirty. I'll be here at least until some time next year, so I've got plenty of time to shake things up."

Stapleton explained that she agreed to return to Eastenders during filming of the show's live 25th anniversary special in February 2010, when executive producer Bryan Kirkwood left her "buzzing" with excitement over proposed plots for Mandy - including one that sees her start an affair with a young Walford resident.

"It had been discussed before but as soon as Bryan Kirkwood started telling me all these storylines he wanted to do with Mandy, I was buzzing," she recalled. "She does toy with one of the younger boys."

[Perdita]

EastEnders wild child Mandy Salter is set to rival Janine Butcher as the femme fatale of Albert Square.

Nicola Stapleton, who returns to the soap this weekend after 17 years away, told Inside Soap her character could challenge Janine as the main bad girl of the show.

She said: "There could be a clash! Those two haven't seen each other for so long, but I think there'll be a bit of sniping.

"Charlie [Brooks, who plays Janine] is brilliant, so I hope to get some good stuff for us both."

Teenage runaway Mandy - Sam Mitchell's best friend and Ricky Butcher's ex - will make a dramatic re-entrance, bumping into Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt) outside a strip club.

Nicola revealed she has remained friends with Sid Owen, who plays Ricky, during her 17 years away from Albert Square

She said: "I've always kept in touch with Sid. We were in Bad Girls together when he played Donny Kimber, a prison guard who had an affair with my character.

"And I still see Sean Maguire, when he's in London. He works in Los Angeles, but I bumped into him at a casting recently."

[alan45]

EastEnders' mischievous blonde Mandy Salter uses some sexy lingerie to keep Ian Beale under her thumb in an upcoming episode.

Mandy (Nicola Stapleton) finds herself competing for Ian's attention in the coming days, as his daughter Lucy (Hetti Bywater) is keen to spend time with him following her recent return to Albert Square.


© BBC


When Ian (Adam Woodyatt) senses that there is tension between his daughter and his fiancée, he sits Lucy down for a chat and promises that they can enjoy some quality time together - just the two of them.

However, when Mandy finds out about this, she isn't happy and hopes the lingerie will be enough to make Ian stay at home with her.

Will Ian keep his promise to Lucy, or will he be swayed by jealous Mandy?

EastEnders airs these scenes on Friday, February 3 at 8pm on BBC One.

[alan45]

EastEnders bosses have announced that Mandy Salter's mother Lorraine will be returning to Albert Square next month.

Former Bad Girls star Victoria Alcock has been cast in the role of Lorraine, who turns up in Walford after receiving a message from scheming Lucy Beale.

Lucy (Hetti Bywater) gets suspicious in upcoming episodes when she catches Mandy sending secret texts and pawning a bracelet that Ian (Adam Woodyatt) has bought her to send the money to someone.

The mischievous teenager decides that Mandy (Nicola Stapleton) must be having an affair, so she gets hold of the number and arranges to meet the 'mystery man' on the Square.

However, Lucy is soon left stunned when she realises that there is no secret admirer - and she has inadvertently brought Mandy's mother to Walford.


© Ken McKay/Rex Features


© BBC

Pictured left: Victoria Alcock (Lorraine). Pictured right: Nicola Stapleton (Mandy).

EastEnders' long-term viewers will already know Lorraine as she previously appeared on screen in 1991 and 1992. Back then, she was played by Linda Henry - who now portrays Walford's Shirley Carter.

When fans last saw Lorraine, she was a bad mother who allowed Mandy to run wild on the streets. Her return scenes will show that she remains a brash character and certainly hasn't grown up.

Speaking of her new role, Alcock commented: "I am absolutely thrilled to be joining the cast of EastEnders and am looking forward to working with my good friends Linda Henry and Nicola Stapleton again. I can't wait to see people's reaction when Lorraine arrives on the Square!"

Lorraine will appear in a few episodes in February before returning for another short stint later in the year.