Wadia’s Character Intended To Be The New Pauline
EastEnders star Nina Wadia has revealed that her character was intended to be the new Pauline Fowler.
Wadia who plays the matriarch of the Masood family, Zainab, in the Walford soap explained how her character was earmarked as the soap’s new matiarch from the outset.
“That was in my brief on my first day: Zainab is the Pauline Fowler of the Square. I felt they were big shoes to fill and I was very nervous of that description of her, but it’s a huge compliment in a way” she revealed to The Daily Record.
Wadia joined the soap in 2007 making her first appearance in July, she was joined by actress Zahra Ahmadi playing her daughter Shabnam and later by actors Nitin Ganatra and Himesh Patel who play Masood father and son Masood and Tamwar respectively. Ahmadi left the soap last year but the rest of the family are still going strong and were recently joined by newcomer Marc Elliot who plays the eldest Masood offspring Syed.
In February, Wendy Richard, who played Pauline Fowler between 1985 and 2006, passed away during a third battle with cancer.