HOLLYOAKS actress Stephanie Waring has admitted that she’s ‘worried about paying the bills,’ after her axing from the soap.
She played the role of Cindy Cunningham - one of the longest-running characters on the serial drama - for nearly three decades.
Steph, 46, made her first appearance in Hollyoaks all the way back in October 1996, just one year after the soap's inception.
She has stuck with the Channel 4 show for 28 years through major storylines.
Cindy was first introduced in 1995 and was the only original character that was included in the massive cull of 20 cast members.
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Although she has been given assurances by producers that her character will not be killed off.
This was after the long-running show was cut to just three episodes per week on sister channel E4 and YouTube.
In an exclusive interview with The Sun, the actress has spoken out for the first time since the dramatic announcement.
Steph said: "I did expect more loyalty after almost three decades."
The blonde bombshell has been forced to think about the financial implications of losing her job of over 20 years.
She explained: "We’re just normal people who happen to be on the telly, we still have all pressures of paying the bills - so I won’t be taking time out."
The soap star also opened up on the exact moment bosses told her she will be written out of the show.
Steph admitted the news was somewhat unexpected and admitted that she "didn't take it well" and broke down in the meeting.
“Part of me was thinking ‘I’ve just signed a year-long contract, surely it won’t be me’. Everyone was telling me I would be fine as I’m an original character," she revealed.
“In the meeting they read from a script and a tear fell from my eye because I could just feel it in the room.
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"They got to the end and said ‘And with that, we will be losing Cindy from the show’. I just kept saying ‘I don’t understand’. I was very distraught, I didn’t take it well - I was probably the most dramatic person they told.
"I just kept telling them ‘I’m an original character’. I was clutching at anything - telling them ‘but I was the first person to give birth on the show!’ I could see the distress I was causing them because they were upset that I was so upset."
Steph added: “I just left and cried uncontrollably.
“I went into make-up and I fell into two of my co-star's arms who held me as I sobbed until I calmed down a bit."
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