CASUALTY has signed up a former EastEnders and Death in Paradise star as a new face in Holby ED.
The star also brings real-life experience relating to the NHS to the role.
Kellie Shirley has been cast as new addition Psych Liaison Nurse Sophia Peters, joining as the medical drama begins a new storyline called Storm Damage.
Speaking to Express.co.uk, Kellie shared her family’s real-life connection to the NHS ahead of her new role.
She revealed: "My mum worked for the NHS for 30 years. My grandma worked to the end for the NHS. My mother-in-law worked for the NHS...
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"It feels like a really perfect fit to play a part that I can bring a tiny bit of authenticity to.
“And also, in between acting jobs, I worked at King's in London and Lewisham hospital neuro wards, and so I could try to feed in a little bit of my work downtime as an actor so that's been quite nice.”
Although Kellie’s first on-screen appearance as Sophia will air this Saturday (June 15), she has been working on the show for some time.
However, while the actress needed to keep the Casualty casting a secret, she admitted to letting one or two people know to get their help with the role.
This includes her own mother, who works as a nurse, with Kellie asking her for advice about the scripts.
She went on to describe her mother as a "mentor" in this respect by wanting to bring as much authenticity as possible to the role.
Kellie also mentioned a fellow parent from her childrens' school, who has a similar job to her new character.
This person was also a resource to ensure Kellie was portraying Sophia correctly, by double checking details about the story.
Upon her arrival at the ED, Sophia is set to clash with fan favourite Dylan Keogh (William Beck).
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Previously, the actress played Carly Wicks, daughter of EastEnders icon Shirley Carter (Linda Henry).
She joined the BBC soap in 2006 and left two years later, but returned for a guest appearance in 2012.
In 2021, the 42-year-old landed a role in hit crime drama Death in Paradise, playing smuggler Pamela Bellman.
She noted the happy coincidence of many Death in Paradise crew members now working on Casualty.
Casualty is on BBC One on Saturday nights with previous episodes available on BBC iPlayer.
This week (Saturday June 15) Casualty will move to BBC Two for one night only.
