Michelle Ryan's EastEnders to Hollywood Bionic Woman journey
Rewind to June 2005, and it was the last time the young actress would appear on the Square after being part of some of the soap's best-known storylines – including her bid to kill Dirty Den.
National press were quick to speculate about Michelle's future, with headlines reading that she'd left EastEnders for Hollywood.
A post shared by Michelle Ryan (@michelleryan008)
At the time, Michelle was one of the soap's biggest names and bosses often hoped for her to return over the years.
Maintaining a life away from the public eye, Michelle reportedly turned down previous offers for a Zoe Slater comeback.
After her EastEnders exit, Michelle kickstarted her bid to crack America after landing the leading role in the TV show Bionic Woman.
Michelle played bartender Jaime Sommers in the show, who was saved from a car accident and had her body repaired.
However, the show was hit by the Writers Guild of America Strike in 2008, the Daily Mail reports. Production was halted after just eight episodes were filmed, and it was later axed due to low ratings.
Michelle went onto star as villain Nimueh in the first series of BBC fantasy Merlin, and guest starred in Doctor Who Special Planet Of The Dead in 2009 alongside David Tennant.
A post shared by Michelle Ryan (@michelleryan008)
Michelle has since gone on to land roles in several independent films, starring alongside The Crown's Harry Treadaway and Danny DeVito.
In 2010, Michelle joined a cast of future Hollywood favourites such as Emma Roberts in 4.3.2.1, and she also starred in the sci-fi Andron opposite Alec Baldwin in 2015.
Michelle also took to the stage alongside Will Young in a 2012 West End production of Cabaret.
When Michelle quit EastEnders in 2005 she revealed that she had got 'bored' of the role.
Recommended reading:
EastEnders' Michelle Ryan speaks of soap return 20 years on
EastEnders fans concerned BBC soap star has 'quit' after 6 years as character
EastEnders confirm BBC schedule change next week as something 'big' is coming
She told the Bristol Evening Post at the time: 'Doing the same thing day in, day out. It's just so boring. I like to jump from different things.
'I always saw EastEnders as an apprenticeship. I always wanted to go on and do different things.
'I just want to work with people I admire and respect, wherever that be – big budget, low budget, leading role, supporting role.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
15 minutes ago
- The Sun
Casualty star joins EastEnders for major new storyline – and it's bad news for the Mitchells
EASTENDERS has signed up a former Casualty star for a shocking new role - and he's going to be around for a while. The BBC soap has cast Aayan Ibikunle Shoderu as new character Okie. 2 2 The gangster made his debut earlier this week as he confronted Ravi Gulati and Harry Mitchel about the drug deal gone wrong. But after crashing Ravi's daughter's birthday party, and insulting Ravi, he ended up getting a kicking and being left with the rubbish outside of the club. Now The Sun can reveal that Okie - full name Tobias Okyere - will be back as a resident fixture in Walford. A source said: 'Okie is going to cause chaos in Walford. 'He'll really set the cat amongst the pigeons and become quite the thorn in the side for Harry and the other Mitchells. 'He's going to become a familiar face over the next few months so he's definitely one to watch out for.' The new arrival comes as EastEnders is saying goodbye to a string of characters. Last week the remaining members of the Taylor family left the Square as Bernie and Felix fled to Spain for a new life with the Panesar family money. Actors Clare Norris and Matthew James Morrison left the show after new boss Ben Wadey made sweeping changes. And in the coming months both Bobby Brazier and Molly Rainford are set to leave. The Sun revealed both Bobby had mutually decided to leave the show as Freddie Slater after three years. And Molly was keen to explore her options after deciding to leave during a meeting with show bosses.
Scottish Sun
30 minutes ago
- Scottish Sun
Near-death experience as a kid meant I had to battle my biggest fear to take part in celeb shark show, says Helen George
SHE'S best known for playing glamorous nurse Trixie Franklin on hit BBC drama Call The Midwife, but fans are about to see a very different side to Helen George. The actress, 41, will battle her deepest dread of putting her head underwater as she takes part in a radical new ITV reality show, Shark! Celebrity Infested Waters. 4 Helen George will take part in radical new ITV reality show, Shark! Celebrity Infested Waters Credit: Shutterstock Editorial 4 Helen is best known for playing glamorous nurse Trixie Franklin on hit BBC drama Call The Midwife Credit: BBC Speaking to The Sun on Sunday ahead of the first episode on ITV1 tomorrow night, Helen reveals that she developed the fear, known as aquaphobia, after experiencing a horrendous near-death experience in a swimming pool as a child. Helen said: 'I was terrified of putting my head underwater. I have a real deep-rooted fear. 'I used to love the water when I was really young, but I went to a swimming party when I was six. 'They put those weird Nineties foam mats down. They're massive yoga mats, really. 'I just remember this moment of being stuck underneath one and not being able to get out. There was that fear of being trapped. I finally made my way up to the surface. 'But I remember no one noticing that I'd gone, and no one really believing what I said, because no one had seen it. From then, I got it in my head about not putting my head underwater. 'I have a really strong image of looking up to the top of the swimming pool and the mats were on top and no one knew I was down there.' Helen confronts her fear head-on in the new five-part series, in which celebs plunge into the ocean and learn to swim with man-eating sharks, without a cage, off the island of Bimini in the Bahamas. 'It's not safe' She is thrown in at the deep end with comedian Lenny Henry, Countdown's Rachel Riley, McFly bassist Dougie Poynter, stand-up comic Ross Noble, Amandaland actress Lucy Punch and TV presenter Ade Adepitan. Mum-of-two Helen was spurred to push herself as she realised her kids Wren, seven, and three-year-old Lark were becoming more confident in the water than she was. Call The Midwife actress looks nothing like her character after glam transformation and very sexy dress She also opened up to her property developer boyfriend Dan Innes about her fear, which he had not noticed on their holidays. Helen explained: 'My kids know that I am scared of the water, and my seven-year- old is more confident in the water than I am, and I realised I've got to do something about that as it's not safe. 'I hadn't even told Dan how scared of the water I was, and he was like, 'But you got in the sea on holiday in Cornwall with me. I didn't know you were so scared'.' It's the first reality TV show Helen has been in since BBC's Strictly ten years ago. She is stepping back into the limelight two years after splitting from actor Jack Ashton, the father of her two children, who she met on Call The Midwife when he played Reverend Tom Hereward. Soon after, she grew close to her co-star Olly Rix, who was cast as her businessman husband Matthew Aylward. My kids know that I am scared of the water and my seven-year-old is more confident in the water than I am. I realised I've got to do something about that When the offer to swim with sharks came in, Helen explained that she felt compelled to take part, even if it did leave her feeling exposed. She said: 'I'm an actor, I play other people's vulnerability, so playing my own and being vulnerable on screen without make-up was hard. It's so scary. I play a character known for wearing lots of make-up, and that's her thing — so not having that to hide behind was new. 'There's no hair and make-up. I've not done reality since Strictly, which is obviously a very different beast. So revealing yourself on screen is being vulnerable.' Helen was fortunate that producers at Call The Midwife, where she has worked for 13 years, let her finish filming a week early so she could jet out to the Caribbean last autumn to tackle her fear. Helen said: 'I get asked to do all sorts of things, but no one's ever asked me to do a show with sharks. I realised it was probably never going to happen again. It did sound like an amazing premise for a show, so I couldn't turn it down. 'Hearing how mad an idea it was, I thought I had to do it. 4 The celebrities taking part in new ITV show, from left, Ade, Ross, Helen, Lenny, Lucy, Dougie and Rachel Credit: PA 4 The scary predators will get up close with celebs in new show Credit: Mediadrumimages/KenKieferII 'I had to get some time off from Call The Midwife. They kindly gave me a week off so I could make it out. 'For me, putting my head under- water was the scariest thing I could do, so the idea that sharks would be involved made it even scarier.' Before filming began, Helen confessed she almost pulled out, but she forced herself to conquer her inner critic, revealing: 'I had that feeling you get before a funeral — you know, that something bad is about to happen and you've got to face it. 'I had a few moments before I flew out where I thought, 'Oh my God, am I actually going to do this?'. 'Before our first day filming, I knew that something big was happening, and I didn't know we were going to be cage-diving with sharks on the first day, just to really throw us in at the deep end. 'I did wake that night in a panic thinking, 'What am I doing here?'.' 'I burst into tears' In the first days of the show, Helen struggled so much to immerse herself underwater that bosses almost gave her a separate snorkelling challenge. She said: 'When we were doing the training in the swimming pool, I said to everyone, 'I haven't put my head underwater for 15 to 20 years. I'm really scared of swimming'. 'I hadn't realised how bad it was and I burst into tears. It felt like everyone else was really progressing and I wasn't. So at one point, the producers were going to put me on a junior snorkelling course, instead of the actual deep-sea diving experience. 'And then I thought, 'F**k this, I want to join in with everybody else'. 'It wasn't a big, beautiful moment that I'd imagined, where I saw a beautiful fish and I wanted to swim. 'It was more I felt like I was being left behind and I wouldn't have the same experience as my friends. 'When we were training in the swimming pool, I said to everyone, 'I'm really scared of swimming'. I hadn't realised how bad it was and I burst into tears' 'I had to put my big girl pants on and get on with it, or I was going to miss out on these incredible experiences.' Helen added: 'We kept hearing gossip from the crew that we might swim with dolphins, but I think they were dangling a carrot. We never saw a single dolphin!'
The Sun
36 minutes ago
- The Sun
Near-death experience as a kid meant I had to battle my biggest fear to take part in celeb shark show, says Helen George
SHE'S best known for playing glamorous nurse Trixie Franklin on hit BBC drama Call The Midwife, but fans are about to see a very different side to Helen George. The actress, 41, will battle her deepest dread of putting her head underwater as she takes part in a radical new ITV reality show, Shark! Celebrity Infested Waters. 4 Speaking to The Sun on Sunday ahead of the first episode on ITV1 tomorrow night, Helen reveals that she developed the fear, known as aquaphobia, after experiencing a horrendous near-death experience in a swimming pool as a child. Helen said: 'I was terrified of putting my head underwater. I have a real deep-rooted fear. 'I used to love the water when I was really young, but I went to a swimming party when I was six. 'They put those weird Nineties foam mats down. They're massive yoga mats, really. 'I just remember this moment of being stuck underneath one and not being able to get out. There was that fear of being trapped. I finally made my way up to the surface. 'But I remember no one noticing that I'd gone, and no one really believing what I said, because no one had seen it. From then, I got it in my head about not putting my head underwater. 'I have a really strong image of looking up to the top of the swimming pool and the mats were on top and no one knew I was down there.' Helen confronts her fear head-on in the new five-part series, in which celebs plunge into the ocean and learn to swim with man-eating sharks, without a cage, off the island of Bimini in the Bahamas. 'It's not safe' She is thrown in at the deep end with comedian Lenny Henry, Countdown's Rachel Riley, McFly bassist Dougie Poynter, stand-up comic Ross Noble, Amandaland actress Lucy Punch and TV presenter Ade Adepitan. Mum-of-two Helen was spurred to push herself as she realised her kids Wren, seven, and three-year-old Lark were becoming more confident in the water than she was. Call The Midwife actress looks nothing like her character after glam transformation and very sexy dress She also opened up to her property developer boyfriend Dan Innes about her fear, which he had not noticed on their holidays. Helen explained: 'My kids know that I am scared of the water, and my seven-year- old is more confident in the water than I am, and I realised I've got to do something about that as it's not safe. 'I hadn't even told Dan how scared of the water I was, and he was like, 'But you got in the sea on holiday in Cornwall with me. I didn't know you were so scared'.' It's the first reality TV show Helen has been in since BBC's Strictly ten years ago. She is stepping back into the limelight two years after splitting from actor Jack Ashton, the father of her two children, who she met on Call The Midwife when he played Reverend Tom Hereward. Soon after, she grew close to her co-star Olly Rix, who was cast as her businessman husband Matthew Aylward. My kids know that I am scared of the water and my seven-year-old is more confident in the water than I am. I realised I've got to do something about that When the offer to swim with sharks came in, Helen explained that she felt compelled to take part, even if it did leave her feeling exposed. She said: 'I'm an actor, I play other people's vulnerability, so playing my own and being vulnerable on screen without make-up was hard. It's so scary. I play a character known for wearing lots of make-up, and that's her thing — so not having that to hide behind was new. 'There's no hair and make-up. I've not done reality since Strictly, which is obviously a very different beast. So revealing yourself on screen is being vulnerable.' Helen was fortunate that producers at Call The Midwife, where she has worked for 13 years, let her finish filming a week early so she could jet out to the Caribbean last autumn to tackle her fear. Helen said: 'I get asked to do all sorts of things, but no one's ever asked me to do a show with sharks. I realised it was probably never going to happen again. It did sound like an amazing premise for a show, so I couldn't turn it down. 'Hearing how mad an idea it was, I thought I had to do it. 4 'I had to get some time off from Call The Midwife. They kindly gave me a week off so I could make it out. 'For me, putting my head under- water was the scariest thing I could do, so the idea that sharks would be involved made it even scarier.' Before filming began, Helen confessed she almost pulled out, but she forced herself to conquer her inner critic, revealing: 'I had that feeling you get before a funeral — you know, that something bad is about to happen and you've got to face it. 'I had a few moments before I flew out where I thought, 'Oh my God, am I actually going to do this?'. 'Before our first day filming, I knew that something big was happening, and I didn't know we were going to be cage-diving with sharks on the first day, just to really throw us in at the deep end. 'I did wake that night in a panic thinking, 'What am I doing here?'.' 'I burst into tears' In the first days of the show, Helen struggled so much to immerse herself underwater that bosses almost gave her a separate snorkelling challenge. She said: 'When we were doing the training in the swimming pool, I said to everyone, 'I haven't put my head underwater for 15 to 20 years. I'm really scared of swimming'. 'I hadn't realised how bad it was and I burst into tears. It felt like everyone else was really progressing and I wasn't. So at one point, the producers were going to put me on a junior snorkelling course, instead of the actual deep-sea diving experience. 'And then I thought, 'F**k this, I want to join in with everybody else'. 'It wasn't a big, beautiful moment that I'd imagined, where I saw a beautiful fish and I wanted to swim. 'It was more I felt like I was being left behind and I wouldn't have the same experience as my friends. 'When we were training in the swimming pool, I said to everyone, 'I'm really scared of swimming'. I hadn't realised how bad it was and I burst into tears' 'I had to put my big girl pants on and get on with it, or I was going to miss out on these incredible experiences.' Helen added: 'We kept hearing gossip from the crew that we might swim with dolphins, but I think they were dangling a carrot. We never saw a single dolphin!'
