What line did Laura Doddington have to say 'about 36 times' to get right on EastEnders?
Laura Doddington has revealed what the hardest line is that she ever had to say as Nicola Mitchell in EastEnders.
Laura Doddington had to say the line "put your willies away" about "36 times" on EastEnders.
The 44-year-old actress shouted out the memorable words during a big showdown in the May 29 episode of the hit BBC soap when her alter ego Nicola Mitchell stepped in to stop a fight between her ex-husband Teddy Mitchell (Roland Manookian) and Zack Hudson (James Farrar).
Laura loved the line mocking the angry pair's raging testosterone levels but she could not get it right on the night meaning everyone had to shoot take after take until it was perfect.
Speaking exclusively to BANG Showbiz at the Inside Soap Awards in London on Monday night (29.09.25), Laura said: "The scene where I shouted, ‘Put your willies away.’ That was probably the toughest line because it was night shoot. It was really late and, just technically, little things kept going wrong.
"I shouted, ‘Put your willies away,’ about 36 times! My vocal chords started to really hurt.
"So I’d say that is the toughest to recreate that. We took a lot of takes with that, and normally, we don’t do that many.
"I loved it because I got to shout it loads of times!"
After just 10 months in EastEnders, Laura has made an impression to Inside Soap magazine's readers, resulting in her being named Best Newcomer at the ceremony.
Referring to the accolade, Laura - who joined the soap in November 2024 - said: "I'm so over the moon. I cannot explain how much of a privilege it is to win this because it's voted for by the fans, and that's just incredible.
"It blew my mind like it absolutely blew my mind, and I burst into tears.
"But it's amazing, and like I say, it's voted for by the fans, and that just means so much that they have taken to her and to my portrayal of her.
"That is just wonderful."
In the Best Newcomer category, Laura faced fierce competition from Ryan Mulvey (Brody Michaelis, Coronation Street), Bradley Riches (Lewis Barton, Emmerdale) and Zak Sutcliffe (Bobby Costello, Hollyoaks).
The category's long list featured her co-star Alice Haig (Vicki Fowler), but she did not make the top four nominees.
And Laura insisted there was no rivalry between her and Alice, 40, in the race to be crowned Best Newcomer.
She said: "No, not at all!
"I adore Alice. I sent her a text message when it first came out, and I put the [strong] arm emoji, and then I freaked out and thought, ‘Oh my God, she’ll think I meant a fight!’
"And then I left her a voice note, being like, ‘Babe, I don’t mean a fight, I [meant] like congratulations, so strong, well done!'
"So yeah, I adore her."
