The name Jessie Wallace is synonymous to EastEnders
fans with the feisty, animal print wearing Kat Mitchell,
but what if we told you that wasn’t the actress’ real name?
It’s not uncommon for soap stars to use a stage name –
and often it can be quite a radical change!
Coronation Street’s Georgia Taylor, who has played Toyah Habeeb since 1997, is actually called Claire Jackson, whilst her co-stars Simon Gregson and Jane Danson have made minor tweaks from their birth names, Simon Gregory and Jane Dawson.
EastEnders legend Jessie, 52, took to Instagram last year to repost a story from a friend, which revealed her former name.
The picture was a cutting from a 1985 copy of The Guardian, with Jessie smiling alongside three friends.
The caption described the experience as a ‘very random day being in The Guardian newspaper’, with Jessie adding thatit was a ‘trippy day’, with a laughing emoji.
Beneath the photo, the actress was labelled as her birth name: Karen Wallis.
Viewers of the BBC One soap will of course know Jessie better by her stage name, after 24 years on our screens.
Iconic scenes which saw Kat reveal that she was the mother of Zoe Slater made Jessie a household name, with her performance in the role over the years winning her numerous awards.
