Amanda Mealing reveals whether Connie’s crop cut is a wig or the real thing
There is so much to love about Connie Beauchamp’s (played by Amanda Mealing) return to Holby ED. The one-liners and put-downs, the way her sheer presence makes the temperature drop in a room and how, when she casts a scathing eye across the ED, Rash looks like a rabbit who’s been caught in the flashlight of a poacher’s torch!
High on Connie’s to-do list on her return in tomorrow's episode is opening a new trauma theatre, putting Rash through his paces, and she’s also intent in making Ethan pay for… well, we’re not exactly sure what – not reciprocating her feelings? Seeing her when she was vulnerable? Either way, it all makes for great Casualty drama.
There is one topic that’s firmly off the agenda, however. ED clinical lead Connie does not want to talk about her near-fatal cancer trauma with her colleagues. And that includes her short new haircut, no doubt a result of the intensive cancer treatment the character received recently. With many Casualty fans speculating online whether Amanda Mealing actually cut her hair in real life for Connie’s return, we asked the star about Connie’s hair-raising return.
Here Amanda Mealing tells What’s on TV the secret to Connie’s crop cut…
“I did think about cutting my hair but it’s halfway down my back and I thought, I just can’t. So I’m wearing a wig. It’s very clever the way they do it. My hair is braided to my head and then, because it’s so long, they swirl the rest of the plait and pin it tightly to my head. Then they put the wig on,” reveals Amanda Mealing, who plays the much-loved Casualty character.
“All those times I thought I should cut my hair, well I can now have short hair during the day and long hair in the evening, it’s great!”
Amanda Mealing is the ambassador of UK charity Breast Cancer Care and has previously spoken about her personal experiences in order to highlight the complexity of recovering from cancer.
She returns to Casualty as Connie Beauchamp on Saturday on BBC1.
