26 February 2024 , 17:42
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EastEnders fans were wowed by Annette Badland as she took to the red carpet at the Screen Actors Guild awards in Los Angeles over the weekend.
The 73-year-old actress played Babe Smith on the BBC soap for three years - first appearing in Albert Square in 2014 and exiting the soap again in 2017. Her character was often left to wear bulky clothing, heavy knits and oversized cardigans while she starred on the down-to-earth soap.
But Annette was in Hollywood for the SAG awards where her Apple TV+ comedy show Ted Lasso was up for a number of awards. Annette plays Mae the Landlady in the hit series which is made by American comedian Jason Sudeikis.
On Saturday night, Anette joined her casemates as the show stood to win the Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series Award - but sadly lost out to chef comedy-drama The Bear. The TV star was beaming nonetheless as she arrived at the Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall in Los Angeles where the awards were hosted.
The actress wore delicate jewellery in her hair (WireImage)
Fans were blown away by Annette's glamorous red carpet appearance as she wore a dress by London fashion brand Bombshell (WireImage)She wore an ivory-coloured floor-length gown with gold detailing by London fashion brand Bombshell. She had gold jewellery in her hair that was in the shape of a tree branch with leaves, and accessories with elegant dangling earrings, a gold bangle, and a sparkly gold bag. Fans were blown away by her red carpet make-over - with many leaving messages of approval via social media.
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One fan gushed: “You look amazing…what a lady.” Another typed: “What a beauty!” And other complements ranged from calling Annette “stunning”, “beautiful” and “gorgeous” to branding her dress “exquisite”.
Later that night, Annette joined her Ted Lasso co-stars in changing into sportswear as the team celebrated being back together for the awards. The cast donned tracksuits with the fictional AFC Richmond football team and danced and drank together.
Annette played Aunt Babe Smith on EastEnders from 2014 until 2017 (BBC/Jack Barnes)Annette reflected on her audition process for the role in an interview with Metro last year. She told the publication: “I don’t think we were doing self-tapes then, so I went in and went on camera. And [afterwards] they said, ‘Yes, please‘… Jason, when I met him, said he selected me for that role because I looked into people’s eyes. I guess that isn’t always the case with people or he wanted that directness for Mae.”
While in a chat with People magazine, the former EastEnders star made gushing comments about show creator Jason, 48. She said: "What a wonderful thing he's done. It's extraordinary to have created this [show]. And to do it before COVID and then for it to land in COVID time just meant so much to people."
She also explained that all the cast pulled together to work hard and give their finest performances as they were rooting for Jason’s project to succeed. She said: "You feel he sets the bar high, and everyone wants to hurdle it. They really have such respect for the work and what we're trying to do."