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Michelle Collins has announced she’s stepping back from EastEnders next month, but it’s not because Cindy Beale has run out of drama. Instead, the actress is taking on an exciting, yet nerve-wracking, new challenge: playing Marilyn Monroe in a darkly comic one-woman show at the Edinburgh Festival.
Michelle, 62, revealed that she’s swapping Albert Square’s scheming for the glitz and heartbreak of Motorhome Marilyn, a play inspired by a real-life encounter she had years ago. The production, which she describes as “Shirley Valentine meets the Coen Brothers meets Blanche DuBois,” explores the story of a Monroe-obsessed actress grappling with her inability to live up to the screen icon’s fame and beauty.
“It’s been years in the making so I can’t wait to get it out there,” she told The Mirror. “But I’m very nervous. It’s one of the most terrifying things I’ve done.”
Michelle admitted that while she loves playing Cindy, one of soap’s greatest baddies, the role can take its toll.
“It’s exhausting being a b***h all the time,” she joked.
She also shared that she’s carrying the script with her everywhere she goes in preparation for her solo stage debut.
“My lines are in my handbag everywhere I go,” she said with a laugh.
Collins, who returned to EastEnders last year after a 25-year absence, said the idea for the show came from a chance meeting with a woman known as “Motorhome Marilyn.”
“She was this fascinating, tragic figure, a woman who styled herself after Monroe, living in a motorhome, with all the glamour but none of the success,” she explained.
The play delves into themes of ageing, fame, and the harsh realities of chasing stardom in an unforgiving industry. For Michelle, it’s an opportunity to stretch her craft beyond soap operas and take audiences on a poignant journey.
Fans of EastEnders need not panic, Cindy Beale will be back in Walford after the festival run. But for now, Michelle says she’s throwing everything into the stage role.
“I wanted to do something that scared me,” she admitted. “And this definitely does.”
Motorhome Marilyn debuts at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe this August, promising a night of dark comedy, heartbreak, and one of Britain’s most versatile actresses at her most daring.
