Loose Women star Nadia Sawalha has opened up on a moment with late EastEnders actress June Brown, that had a "huge impact" on her.
The star spoke on the show on Tuesday following the news the Dot Cotton actress had passed away on Sunday.
Nadia spoke of a "difficult" time she was going through years earlier, when she was filming for EastEnders.
While she didn't go into detail, adding the BBC soap was a difficult job to go into, she revealed June reached out to her during her time of need.
Nadia revealed the actress found her on set and spoke to her as she was going through a tough time, with no one else knowing what to say to her.
But the panellist revealed that whatever June said to her, it had an "impact" on her at a time that she needed it the most.
Speaking to her co-stars, she explained: "My first day on EastEnders I walked in the cabin, and she was sat under the no smoking sign, smoking.
"I'd been obsessed with her since before I started the show... I froze I couldn't say anything, I still cringe about it now because I was so starstruck."
She went on: "Whenever we were at the studio I only heard Dot, occasionally in the make-up room she would talk to me as June, but if I met her in the studio she was Dot. I never saw her in her own clothes, I never saw her arrive or leave, she was incredibly quirky."
Nadia added: "She was very, very funny in real life and you never quite knew if she was taking the mick, so I was always a little bit like 'I'm not sure'.
"Then one day it was a time I was having a really difficult time. EastEnders wasn't the easiest place to go into really, and it was the grand arms like her and Barbara [Windsor] who were just so kind.
"I was going through a particularly difficult time and I think a lot of people didn't know how to approach me to talk to me about it.
"June came and found me in the make-up room, I won't say what she said, but the way she said what she said had a huge impact on me, it really did, at the time I needed it.
"She just slipped in, she gave me these few lines, she knew exactly what she was doing. She was egoless, and that as we know is very rare in our business."
Nadia added: "I haven't seen June for years but I really felt it yesterday when I heard she'd passed. I cannot imagine what it must be like for close friends and family because she was a light up the room kind of person."
Loose Women airs weekdays at 12:30pm on ITV.
