JULIA has no ambitions to follow her older sister Nadia into the cast of EastEnders

"I wouldn't like to be in it.no, no," she says. "I'm not a nine to five person and I think I'd get very irritated by the hours. But I don't look down on EastEnders. It is an institution and I take off my hat to every single member of that cast. They work so hard and don't get many perks.

"People think they're big stars but actually they're hard-working actors who get up early, work all day and go home to learn their lines.

"The only competition between Nadia and I is who is thinner than who. A few weeks ago she said to me, 'You've got thin behind my back'. But she can't even go to a restaurant now without being mobbed, while because I play lots of roles it's harder for people to recognise me. Nadia can't hide as easily and because she's very vivacious she doesn't go unnoticed in places. I love her so much. She's so bubbly. She's the most hysterical woman you could ever meet, nothing like the scheming character she plays in Eastenders.

Julia adds: "I don't try to be a glitzy actress because I can't live up to that kind of thing. My make-up's half-way round my face by the end of the evening, I'm stumbling on my heels, my back hurts and all I want is a cup of tea."