EastEnders actress shocks Bafta fans as she arrives on red carpet on crutches and in moon boot

EASTENDERS star Balvinder Sopal wore some unusual accessories on the BAFTAs red carpet.

The actress has played Suki Panesar in the BBC soap since 2020.

instagram/@leesopal

Balvinder, 45, looked incredible in a black lace midi dress which she teamed with a gold sparkly handbag.

However she was forced to ditch the high heels after suffering from a leg injury.

She was wearing a gold ballet pump on one foot and a moonboot on the other, as well as supporting herself with crutches.

She’s not revealed what happened to her leg, but she smiled at the cameras and didn’t appear to be in too much discomfort.

Balvinder has forged a gleaming career in the spotlight over the last twenty years with roles in Emmerdale, Coronation Street and Hollyoaks.

She and her castmates had high hopes for EastEnders, which was nominated for the Soaps category – but sadly they were beaten by Casualty.

It’s been an incredibly tough time for Balvinder who tragically lost her mum Nirmal in February.

She said that the BBC show had “given her strength to carry on” after her mum’s passing.

In an Instagram post, Bal credited her EastEnders family both on and off-screen for helping her through such an emotional time.

Sharing a selfie with her hair all curled and hanging round her shoulders, the star gave a small smile to the camera.

She captioned it: “One foot in front of the other….Huge props to our make-up department @bbceastenders for holding me up, making me look presentable… and giving me the strength to carry on.

“Everyone at work has been simply stunning… supportive, holding me up, and allowing me to feel what I need to in order to then get up and get the job done.

“Some days, it’s too hard and a right off. Other days, I can just about make it through, I am held.

“One foot in front of the other…And I know mum walks alongside me – even when I feel alone.

“She is there whispering, “Putt, tu tah mere strong putt ah” (Putt, you are my strong child). And so, I carry on, for mum.”

She continued: “She loved EastEnders, was a huge fan, and would read every comment on Instagram, good & bad, reading them out to me. And then she would remind me how far I had come.

“One foot in front of the other…I am also grateful to each and every one of you who have reached out, shared your own grief, and sent love from near and far. Thank you. One foot in front of the other… is all we can do.”

Bal had shared a series of sweet family snaps with her mum when she announced her passing.

She wrote in the caption at the time: “27th February 2024, 11.30pm, mum passed peacefully, with dignity & grace, just as she’d lived her whole life.

“My sister & I had settled in for the night shift at the hospital. The lads had come, spent the day, & just as the last of them left… mum passed, with me & my sister holding her hands.

“We walked mum as far as we could. It’s been hard, but I’ve never known strength like mums. I’m proud to be her daughter.”

BBC