EastEnders’ Stacey Fowler will be forced to give birth to her baby daughter early.
The brunette hairdresser will be rushed into hospital this week after she suffers a seizure – brought on by the potentially-fatal pregnancy condition pre-eclampsia – following a blazing row with Carmel Kazemi (Bonnie Langford), and doctors are given no choice but to deliver her baby prematurely as both of their lives are at risk.
Lacey Turner – who plays Stacey – told Inside Soap magazine: "What happens is really serious – Stacey and the baby’s lives are at risk. It’s a big shock as her health deteriorates with no warning and that’s really frightening for everyone …
"I think a combination of things contribute to what happens. Stacey’s been doing too much and has been under so much pressure – she’s got two little kids, she’s heavily pregnant, Martin’s been in prison and now all of this with Carmel has sent her blood pressure sky high. When she gets to hospital, they find out Stacey has pre-eclampsia, which is responsible for bringing on the seizure. The doctors make it clear that Stacey’s baby needs to be delivered as soon as possible, both for her sake and their child’s."
However, although Stacey manages to make it through her emergency C-Section, it’s touch-and-go for her baby daughter as she’s rushed to intensive care.
Pressure between Stacey and her husband Martin Fowler (James Bye) then mounts as the brunette beauty refuses to see her baby out of fear that she won’t survive.
Lacey explained: "To be honest, she’s just so exhausted and hazy from the seizure that she’s only really hearing snippets of what the doctor and Martin are talking about. Stacey’s biggest fear is that the baby won’t survive – and I think she’d rather the baby lived instead of her if it came to it. She goes into a major panic."