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Former EastEnders actress Carol Harrison claims she had "suicidal thoughts" after suffering a breakdown due to bosses at the BBC soap being what she describes as "ageist" and "misogynistic".

The 65-year-old played Tiffany Mitchell's mum Louise Raymond on EastEnders between 1998 and 1999, until she was written out after Tiffany's death.

Now, following June Brown's exit as Dot Cotton, Carol has spoken out against the BBC soap and claimed she was left feeling suicidal due to the way she was treated.

The British star said: "I was told, 'We don’t care about women over 40. They are not our audience. There is no interest in them.'

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"It left me shocked at how ageist and misogynistic they were. They told me to just get on with it and be grateful."

At the time, her character Louise was 40, but Carol says she had lines which made her sound "ancient", such as: "Underneath my clothes my body's not what it was."

Louise also had an affair with Tiffany's husband Grant Mitchell, who was 35 at the time, yet made a disparaging comment about Louise's age.

After feeling unhappy, Carol says she had seven meetings with soap executives but she was left feeling "ill" as their relationship became "toxic".

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She added to The Mirror: "I was working 7am to 7pm and had my little boy Alfie and husband Jamie. I'd go home and cry.

"There were a couple of times on set when I blacked out. I put on weight and my GP said my thyroid was acting up, probably due to stress. Then I read I was to be written out."

Carol says she lost all of her confidence after she was written out, and following the breakdown of her marriage in 2000.

She continued: "I did have suicidal thoughts but never let them go beyond that."

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Since then, Carol has studied a two-year MA in scriptwriting and written plays that have toured the UK and appeared on the West End.

She's happier than ever after remarrying in 2006 and returning to acting on stage show The Thunder Girls, which also stars Corrie icon Beverley Callard and Loose Women's Coleen Nolan.

Daily Star Online has contacted representatives for EastEnders for comment.

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