Death Was Shattering.

EastEnders actress Lindsey Coulson has admitted that the plot in which her screen son Billie died suddenly took her to a "horrible place".

 Lindsey, who plays Carol Jackson in the soap, told This Morning that she was "shattered" by the plotline in which the character lost Billie to alcohol poisoning.

"It was really hard to play," she said. "It's your worst nightmare isn't it, taking yourself to that place? I felt absolutely shattered by it all."

She added that it was also hard to switch off after filming had finished. "I had to go to a horrible place I didn't want to go to," the actress said. "It was quite draining and exhausting."

"Then I go home and I've got my kids," she added. "You're back to being a mum. And then you have to go and relearn other lines. I had a holiday in between all that as well, which was really strange."

Next week sees a new twist in the plot, as Carol seeks solace in the arms of Billy's teenage friend Connor.

"I thought 'Whoa!' when I read the scripts," she told Inside Soap. "I have an 18-year-old daughter, so for me it's like, don't go there.

"For her, though, this is a brief moment where she doesn't have to think about Billie's death. It's not even lovely sex - it happens in a fit of loss and grief."