EastEnders’ Lacey Turner: Building an allotment is one of the best things we’ve ever done

“I’m lucky in the sense that I stop for Christmas. I have a date and that’s when I finish work, and then I have two weeks of just family time, and that is what I really look most forward to, especially with small children,” adds Turner, who has two children with her husband, barber Matt Kay – daughter Dusty, five, and three-year-old son Trilby – and is pregnant with their third.

The actress, who lives on a small farm in Hertfordshire, recently installed an allotment and has been busy getting that sorted before winter set in. “Autumn was all about getting the outside wrapped up and getting all the bulbs in for spring, which was lovely. And now it’s getting ready for the new baby and Christmas, and also Trilby’s birthday is in the new year, so it’s quite a busy time for us,” says Turner.

“But one of my favourite things to do is decorate the front door and decorate the house – I love all of that. I could sit and do that every day, and Dusty is the same, she enjoys exactly the same things as me. She loves making things and turning things into decorations.”

Turner says moving to the countryside has been life-changing, especially when it comes to taking care of her wellbeing. “I love being outside, that is where I feel happiest and calmest. We live on a little farm, so it’s great – we moved in nearly two years ago and it’s just changed our lives, because I spend a lot of time outside and I’ve got animals, and that’s now my happy place, my self-care,” she says. “We recently built an allotment and that has been one of the best things we’ve ever done.

“Next year I am going to grow my Christmas dinner! I’m definitely not going to kill a turkey, absolutely not, but I do want to grow my veg and potatoes and everything for my Christmas dinner. For me, that is a really lovely, calming thing to do, and it’s lovely to do as a family as well.”

Another festive favourite for Turner is opting for sentimental gifts over material items. It’s why she was happy to team up with photo printing company CEWE on a campaign this festive season. “I am a very sentimental person. Every year since we’ve had children, Matt has bought me a photo book and a mug [with family photos printed on them], which is perfect for work because I’m constantly moving from studio to studio, so the same mug doesn’t stay in the same place the whole time. So I’ve got lots of mugs with the children’s faces on, and photo books of every year. To me, they are the best kind of present.”

CEWE has a range of personalised photo gifts available at cewe.co.uk