EastEnders star Cheryl Fergison details falling for younger Moroccan man in new book

Cheryl Fergison fell for her Moroccan toyboy over Skype after his daring five-word response.

Achieving stardom as the often unlucky Heather Trott in EastEnders, Cheryl Fergison's own life could give any Albert Square storyline a run for its money.

Now, nearing her 60th birthday, her explosive memoir, Behind The Scenes, offers a frank glimpse into her most unforgettable experiences - including her initial encounter with Moroccan spouse Yassine el Jamouni.

The 39-year-old is Cheryl's junior by 21 years, and she developed feelings for him through online conversations. Yassine, or Yas, as Cheryl came to call him "was warm, funny and endlessly curious."

"I was a 45-year-old single mum, divorced and juggling work with caring for my kid," Cheryl wrote. "He was 24 and living in a suburb in Agadir, Morocco, he fixed computers in hotels, spoke Arabic, French and German and was teaching himself English from tourists, telly, music and now... me.

"I was basically his human Duolingo, and we started typing to each other late into the night."

Their digital bond developed gradually, with him sharing photographs of himself alongside his relatives, reports the Mirror.

"Of course I was struck by his handsome brooding looks with caramel skin and artful stubble, but the chat also felt innocent," Cheryl, in EastEnders at the time, said. "Soon, we were messaging every single day.

"I would race home from the set after a long day filming, eager to see if Yas had written and there it would be: a little flurry of messages like modern-day love letters, all waiting to be opened."

Wary of revealing too much about herself, her reluctance only sparked Yas's intrigue further.

Cheryl writes: "His next message popped up a second later: 'I don't understand. Are you in MI5?' I howled. The thought of me sneaking about in a trench coat with a handgun, drinking matinis and defusing bombs between takes on Albert Square was so ridiculous."

After eventually admitting to being a "larger lady," with trust issues, she began opening up to the dashing Moroccan and they moved on to nightly Skype audio calls. Cheryl was genuinely falling for Yas.

She writes: "He started signing off each call with: 'Goodnight beautiful.' And one night, just before hanging up, he said it, 'I think I love you.' I whispered it back, heart thudding, 'I think I love you too.'".

Her emotions continued to intensify until, closing her laptop one evening some time later, she resolved: "I'm going to meet this man."

And that was how she ended up at Gatwick Airport, being spotted by EastEnders fans, as she waited for a flight to Casablanca, Morocco, where she would catch a 35-minute transfer to Yas's hometown of Agadir.

Upon arrival, the nerves began to kick in. She writes: "My heart started to pound. I can't breathe. I can't breathe. What am I doing here?".

"You've flown to a country you've never been to before, to meet a man you've never seen in person and you don't even speak the language. Are you completely mad?"

"I looked around for Yas, but I couldn't see him anywhere. I fumbled for my bottle of water in my bag, hands shaking, when my trusty battered black case with the purple ribbon tied to the handle toppled over with a thud.

"I bent to grab it, another hand reached down at the same time. It was his hand, Yas's hand. And there he was."

Just months later, she recalls Yas telling her: "'I knew the second I saw you, Cheryl. That you were my future wife and that I was going to marry you.'".

And when she eventually accepted his proposal and told her EastEnders pal Steve McFadden, she writes: "Steve gave a low chuckle and stood up to pull me into one of his trademark bear hugs. 'Blimey,' he said, giving me a squeeze, 'it only took you going halfway across the world to find a bloke....You'd better tell the scriptwriters then.

"Heather Trott getting a Moroccan husband might be the best storyline they've had in years!'"

However, their nuptials on 2 May, 2011, were far from fairy-tale material.

She writes: "It was the worst wedding I've ever been to. It was just me and Yas in a register office in Agadir. It was a small, tiled room that honestly felt about the size of a public toilet. The bloke marrying us looked like the spitting image of Mr Bean. Married in a tiled toilet by a Moroccan version of Mr Bean. Only my life, honestly!"

In 2015, Cheryl was diagnosed with cancer of the womb and told she needed a hysterectomy.

She writes: "The doctor came in, closed the door gently behind him and gave me that look. 'Cheryl,' he said softly, 'I'm really sorry. It's not good news. You have cancer. Stage II womb cancer.'".

"It felt like a soap storyline, like I was watching myself on an episode of EastEnders.

"My first thought was, am I going to die?' My second, how do I tell Alex? Then Yas popped into my head. He was in Morocco. What would he say? Would he want me when he knew kids were totally off the table?".

"I wanted to scream, 'Why me?'" I wanted the director to yell 'cut' and for the scene to be over and for me to be able to walk off set. But somewhere underneath all the shock and sadness, something flickered deep inside. I'd been knocked down before and every single time I'd stood back up. I could do it again."

Cheryl was thrust into an early menopause by her hysterectomy and she endured some tragicomic episodes that many menopausal women will recognise. In one instance, she put her house keys in the microwave by accident.