Looks like they've been up West: Shona McGarty and the Albert Square teens get a glamorous makeover in time for Christmas
By Amy Oliver
Last updated at 2:51 PM on 29th November 2011
Her character's idea of glamour is a few sneaky drinks down the Queen Vic before an emotional meltdown on Arthur's bench.
Now Shona McGarty, who plays tracksuit-loving Whitney Dean in Eastenders, has ditched chip-shop chic for show-stopping glamour after getting a sophisticated makeover in time for Christmas.
McGarty, 20, looked like she'd taken a trip 'up 'West' to purchase the stunning floor-length Grecian gown by Anoushka G, which hugged her enviable curves in all the right places.
Scrub up well: The young cast from left to right: Tony Discipline (Tyler Moon), Jacqueline Jossa (Lauren Branning), Shona McGarty (Whitney Dean), Danielle Harold (Lola Pearce) and Matt Lapinskas (Anthony Moon)
The pretty actress posed with fellow Walford cast members Danielle Harold, who plays Lola Pearce, Jacqueline Jossa, who plays Tanya and Max’s tearaway daughter Lauren Branning, Matt Lapinskas who plays Anthony Moon and Tony Discipline, who plays loveable Tyler Moon.
The young team were treated to the makeover for an exclusive shoot and interview in Now Magazine where they talk wardrobe malfunctions, red-carpet disasters and dealing with their new-found fame.
The cast posed inside the Queen's Head pub, a posh establishment in North London with gilded frames and parquet flooring - an entire universe away from the dingy Queen Vic.
McGarty, who oozed old Hollywood glamour in the shoot, revealed she 'quite likes' the attention fame brings her and even had a nice word to say about the paparazzi.
They are 'nice people who are just doing their jobs. It’s part of the job,' she said.
Lights, camera, glamour! McGarty, left, and Discipline, right, lounge in a very stylish pub - the Queen's Head
Not a tomato juice in sight: Lapinskas, left, shakes up a cocktail in style for pretty-in-pink Jossa, right
Despite her fabulous makeover, Danielle Harold, 19, who looked stunning in a floor-length cream gown by Coast and perfect up-do, hasn’t had a smooth introduction to the world of red-carpet glamour.
'I went to my first ever premier. Just before I was about to go out of the door I sat in mascara and got it all over my light grey dress,' she said.
'I scrubbed it off, but then I had watermarks all over it. If that wasn’t bad enough, I walked out the door and got my heel stuck in a grate. I spent the whole time trying to cover up the mark on my dress with my clutch. Everyone must have thought I was crazy!'
Ice queen: Danielle Harold looks stunning in a floor-length cream, strapless gown and perfect up-do - a world away from her Walford character
...And how they normally look on screen: McGarty as troubled Whitney Dean in trademark tracksuit, left, Jossa as Lauren Branning, centre, and Harold as Lola Pearce, right
New moons: Lapinskas as Anthony Moon, left, his on-screen father Eddie, played by David Essex, centre and Discipline as Tyler Moon, right
Read the full feature in Now Magazine out today
Meanwhile Jacqueline Jossa, 19, who looked pretty-in-pink taffeta also by Anoushka G, added: 'The day before the Soap Awards I got a spray tan and then tried on my dress.
'When I took it off I realised I’d covered the back of it in fake tan! I still wore it though.'
However the fan-mail she has been receiving is seemingly less appealing.
She added: 'Some once sent me a Black & Decker drill. I’ve no idea why.'
Keeping on the subject of fan-mail, Matt Lapinskas, 24, revealed: 'I get marriage proposals and people wanting my babies, but nothing really bizarre.'
But lucky for the fans, Matt’s mum is on hand. 'My mum makes sure I reply.
'I come down in the morning and she’s like: "I need this many cards signed for these people." It’s like she’s my PA.
'I’ll have to start paying her soon,' he said.
Tony Discipline, 22, also gets lots of female attention.
He said: 'Matt and I did the Radio 1 Teen Choice Awards and had 10,000 people screaming at us. It was mental. I think I wet myself.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2067603/Looks-like-theyve-West-Shona-McGarty-Albert-Square-teens-glamorous-makeover-time-Christmas.html#ixzz1f7wlL5SK