Nadia Sawalha says people are shocked 'Loose Women' cast get on because they're women

Nadia Sawalha has revealed "people are all shocked" that the cast of Loose Women get on because they're women — and said they'd never ask the question about male presenters.

The 57-year-old actor appeared on the first ever edition of Loose Women in 1999 and has had a second stint as a regular on the panel since 2013.

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Sawalha told Metro that rumours about behind-the-scenes turmoil among panellists are mostly untrue and said some of the cast are "great friends" while others are more like colleagues.

She said there are some co-presenters she is closer with than others and said the casting team and producers decide which panellists have better chemistry with each other.

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"The thing is, because we’re all women, people are all shocked that we get on," Sawalha said.

She added: "I remember when Judi Love first joined, she said to me: ‘Everyone keeps asking me what are they like?' I say: 'No honestly, they’re great, it’s a really great atmosphere’.

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"We’re professional people. Four men on a show would never be asked if they get on. We’d never be asked if they’re alright after they’ve had [a few words]."

Sawalha said that being on Loose Women is "like any other job" in that there are some co-workers who she spends more time with, while others are just colleagues.

Elsewhere in the interview, Sawalha discussed her positive approach on Instagram and the apparent self-confidence with which she shares warts-and-all selfies.

She said: "I have huge health anxiety and spent most of my life hiding my body away and would never dream of wearing a bikini and I just got very sick and tired of it.

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"This has been a long process over many years. It’s been really difficult to get where I am and I’m not body confident."

Sawalha rose to fame in the late 1990s for her role as Annie Palmer in EastEnders and also appeared on Casualty and The Bill.

Watch: Simon Amstell pokes fun at all-white Loose Women line-up