Danniella Westbrook's sad 'out of work' statement: 'If I had £500 I'd spend a million'

Former EastEnders star Danniella Westbrook has opened up on her spending habits, admitting that she was once "awful" with money. However, over the years she has picked up better habits as she urged other people to "save, save, save" as she admitted that there can be times when she finds herself "out of work".

Speaking exclusively to Express.co.uk, on behalf of casino.org, the ex Sam Mitchell star shared how landing such a big role on the BBC soap impacted her spending habits. She told us: "When I first joined EastEnders, I was good. I had an account, my agent would put my wages in, and I'd split it all up, tax, VAT, and then spending money. So I always knew exactly where I stood and how much I had. But then I started spending more, and honestly, if the money was there, I'd spend it. I was terrible for it back then. I'd be thinking, Well, there's money in the bank... what can I buy today?"

The 51-year-old, who joined the BBC programme when she was just 16, admitted: "If I had £500, I'd spend a million. I'd have spent it 12 times over before it even hit the bank."

However, she is now more savvy with her cash, as she said: "I'm not so bad now, but I really was awful with it for a while. I was working six days a week, earning more than I could actually spend, so I just didn't think about saving the way I should've. So yeah - save, save, save!

"Because there's a lot of time when you're out of work. You never know what's around the corner. Getting to 51 years old, I'd definitely say save."

Danniella entered the world of showbiz at just 16 years old. She first appeared on EastEnders for a few years at a time.

The first time was in 1990, again in 1995 and then one more time in 1999 after bosses decided to give her another chance despite her drug use causing problems on set.

The star's addiction to cocaine was so severe that her septum fell out, causing her to need reconstructive surgery. She has also appeared on I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! in 2003 and Dancing On Ice in 2010.