The former EastEnders actress talks about her childhood days on Brighton beach and her love of the Norfolk coast

I was born in Hove in the ’70s and some of my earliest and happiest memories are of that pebble beach. Brighton and Hove were a little wilder back then – not quite the busy, polished places they are today. I can still picture that hot summer of ’76, the little beach huts, my first ice creams and my childhood dog, Tara, racing across the stones. We lived in a small flat, so that stretch of beach felt like freedom – endless, expansive and completely magical to a child.

Samantha Womack -Photo Credit Michelle George

These days, the coastline that speaks most deeply to my soul is in Norfolk. Brancaster and Holkham are extraordinary beaches – vast, wild and dramatic. In winter, you can walk for hours without seeing a soul, just you and the sky. In summer, the seal pups arrive, which is always a joy. My family and I often take our campervan there, cook something simple and eat it on the sand – though we’re usually trying to stop our dogs from stealing it! Those weekends are my happy place – a sense of being grounded and free.

When I’m on tour, I try to get to the sea whenever I can. Sometimes I’ll park the van by the coast – I’ve stayed near Deal before, while working in Canterbury – and start each day with a swim. Cold water, wide horizons and a pack of dogs at my feet – it’s the best antidote to the intensity of life on stage.

This autumn, I’m thrilled to be playing Pippa Grange in Dear England, James Graham’s Olivier Award-winning play about Gareth Southgate, courage and culture. It’s an emotional, moving story that’s about so much more than football – and I can’t wait to share it with audiences across the UK, starting this autumn.

Samantha Womack takes to the stage in James Graham’s Olivier Award‑winning play Dear England, touring the UK now. Book tickets at the official site, dearenglandonstage.com.