Boring Fair City sends me to sleep, says Tatianna

EASTENDERS for gritty realism, Corrie for a bit of light entertainment and Fair City for insomniacs desperate to catch up on some sleep.

One of the soap’s leading actresses has sparked controversy by suggesting that the script for RTÉ’s flagship drama is so boring it sometimes sends her to sleep. Tatianna Ouliankina, who plays Lana in the popular soap, says the show needs “a good shake-up”.

“Sometimes during the day, when we are rehearsing, the scripts can send me to sleep. I say ‘Oh, is it my turn? And then I wake up and I start my lines.’ Fair City need a good shake-up,” she said in an interview. Ms Ouliankina recently said that landing the part in Fair City as Lana was a dream come true.

Her character is a fiery, temperamental woman who likes to get her own way. She came to Ireland for a job as a dancer, only to discover the only dancing she would be required to do would be around a pole. Leo Dowling, who owns taxi company Acorn Cabs in fictional Carrigstown, agreed to help her get a work permit and now Lana works in his office doing accounts. The two characters also have an on-again-off-again relationship.

Her comments fly in the face of the soap’s popularity, with the show consistently named as one of RTÉ’s most watched TV programmes.

According to the latest available TAM ratings, Fair City claimed three places out of the top 10, including the No 1 slot with more than 383,000 viewers.

The show has added a Sunday night slot to its existing Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday night billing.