Samantha Janus, the British entrant at the 1991 Eurovision Song Contest in Rome, will join the cast of top British soap opera EastEnders next week.

The former singer, who placed a disappointing 10th in Rome despite being many bookies' favourite to win, will play Ronnie Mitchell, cousin of the BBC soap's hardmen Phil and Grant. Ronniehas a "dark secret". She says her character, along with her sister, has been running a bar in Ibiza, and they have come to see their cousin Phil. Shedescribes their characters as "strong, sexy and single."

Since their appearance in the Eurovision Song Contest, Samantha has starred in programmes such as The Grimleys and Liverpool 1.

EastEnders is one of Britains most popular soaps, and has been screened by the BBC since 1985. It is set in the fictional East London borough of Walford, and was the first British soap to address the issue of HIV.