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230-523: Den Watts is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders , played by actor Leslie Grantham . He became well known for his tabloid nickname, "Dirty Den" . Den was the original landlord of The Queen Victoria public house from Albert Square – in the local community of Walford , a fictional borough in East London – who first appeared when the show debuted on 19 February 1985. From then onwards,

460-449: A "mature student", although she had never seen him "in action". Smith and Holland needed the character of Den to have "panache, charisma and electricity". They were initially uncertain about casting Grantham, but they both felt that the actor had "something", which they went on to describe as a "tensed up internal emotion of some sort, that was being held in. There was something behind the eyes, too. Barely contained violence almost..." After

690-605: A bedraggled Disa remains living on the streets, begging and selling sex. Disa had become pregnant in 1990, and she is still living rough in London just before the birth of her child. Knowing this, Diane spends days searching the streets of London for Disa, hoping to provide her and her soon to be born baby with accommodation. After a series of leads result in nothing, Diane is about to give up hope when her friend Mark Fowler ( Todd Carty ) spots Disa arguing with an unknown man about her baby. However, when Mark makes his presence known she and

920-583: A bench in Albert Square gardens, where he dies. His body is found by Willy , Ethel Skinner 's ( Gretchen Franklin ) dog. Ethel recognises Harry and seems to know a lot about his history. She reveals that Harry grew up at number 29 Albert Square and when he was 15, he fell in love with Doris and vowed to marry her. However, when the Second World War broke out, he was conscripted into the army and sent to war. Doris promised to wait until Harry returned but he

1150-446: A breakdown after Sharon's birth. Celestine Tavernier , played by Leroy Golding , appears primarily in the serial between 1990 and 1992. Celestine makes a further guest appearance in 1993. Celestine is portrayed as a strict disciplinarian and a devout Christian who expects everyone in his family to show similar dedication to the church and abide by his rules. His unwavering demand for respect often alienates his children and almost causes

1380-465: A canal where they have held secret meetings in the past, so he can say goodbye to her and Vicki. Unaware that the Firm is following her, Michelle unwittingly brings them to Den and he is shot by a man who is hiding a gun in a bunch of daffodils. A splash is heard, indicating that Den has fallen into the canal. The police search for Den's body but don't find anything until Sharon finds Den's signet ring for sale on

1610-530: A car in April 1992 and take it for a joy-ride, which culminates in him getting caught and arrested by the police. His expedition earns him a suspended sentence, much to his father's shame. His older brother Clyde takes him under his wing, however, and helps him straighten his life out. Lloyd eventually moves to Norwich with his mother and father. His last appearance is in June 1992. George Lawler , played by Edmund Kente ,

1840-472: A car pulled up and finally the fluffy white legs of Roly the poodle bounded out of the car, and gave it all away: Den Watts was the man meeting Michelle and it was he who had fathered her baby. It was when Den was revealed as the father that his famous nickname "Dirty Den" was created by the British press. The rest of the episode consisted of just one long scene, where Den and Michelle discussed whether or not to keep

2070-693: A censorship apparatus for the inevitability of war. Due to the BBC's advancements in shortwave radio technology, the corporation could broadcast across the world during the Second World War. Within Europe, the BBC European Service would gather intelligence and information regarding the current events of the war in English. Regional BBC workers, based on their regional geo-political climate, would then further censor

2300-496: A fling with The Queen Vic's caterer, Magda Czajkowski ( Kathryn Apanowicz ), but is scorned when she eventually opts to date the much younger Simon Wicks ( Nick Berry ) instead. When he discovers that they are seeing each other, he punches Simon, sacks him and throws him out of his home in The Queen Vic. He gets revenge on the two by manipulating an immature Simon into flirting with other women when his relationship with Magda hits

2530-466: A guest appearance in 1994, visiting members of the Tavernier family who remain in the serial. Also religious like her husband, Etta is portrayed as a career woman; her most prominent storylines concern marital problems and crises of faith. Etta was Gordon-Lawrence's first television role. Leroy Golding who was awarded the part of Celestine Tavernier claims that his inexperience helped rather than hindered

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2760-431: A higher standing than the rest of her family, which earns Mo's dislike and disapproval. As her mental state deteriorates, Mo causes a fire in her flat after dropping a cigarette in her linen, which leads to Mark Fowler ( Todd Carty ) rescuing her, and Mo being hospitalised overnight. After this, Frank contacts Joan and she visits Walford to assess the situation, calling a truce with Frank; the siblings had not spoken since

2990-461: A larger brand: in 2003, BBC Choice was replaced by BBC Three , with programming for younger adults and shocking real-life documentaries, BBC News 24 became the BBC News Channel in 2008, and BBC Radio 7 became BBC Radio 4 Extra in 2011, with new programmes to supplement those broadcast on Radio 4. In 2008, another channel was launched, BBC Alba , a Scottish Gaelic service. During this decade,

3220-553: A little girl. Disa knows that a life living rough on the streets is no place for a new born baby, so that same day she decides to leave her baby in a cardboard box on the Butcher's doorstep, with the hope that Diane will take her in. Diane and her boyfriend Mark once again search the streets of London and eventually find Disa. They manage to bring her back to Albert Square (under protest) to live in Mo Butcher 's ( Edna Doré ) empty flat, in

3450-417: A longstanding father-son feud that escalated after Den discovered that Dennis had killed his mob boss Jack Dalton ( Hywel Bennett ), and subsequently destroyed his relationship with Zoe Slater ( Michelle Ryan ), by getting her to lie to Dennis that she was pregnant with their baby. Additionally, Den established a rivalry with Sharon's ex-boyfriend Phil Mitchell ( Steve McFadden ) that ended with him framing

3680-473: A market stall in April 1990 and requests that the canal is searched again, unaware that Den was not wearing it when he was shot. This time, a body is found identified as that of Den. In the intervening years, Sharon and Vicki grow up, although not always living in Walford, and in early 2003, they discover that Den has a son he did not know of, Dennis Rickman ( Nigel Harman ), who joins them in Albert Square. Dennis

3910-486: A member of the firm (who was carrying a gun concealed in a bunch of daffodils ) and then falling into the canal. The scene where Den actually hit the water had to be taped at the BBC's Ealing Film Studios using a water tank, because the waters of the Grand Union Canal were deemed unsafe. When the episode was finished, however, Jonathan Powell , controller of BBC1, requested that the final shot be removed to allow for

4140-434: A near death experience. The incident underlines the seriousness of his condition and only increases his parents overbearing concern. Lloyd soon grows sick of his 'limited existence' and he eventually begins to turn his back on education and the 'sanctimonious preachings' of the church that his parents hold with such high regard. In an attempt to rebel he neglects his studies and turns to petty crime. He and his friends hijack

4370-542: A new executive producer named Michael Ferguson , who took over from Mike Gibbon . Ferguson had previously been a producer on ITV 's The Bill – a hard-hitting, gritty and successful police drama, which seemed to be challenging EastEnders in providing a realistic vision of modern life in London. Due to his success on The Bill , Peter Cregeen , the Head of Series at the BBC, poached Ferguson to become executive producer of EastEnders . Jackie Stone , played by Richard Beale ,

4600-599: A news and information service. In 1978, BBC staff went on strike just before the Christmas, thus blocking out the transmission of both channels and amalgamating all four radio stations into one. Since the deregulation of the UK television and radio market in the 1980s, the BBC has faced increased competition from the commercial sector (and from the advertiser-funded public service broadcaster Channel 4 ), especially on satellite television, cable television, and digital television services. In

4830-489: A number of additional channels and radio stations have been launched: Radio 5 was launched in 1990, as a sports and educational station, but was replaced in 1994, with BBC Radio 5 Live to become a live radio station, following the success of the Radio 4 service to cover the 1991 Gulf War . The new station would be a news and sport station. In 1997, BBC News 24 , a rolling news channel, launched on digital television services, and

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5060-511: A number of their businesses again before finally going to prison. Her latest return sees her struggle with motherhood after giving birth to Jack's baby. John Royle , played by Paddy Joyce , is the widowed father of Eddie Royle ( Michael Melia ) – the publican of The Queen Victoria public house . He first appears in Walford in August 1990 when he comes to visit his son. John is a wily Irishman and

5290-419: A peak of popularity and toppled rival soap Coronation Street from the top of the ratings chart. In 1985, Den was the first person to speak on the first episode of EastEnders : "Stinks in here dunnit?" just before he found out that Reg Cox (Johnnie Clayton) had been murdered. Early on in the series, the character of Den became central to the programme and was the focus of a controversial storyline involving

5520-517: A plan of revenge to gain ownership of The Queen Vic from Den. She recruits Zoe and Sam (both also scorned by Den) and they confront him after closing time at The Queen Vic, one evening in February 2005. Den taunts them all for their weaknesses and refuses to sign over The Queen Vic, even when Chrissie threatens to reveal Den's true character to the rest of the Square. Den smugly admits to everything he's done but

5750-732: A proposal to cut 4,000 jobs, and to privatise parts of the BBC, disrupted much of the BBC's regular programming. In 2006, BBC HD launched as an experimental service and became official in December 2007. The channel broadcast HD simulcasts of programmes on BBC One , BBC Two , BBC Three and BBC Four as well as repeats of some older programmes in HD. In 2010, an HD simulcast of BBC One launched: BBC One HD . The channel uses HD versions of BBC One's schedule and uses upscaled versions of programmes not currently produced in HD. The BBC HD channel closed in March 2013 and

5980-521: A repulsed Disa confronts Ken about the sexual abuse she had endured since the age of 12. Disgusted, Sandra informs Ken that she and her children will be testifying to this in court, to ensure that he is locked away for a very long time. Sandra then takes Disa and Jasmine back to Sunderland, Tyne and Wear to live with her in February 1991. She is mentioned in January 1993 when Dot goes to visit her, having been victimised after her son Nick Cotton ( John Altman )

6210-399: A retired metal worker. In his youth, he was a talented footballer and could have played professionally if he'd wanted to leave Dublin , which he didn't. He is often the life and soul of the party in Walford, and is known to like a pint of Guinness or two. He is a perfect pal for the other seniors on the Square – Jules Tavernier ( Tommy Eytle ) and Ethel Skinner ( Gretchen Franklin ). He

6440-493: A rocky road. Simon eventually starts seeing Donna Ludlow ( Matilda Ziegler ), and his rejection hurts Magda. Den uses this opportunity. He feigns mock sympathy and seduces her, but before he gets her into bed, he tells her that he has to go on an errand. He instructs Magda to "get ready" for him, telling her that he will be back soon. He then leaves Magda undressed and waiting in his bed for hours, before instructing Simon's mother, Pat Wicks ( Pam St Clement ), to inform her that he

6670-577: A scam in Andy's bookies, where Pat happens to work. The scam is initially successful and Den celebrates. However, Andy discovers the scam and humiliates Den in The Queen Vic by revealing the poker game, just as Sharon returns. The next day, Dennis sends Den home from the club after he nearly gets into a fight with one of his own bouncers. Whilst at home, Den makes a pass at Dennis's 20-year-old girlfriend, Zoe Slater ( Michelle Ryan ), which Dennis witnesses. After receiving some harsh words, Den punches Dennis and leaves

6900-460: A search for him that continues into the next year. Over Christmas that year, Pat visits Joan to see if Frank is staying with her. Joan tells Pat she has not seen Frank for several years. Marcus Christie , played by Stephen Churchett , is a solicitor employed by Phil and Grant Mitchell ( Steve McFadden and Ross Kemp ), and appears sporadically to represent them both in numerous criminal matters. Marcus often gets Phil and Grant out of trouble and

7130-405: A second witness, Joe Wallace (Jason Rush), later comes forward to attest that he had seen Nick Cotton in the vicinity on the night of the murder. Nick claims that Eddie started pushing him and preventing him from leaving and, after a struggle, he accidentally stabbed Eddie. Clyde is released and Nick is arrested for the murder, but surprisingly he is found 'not guilty' at the trial in 1993, as there

Den Watts - Misplaced Pages Continue

7360-539: A series of strikes; however, the BBC stated that the cuts were essential to move the organisation forward and concentrate on increasing the quality of programming. On 20 October 2010, the Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne announced that the television licence fee would be frozen at its current level until the end of the current charter in 2016. The same announcement revealed that the BBC would take on

7590-561: A short-lived marriage to Andy Hunter ( Michael Higgs ). Her exit in 2005 is the culmination of a storyline that sees Sam wrongly imprisoned for Den Watts ' ( Leslie Grantham ) murder. Sam is cleared of murder and released, but she flees the country to escape another prison sentence for perverting the course of justice. Her brief return in 2009 sees Sam resurrect her relationship with Ricky whilst having an on-off affair with Jack Branning ( Scott Maslen ), being manipulated by her uncle Archie Mitchell ( Larry Lamb ) and causing her family to lose

7820-527: A solicitor and makes certain that Angie has no claim on The Queen Vic. Angie leaves Walford for Spain in May 1988 with nothing, and they never see each other again. Having had a lengthy association with the criminal organisation known as The Firm, Den's involvement escalates over the summer of 1988. He sells The Queen Vic to Pat and her fiancée Frank Butcher ( Mike Reid ) and takes over Strokes wine bar, which he runs with Joanne Francis ( Pamela Salem ). The wine bar

8050-414: A story to put Den in prison for a year, intending that material recorded in a block of intensive filming would then be included in the programme for the rest of the year. The programme didn't want to make Den into a criminal, however, so he had to be put in prison for doing something that could be justified to the viewing public – otherwise there would be no sympathy for him. The answer lay in a storyline that

8280-442: A successful reading with the actress Jean Fennell (who was originally cast as Angie), he was offered the part. However, shortly afterwards Grantham contacted Smith and asked to speak to her urgently. He revealed that he had been found guilty of killing a German taxi driver while on army service in 1967, and spent 10 years in prison. Although there were fears that if this story got out the resultant publicity would do enormous damage to

8510-405: A teenage girl and the father of her best friend is deemed as one of the highlights of EastEnders first year. The finishing touch was the use of an alternative end title music, a variation of the normal one which replaced the dramatic drum beats with a longer, gentler piano solo introduction. After this storyline the programme started to appear in newspaper cartoons as it moved more and more into

8740-456: Is a business associate of Ian Beale ( Adam Woodyatt ), whose catering business has failed, so he sells his client base and equipment to Ian for his catering business, The Meal Machine. He recognises The Meal Machine's chef Joe Wallace (Jason Rush), as he had previously sacked Joe when he found out that he had HIV. He demands that Joe quits his job, but when he fails to do so, George informs Ian about Joe's HIV, and Ian sacks Joe. Sam Mitchell

8970-639: Is a market trader who is elected as the Chairman of the Bridge Street Market Traders Association. He is asked to liaise with Phil Mitchell ( Steve McFadden ) and Grant Mitchell ( Ross Kemp ), who have purchased land that has been used by traders previously. However, Jackie finds himself in an awkward position when he realises that he has been a friend of the Phil and Grant's late father, Eric; they boxed together and some traders believe that Jackie

9200-495: Is acquitted for the murder of Eddie Royle ( Michael Melia ). More than 30 years later, Disa returns to Walford in December 2022 for Dot's funeral. She reunites with Kathy, and thanks her for helping her to open up to her mother about her abuse. She gives a eulogy at Dot's funeral where she says that Dot saw something worth saving in those that people would have deemed lost causes such as herself, and reveals that Dot helped to change her life. Carol Hanley , played by Sheila White ,

9430-418: Is actually Sharon's biological father, and that Den had apparently done a deal with Gavin: he would adopt Sharon in exchange for Gavin partaking in one of Den's criminal jobs. Den Watts was one of the original 23 characters devised by the creators of EastEnders , Tony Holland and Julia Smith . The character of Den was originally going to be called Jack and he, his wife and adopted teenage daughter were to be

Den Watts - Misplaced Pages Continue

9660-555: Is against the Firm's wishes so when the police investigation starts suspecting the Firm's involvement and what the Strokes wine bar is really used for, the Firm's bosses force Den to take the blame for the arson to distance their organisation from the attack. They take Den to a safe house in Manchester , promising to alter his identity, but Den realises this is a cover and that the Firm are planning to kill him. Den escapes and hands himself in to

9890-524: Is also troubled by Chrissie's departure. To cope with this, Den becomes more reckless and tries to reassert his bachelor status. He hosts a poker game at his house which eventually turns serious when only him and Andy Hunter remain. In a bid to get the Vic back, Den puts his house and club on the line but is narrowly beaten by Andy. Andy neglects to take Den's stake, but does tell Den to get his life sorted. Looking for revenge on Andy, Den convinces Pat to help him pull

10120-480: Is approached by an old friend, who is coaching Clyde's upcoming opponent. He and Eddie try to bribe Clyde to purposefully lose the fight in a betting scam, which causes a blazing row between Clyde and Eddie. Grant's rage towards Eddie also resurfaces when he discovers that it was Eddie who had tipped off the police about his shady dealings. This further alienates the community and it seems that everyone in Walford has something against Eddie. In September 1991, while Eddie

10350-535: Is better for Mo to go to Colchester with Graham and Joan, and Dot explains to Frank that it will be better to let her go than to keep watching her decline. Frank and his family were due to spend Christmas 1992 with Joan, Graham and Mo at their house, but they had to cancel the trip last minute when Pat was arrested for drink driving and hitting a teenage pedestrian; the girl later died in hospital. Shortly afterwards, on 31 December 1992, Mo dies of her dementia. Following Frank's disappearance in 1994, his family start up

10580-593: Is born. Carol and Sharon get on well, but Carol is anxious about introducing Sharon to her two half-brothers, Kristopher and Jonathan . After Carol's confession that she only thinks of her as a good friend, Sharon realises there will never be a parental bond between them and stops seeing her. Carol sends Sharon a letter nearly 25 years later. After a few weeks of hesitation, Sharon decides to visit her, accompanied by her friend Linda Carter ( Kellie Bright ), only to be greeted by Kristopher (Jonathan Broadbent), who informs her that Carol has died from cancer and her funeral

10810-512: Is corrupt. The market is saved. In March 1991, Ian Beale ( Adam Woodyatt ) decides that he wants to take over the lease of the burned-out Dagmar winebar, where Jackie is squatting. He plants a computer that Phil and Grant stole from the council in the wine bar so that Jackie will be evicted. Disa O'Brien , portrayed by Jan Graveson , first appears in episode 536. She is introduced as a tough seeming Wearside runaway, who helps Diane Butcher ( Sophie Lawrence ) to survive when she lives rough on

11040-451: Is fending for herself living on the streets of London, where she befriends Disa, a fellow teenage runaway. Disa is working as a prostitute and tries to convince Diane to follow the same path with the hope that they can raise the funds to share a flat together. Diane cannot bring herself to do this however, but takes up nude modelling for an artist instead. Eventually Diane contacts her father Frank ( Mike Reid ) and returns to Walford , whilst

11270-464: Is going on and manages to remove some dodgy packages from Grant's garage before the police arrive. Eddie is furious, and is even more enraged when he discovers that she'd agreed to marry Grant, so he sacks her. Although Sharon successfully sues him for unfair dismissal, Eddie refuses to give her job back to her. In August 1991 Eibhlin moves in with Eddie. Meanwhile, Eddie begins coaching Clyde Tavernier ( Steven Woodcock ) in boxing and that same month he

11500-642: Is his former girlfriend visiting from Ireland. Kathy refuses to accept his explanations and so their lukewarm romance ends. In April 1991, when Sharon seems to be opening her heart to him and is fed up with Grant, he rashly offers himself as a replacement, but is rejected. When Grant finds out, he beats him up so badly that he is hospitalised and needs brain surgery. Whilst recovering, he receives another visit from Eibhlin. He ends up proposing marriage and she accepts. Eddie cannot forgive Grant for his violent assault and so he contacts an old police colleague to check up on Grant's dodgy dealings. However, Sharon discovers what

11730-437: Is in Phil's custody. After Phil plants drugs in the club and nearly gets it shut down, Den fakes a truce and talks Phil into accompanying him and Dennis on a warehouse robbery. Den bides his time and organises a scam to get Phil imprisoned. During the robbery, Den takes the money and obstructs Phil's getaway, resulting in Phil getting caught by the police and remanded in custody on a charge of armed robbery. Den then helps Lisa flee

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11960-510: Is indeed Vicki's father and she slaps him in response. Soon enough, Den plans to leave Angie permanently; hoping to stop him, Angie claims that she is dying and has only six months to live in October 1986. Den chooses to stay with her and tries to rebuild their relationship, promising to be there for her until her death. He takes Angie to Venice for a second honeymoon, but meets Jan, who is also there. Feeling guilty about her lie, Angie gets drunk on

12190-407: Is left stunned when Sharon emerges from the shadows – Chrissie has lured her back from America with the pretence that Den was seriously ill, in order for her to hear Den’s confession to everything that he had done. Despite Den's desperate explanations, Sharon disowns Den and leaves in a cab. In a rage, Den violently throws Chrissie against a fruit machine and is only stopped by Zoe, who hits him over

12420-418: Is merely a front to the Firm's illegal gambling den. When Kathy Beale ( Gillian Taylforth ) is raped by James Willmott-Brown ( William Boyde ), Den manipulates a Firm member, Brad Williams (Jonathan Stratt), to burn down The Dagmar (Wilmott-Brown's wine bar) in revenge and the next day, he smugly hints to Wilmott-Brown that he organised it before pinning him against a wall and threatening him. This, however,

12650-461: Is never afraid to bend the rules. Marcus first appears in November 1990, to represent Phil on some handling and receiving charges which he beats the following summer. Marcus is summoned once again to assist Phil when he asks him to see if he can get Ricky Butcher ( Sid Owen ) sectioned in order to stop him marrying his teenage sister, Sam Mitchell ( Danniella Westbrook ). Marcus is present when Grant

12880-499: Is not enough evidence to convict. Clyde Tavernier , played by Steven Woodcock , is introduced in the summer of 1990. Clyde is featured in various prominent storylines including an inter-racial relationship with Michelle Fowler ( Susan Tully ), and being framed for the murder of publican Eddie Royle ( Michael Melia ). The character was written out in 1993 and was given a happy ending. Etta Tavernier , played by Jacqui Gordon-Lawrence , appears between 1990 and 1992. Etta also makes

13110-500: Is obviously of paramount importance." Reith succeeded in building a high wall against an American-style free-for-all in radio in which the goal was to attract the largest audiences and thereby secure the greatest advertising revenue. There was no paid advertising on the BBC; all the revenue came from a tax on receiving sets. Highbrow audiences, however, greatly enjoyed it. At a time when American, Australian and Canadian stations were drawing huge audiences cheering for their local teams with

13340-583: Is often seen engaging in a game of poker with Jules. On one occasion Jules manages to thrash John, but is mortified when John pays the winnings in chickens instead of money. Mo Butcher ( Edna Doré ) ends up taking them back to her family's Bed and Breakfast. John is very proud of his son and will not get mixed up in anything that will earn his disapproval. John shows up periodically to visit Eddie, and on one occasion he brings Eddie's ex-girlfriend, Eibhlin O'Donnell (Mary Conlon), with him. Unfortunately, John's timing couldn't have been worse, as her arrival spells

13570-414: Is otherwise engaged, leaving her humiliated. Whilst single again, Den begins to realise that The Queen Vic's trade is floundering without Angie. With some meddling from Sharon, Den and Angie decide to reunite as business partners and she returns to live at The Queen Vic. However, it is short-lived, because Angie falls in love with her friend, Sonny . Realising that Angie is planning to leave him, Den visits

13800-399: Is questioned over the murder of Eddie Royle ( Michael Melia ). Phil contacts Marcus on Christmas Day 1999 in order to legalize the sale of his half of The Queen Victoria public house to Dan Sullivan ( Craig Fairbrass ) for £5, in order to spite his mother Peggy Mitchell ( Barbara Windsor ). Marcus reappears in the summer of 2000 when he helps Phil con Dan into selling back his share of

14030-425: Is responsible for operational management and delivery of services within a framework set by the board, and is chaired by the director-general , currently Tim Davie , who is chief executive and (from 1994) editor-in-chief. The corporation has the following in-house divisions covering the BBC's output and operations: Marcus Christie (EastEnders) The following is a list of characters that first appeared in

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14260-410: Is taking his pet poodle , Roly , for an evening walk he is stabbed to death. Clyde Tavernier discovers his bloody body in the Square, and after foolishly picking up the murder weapon, he flees in panic. Unfortunately for Clyde, there is a witness who had seen him standing over Eddie's body and fleeing the scene – Nick Cotton ( John Altman ). Clyde is arrested for Eddie's murder and imprisoned. However,

14490-434: Is taking place. Kristopher invites Sharon inside to the wake and she tells him that she was a friend of his mother. Sharon signs a condolence book for Carol and leaves, but Kristopher realises that she is his half-sister and follows her to Walford. He reveals that he is the executor of their mother's will and that she has left a box of letters to Sharon. When Sharon discovers Gavin is her birth father, he says that Carol suffered

14720-489: Is the biological mother of Sharon Watts ( Letitia Dean ), whom she had with Gavin Sullivan ( Paul Nicholas ) before she was adopted. Carol is tracked down by Sharon, and Sharon's best friend Michelle Fowler ( Susan Tully ) visits Carol, who is now married to Ron ( Dean Harris ) and heavily pregnant with a daughter. Michelle speaks to them about contacting Sharon after years of absence. Sharon later visits Carol after her baby

14950-984: Is the third member of the Mitchell family to be introduced, Sam first appears as a 15-year-old school girl in July 1990, played by Danniella Westbrook . Westbrook quit in 1993, but was reintroduced from 1995–1996 and from 1999–2000. In 2002, the character is reintroduced for a fourth time, but the role was recast to another actress, Kim Medcalf . Medcalf left the role in 2005. However, in September 2009, Westbrook reprised her role as Sam for several months, departing in January 2010. She returns again from August until September 2010 and again from 30 June to 8 July 2016. Portrayed as headstrong, flirty and manipulative, early storylines featuring Sam concentrate on her teen elopement with Ricky Butcher ( Sid Owen ). She goes on to be involved with topless modelling, various family crises, relationships, feuds, and

15180-520: Is unwilling to allow Dennis to leave his unborn child. While trying to persuade Sharon to stay, a panicking Den lets slip that he doesn't love Vicki as much as he loves her, not realizing that Vicki was behind him and overheard everything. Vicki then decides to leave with Sharon. Den is horrified to have lost both of his daughters at Christmas, ironically because of his own lies and deceit, despite having succeeded in splitting up Sharon and Dennis. In apparent retribution towards Dennis for inadvertently being

15410-577: The Archbishops of Canterbury and York came to St Paul's to broadcast to the UK and the world on the National Day of Prayer. BBC employees during the war included George Orwell who spent two years with the broadcaster. During his role as prime minister during the war, Winston Churchill delivered 33 major wartime speeches by radio, all of which were carried by the BBC within the UK. On 18 June 1940, French general Charles de Gaulle , in exile in London as

15640-456: The BBC soap opera EastEnders in 1990, by order of first appearance. In January 1990, a mysterious old man ( John Boswall ) is seen lingering around Albert Square . He is initially reluctant to divulge his identity, but it is apparent that he knows some of the residents, in particular the Beale family . Café worker Rod Norman ( Christopher McHallem ) and his girlfriend Hazel take an interest in

15870-526: The BBC Television Service ) started from Alexandra Palace in November 1936, alternating between an improved Baird mechanical 240-line system and the all-electronic 405-line Marconi-EMI system which had been developed by an EMI research team led by Sir Isaac Shoenberg . The superiority of the electronic system saw the mechanical system dropped early the following year, with the Marconi-EMI system

16100-478: The British Broadcasting Company , it evolved into its current state with its current name on New Year's Day 1927. The oldest and largest local and global broadcaster by stature and by number of employees, the BBC employs over 21,000 staff in total, of whom approximately 17,200 are in public-sector broadcasting. The BBC was established under a royal charter , and operates under an agreement with

16330-936: The MediaCityUK development in Salford , with BBC Three moving online only in 2016, the sharing of more programmes between stations and channels, sharing of radio news bulletins, more repeats in schedules, including the whole of BBC Two daytime and for some original programming to be reduced. BBC HD was closed on 26 March 2013, and replaced with an HD simulcast of BBC Two; however, flagship programmes, other channels and full funding for CBBC and CBeebies would be retained. Numerous BBC facilities have been sold off, including New Broadcasting House on Wilmslow Road in Manchester. Many major departments have been relocated to Broadcasting House in central London and MediaCityUK in Salford, particularly since

16560-455: The Orient Express . This gave the writers and producers an opportunity to open the show up from the confines of Albert Square. However the trip to Venice was fraught with problems and Dobson, Grantham and Jane How were hounded by the press at all times. Their photographs appeared in British newspapers, thus ruining the shock surprise that Tony Holland had created, by including Den's mistress in

16790-525: The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport . Its work is funded principally by an annual television licence fee which is charged to all British households, companies, and organisations using any type of equipment to receive or record live television broadcasts or to use the BBC's streaming service, iPlayer . The fee is set by the British Government , agreed by Parliament , and is used to fund

17020-409: The trial of Nick Cotton. He has found the death of his son hard to get over and he hopes that seeing justice served to his son's killer will bring closure. He is horrified and inconsolable, however, when the verdict comes back as not guilty. Joan Garwood , played by Mary Miller , is the older sister of Frank Butcher ( Mike Reid ), and the first child of Mo ( Edna Doré ) and Chike Butcher. Joan

17250-481: The "Mitchell brothers" have become household names in the United Kingdom. They have been parodied even in adverts where their gruff, tough talking, cockney accents have been impersonated. One of EastEnders most popular and highly rated storylines was Sharongate , where Grant discovers that his wife Sharon ( Letitia Dean ) has been having an affair with his brother. In the latter part of 1989 EastEnders acquired

17480-573: The 1970s. Married since 1968, Angie was unable to have children of her own, and in 1972 they adopted a three-year-old girl called Sharon. Den also has a mistress, Jan Hammond ( Jane How ). He gets Michelle Fowler ( Susan Tully ), the 16-year-old best friend of his adoptive daughter Sharon ( Letitia Dean ), pregnant – but she refuses to name the father, fearing repercussions for Den and herself. Den and Angie's relationship starts to fall apart when she meets Jan, but when Angie attempts suicide, Den ends his relationship with Jan despite preferring it to be

17710-514: The 2025–26 season of the Women's Super League campaign. The BBC is a statutory corporation , independent from direct government intervention, with its activities being overseen from April 2017 by the BBC Board and regulated by Ofcom . The chairman is Samir Shah. The BBC is a state owned public broadcasting company and operates under a royal charter . The charter is the constitutional basis for

17940-467: The BBC announced a BBC News savings target of £80 million per year by 2022, involving about 520 staff reductions. The BBC's director of news and current affairs Fran Unsworth said there would be further moves toward digital broadcasting, in part to attract back a youth audience, and more pooling of reporters to stop separate teams covering the same news. In 2020, the BBC reported a £119 million deficit because of delays to cost reduction plans, and

18170-565: The BBC is subject to an additional 'Agreement' between it and the Culture Secretary , and that its operating licence is to be set by Ofcom, an external regulatory body . It used to be that the Home Secretary be departmental to both Agreement as well as Licence, and regulatory duties fall to the BBC Trust , but the 2017 charter changed those 2007 arrangements. The charter, too, outlines

18400-684: The BBC released minutes of the board meeting which led to Greg Dyke's resignation. Unlike the other departments of the BBC, the BBC World Service was funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office . The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, more commonly known as the Foreign Office or the FCO, is the British government department responsible for promoting the interests of the United Kingdom abroad. A strike in 2005 by more than 11,000 BBC workers, over

18630-440: The BBC suddenly became the primary source of news for the duration of the crisis. The crisis placed the BBC in a delicate position. On the one hand Reith was acutely aware that the government might exercise its right to commandeer the BBC at any time as a mouthpiece of the government if the BBC were to step out of line, but on the other he was anxious to maintain public trust by appearing to be acting independently. The government

18860-477: The BBC was granted sufficient leeway to pursue the government's objectives largely in a manner of its own choosing. Supporters of the strike nicknamed the BBC the BFC for British Falsehood Company. Reith personally announced the end of the strike which he marked by reciting from Blake's " Jerusalem " signifying that England had been saved. While the BBC tends to characterise its coverage of the general strike by emphasising

19090-531: The BBC", was priced at tuppence (two pence ) on newsstands, and quickly sold out its run of a quarter of a million copies. Mid-1925 found the future of broadcasting under further consideration, this time by the Crawford committee. By now, the BBC, under Reith's leadership, had forged a consensus favouring a continuation of the unified (monopoly) broadcasting service, but more money was still required to finance rapid expansion. Wireless manufacturers were anxious to exit

19320-459: The BBC's airwaves. In 1937, a MI5 security officer was given a permanent office within the organisation. This officer would examine the files of potential political subversives and mark the files of those deemed a security risk to the organisation, blacklisting them. This was often done on spurious grounds; even so, the practice would continue and expand during the years of the Cold War. There

19550-535: The BBC's censorship office, which surveilled and edited American coverage of British affairs. By 1940, across all BBC broadcasts, music by composers from enemy nations was censored. In total, 99 German, 38 Austrian and 38 Italian composers were censored. The BBC argued that like the Italian or German languages, listeners would be irritated by the inclusion of enemy composers. Any potential broadcasters said to have pacifist, communist or fascist ideologies were not allowed on

19780-446: The BBC's international 24-hour English-language news services BBC News , and from BBC.com, provided by BBC Global News Ltd. In 2009, the company was awarded the Queen's Award for Enterprise in recognition of its international achievements in business. Since its formation in 1922, the BBC has played a prominent role in British life and culture. It is sometimes informally referred to as

20010-663: The BBC's radio, TV, and online services covering the nations and regions of the UK. Since 1 April 2014, it has also funded the BBC World Service (launched in 1932 as the BBC Empire Service), which broadcasts in 28 languages and provides comprehensive TV, radio, and online services in Arabic and Persian . Some of the BBC's revenue comes from its commercial subsidiary BBC Studios (formerly BBC Worldwide ), which sells BBC programmes and services internationally and also distributes

20240-510: The BBC, and sets out the BBC's Object, Mission and Public Purposes. It emphasises public service , (limited) editorial independence , prohibits advertising on domestic services and proclaims the BBC is to "seek to avoid adverse impacts on competition which are not necessary for the effective fulfilment of the Mission and the promotion of the Public Purposes". The charter also sets out that

20470-633: The Beeb or Auntie . In 1923 it launched Radio Times (subtitled "The official organ of the BBC"), the first broadcast listings magazine; the 1988 Christmas edition sold 11 million copies, the biggest-selling edition of any British magazine in history. Britain's first live public broadcast was made from the factory of Marconi Company in Chelmsford in June 1920. It was sponsored by the Daily Mail ' s Alfred Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Northcliffe and featured

20700-575: The British government's asylum policy on social media. Lineker was suspended from his position on Match of the Day before being re-instated after receiving overwhelming support from his colleagues. The scandal was made worse due to the connections between BBC's chairman, Richard Sharp, and the Conservative Party. In April 2023, Richard Sharp resigned as chairman after a report found he did not disclose potential perceived conflicts of interest in his role in

20930-512: The Butcher family, accusing Frank of not knowing her at all, and also revealing that Mo never wanted a daughter and thus ignored Joan in favour of Frank. After the argument, the two read a letter Mo wrote to Frank before her condition deteriorated, in which Mo asks Frank to put her " out of her pain ". The next day, Frank and Joan have tea with Mo, who seems to have become more lucid and reminisces with them about their childhoods. However, Mo believes that Frank wants to kill her, having forgotten about

21160-500: The CBBC Channel and CBeebies Channel. In addition to the television channels, new digital radio stations were created: 1Xtra , 6 Music and Radio 4 Extra . BBC 1Xtra was a sister station to Radio 1 and specialised in modern black music, BBC 6 Music specialised in alternative music genres and BBC7 specialised in archive, speech and children's programming. The following few years resulted in repositioning of some channels to conform to

21390-482: The Christmas holidays. Dialogue between characters at this time suggests that is a temporary departure; however, Gayle did not return to the role. The character was hastily written out, appearing briefly one last time in February 1994 to show that Hattie has decided to remain in Norwich. In the scene, Hattie's former lover Steve Elliot ( Mark Monero ) witnesses Hattie in the distance with another man. This fleeting appearance

21620-628: The Corporation's governance and regulatory arrangements as a statutory corporation, including the role and composition of the BBC Board. The current Charter began on 1 January 2017 and ends on 31 December 2027; the Agreement being coterminous. The BBC Board was formed in April 2017. It replaced the previous governing body, the BBC Trust, which itself had replaced the board of governors in 2007. The board sets

21850-642: The GPO and the BBC had become deadlocked and the Postmaster General commissioned a review of broadcasting by the Sykes Committee. The committee recommended a short-term reorganisation of licence fees with improved enforcement in order to address the BBC's immediate financial distress, and an increased share of the licence revenue split between it and the GPO. This was to be followed by a simple 10 shillings licence fee to fund broadcasts. The BBC's broadcasting monopoly

22080-498: The GPO proposed that it would issue a single broadcasting licence to a company jointly owned by a consortium of leading wireless receiver manufacturers, to be known as the British Broadcasting Company Ltd , which was formed on 18 October 1922. John Reith , a Scottish Calvinist , was appointed its general manager in December 1922 a few weeks after the company made its first official broadcast. L. Stanton Jefferies

22310-550: The Mitchells just before Christmas 2004, by blackmailing their lawyer Marcus Christie ( Stephen Churchett ) into convincing Sam that Phil, who is still on the run, needs immediate money. Sam sells The Queen Vic to Den at a vastly reduced price and he reinstates his family at the pub in time for Christmas. Den re-cements his villainous status by kicking the Moon family out on Christmas Eve. With his pub back and his family together, Den looks to

22540-498: The Prime Minister, maintained the censorship of editorial opinions on public policy, but allowed the BBC to address matters of religious, political or industrial controversy. The resulting political "talk series", designed to inform England on political issues, were criticised by members of parliament, including Winston Churchill, David Lloyd George and Sir Austen Chamberlain . Those who opposed these chats claimed that they silence

22770-486: The Samaritans. Kathy helps Disa to find the courage to tell her mother, Sandra, that Ken had forced both her and her younger half sister to have sex with him, and that he is the father of her child. Sandra refuses to believe her daughter at first. She hits Disa and accuses her of lying, before breaking down and accepting the truth. Sandra makes Disa visit Ken in prison so she can see his response to her accusations. While there,

23000-472: The Square. He has been married three times and featured in numerous high-profile storylines, including the much-hyped whodunnit , dubbed " Who Shot Phil? "—when the character is gunned down outside his home – and an affair with his brother's wife, dubbed " Sharongate ". Grant Mitchell , played by Ross Kemp , first appears in 1990, introduced by producer Michael Ferguson to revamp the show. Kemp remained until 1999 when he opted to leave. In 2005 and 2006, Kemp

23230-401: The Tavernier family to gel together as it created a sense of "camaraderie" among them; he suggests that he and his screen wife Gordon-Lawrence "played very well off each other". Hattie Tavernier , played by Michelle Gayle between 1990 and 1993, was introduced in July 1990 with her family by producer Michael Ferguson . The Taverniers were the first collective black family to join the soap at

23460-492: The UK's first Independent local radio station, LBC came on-air in the London area. As a result of the Pilkington Committee report of 1962, in which the BBC was praised for the quality and range of its output, and ITV was very heavily criticised for not providing enough quality programming, the decision was taken to award the BBC a second television channel, BBC2 , in 1964, renaming the existing service BBC1 . BBC2 used

23690-557: The Watts family reform their close bond. Den plays a heroic role when a fairground collapses in Walford and he saves numerous residents. He also tells Pete's son Ian Beale ( Adam Woodyatt ) that his former wife Laura 's ( Hannah Waterman ) baby son Bobby (Kevin Curran), is actually his and encourages him to be a father to him – with Den himself knowing how much a strain his own absence had on Dennis's life. Ian had evicted Laura when she revealed she

23920-493: The abuse he supposedly suffered as a child, which leaves Dennis confused and he decides to break up with Sharon to have a father-son relationship. In the spring of 2004, it is revealed that Den had married his second wife Chrissie ( Tracy-Ann Oberman ) in Spain in 1999, and left her there when he returned to Walford. She soon arrives in Walford to collect some money from him. She decides to stay in Walford with Den and his children, and

24150-526: The actor Leslie Grantham for the part. Grantham had previously appeared in London's fringe theatre in a stage play Robinson had written and had played a small part, Kiston, in the two-part Doctor Who serial Resurrection of the Daleks (1984), which had been directed by Robinson. Julia Smith remembered that she had taught Grantham at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art and regarded him as

24380-622: The air and forced the British government finally to regulate radio services to permit nationally based advertising-financed services. In response, the BBC reorganised and renamed their radio channels. On 30 September 1967, the Light Programme was split into Radio 1 offering continuous "Popular" music and Radio 2 more "Easy Listening". The "Third" programme became Radio 3 offering classical music and cultural programming. The Home Service became Radio 4 offering news, and non-musical content such as quiz shows, readings, dramas and plays. As well as

24610-406: The arrival of Den's mistress Jan Hammond ( Jane How ). Jan had been a powerful off-screen presence for the first year, a menacing voice at the end of the telephone, which severely affected the mood of both Den and Angie and kept the audience on edge every time the phone rang. Jan's physical arrival at the Vic in January 1986 was one of the show's dramatic highlights. Her invasion of Angie's territory

24840-476: The audience in on her secret that it was all a big lie. Written by Jane Hollowood and directed by Antonia Bird, this episode is considered to be one of the finest episodes in EastEnders' catalogue. The Den/Angie/Jan triangle was to continue for many months. The climax was a trip to Venice when Angie – convinced that Den had finished with his mistress – was taken there for a second honeymoon, returning to London on

25070-427: The baby is that of Dennis. Following this, an ashamed Zoe attempts to back out of their arrangement, but Den spitefully blackmails her into continuing the lie, revealing his intention to cause misery for her and Dennis for causing Sharon's departure. When Zoe decides to tell Chrissie, Den laughs off the threat and reveals he does not care about his marriage. With no options left and desperate to keep Dennis, Zoe carries on

25300-404: The baby. Up to that time it was the longest scene ever done in a soap-opera, lasting fifteen minutes. For a series that in its first eight months of existence had established a reputation for being fast-moving and rapidly cut, this was a bold experiment. It relied on just the one story and two actors to hold the audience for over half an episode. Tony Holland 's handling of the awkward scene between

25530-490: The back route and decoy cars were used to lure the press away from his home, all of which put an increasing strain on the actor. Eventually the furore quietened down, but it never went away entirely and nearly every article written about the actor during his first stint in the show referenced his past. The press began to blur the characters in the show with the actors and it was at this point that Julia Smith – in an attempt to dispel confusion about reality and fiction – introduced

25760-556: The body found in the canal was that of Vinnicombe, a senior member of The Firm, who was murdered as punishment for Den's escape and dumped in the canal, his teeth having been bricked out to prevent dental identification. Vinnicombe's body had wrongly been identified as that of Den, and Jan had assisted in this cover-up by planting Den's signet ring by the canal to make it appear that the attempt on his life had been successful. Den's grievances with The Firm are pardoned by its acting boss, Andy Hunter ( Michael Higgs ), who has taken over from

25990-530: The breakdown of his marriage. Eddie Royle is played by Michael Melia from 1990 until 1991. Born in Ireland, Eddie came to Britain with his parents as a boy. Bright and energetic, he couldn't wait to join the police force and when he did, he loved his job, priding himself on being an honest copper. However Eddie encountered corrupt practices in the force, so he took early retirement and decided to start afresh in Walford. Eddie arrives in Walford in July 1990, as

26220-458: The broadcast of baseball, rugby and hockey, the BBC emphasised service for a national rather than a regional audience. Boat races were well covered along with tennis and horse racing, but the BBC was reluctant to spend its severely limited air time on long football or cricket games, regardless of their popularity. John Reith and the BBC, with support from the Crown , determined the universal needs of

26450-439: The cause of Sharon's departure, Den continues his baby lie with Zoe to ensure that Dennis stays. With Sharon gone, Den becomes more evil and twisted than ever, ignoring Chrissie's pleading with him to be thankful for the family he still has left with him in Walford. Zoe is unable to find a man to sleep with her in order to create a real pregnancy, so Den manipulates her into having sex with him so that she can get pregnant and pretend

26680-606: The challenge of better reflecting and representing a changing UK". Since 2017, the BBC has also funded the Local Democracy Reporting Service , with up to 165 journalists employed by independent news organisations to report on local democracy issues on a pooled basis. In 2016, the BBC Director General Tony Hall announced a savings target of £800 million per year by 2021, which is about 23% of annual licence fee revenue. Having to take on

26910-498: The character had a turbulent marriage with his alcoholic first wife Angie ( Anita Dobson ). In 1986, Den discovered that Angie lied to him about having six months to live and got revenge by giving her divorce papers on Christmas Day 1986 – which was watched by over 30 million viewers. While his marriage with Angie was finished beyond repair, Den continued his close relationship with their adopted daughter Sharon ( Letitia Dean ) – whom he grew fondly devoted towards throughout his time on

27140-422: The character's imprisonment for having one of its members help him get revenge against Willmott-Brown. Despite turning down several offers to return to the series, Grantham reprised the role of Den in 2003. The character returned 14 years later in a highly publicized week in September 2003, where Sharon discovered that Den had survived his shooting and had fled to Spain afterwards. The development of Den's return to

27370-403: The child when Disa won't or can't. On one occasion, she unwittingly lets a stranger called Ken Raynor ( Ian Redford ) into the flat, who claims to be Disa's uncle. However, Ken is actually Disa's stepfather, and he is also the father of baby Jasmine. Whilst Disa was living with him and her mother, she had been the victim of his sexual abuse and rape, which had left her pregnant and driven her onto

27600-464: The closure of BBC Television Centre in March 2013. On 16 February 2016, the BBC Three television service was discontinued and replaced by a digital outlet under the same name, targeting its young adult audience with web series and other content. Under the new royal charter instituted in 2017, the corporation must publish an annual report to Ofcom, outlining its plans and public service obligations for

27830-408: The corporation began to sell off a number of its operational divisions to private owners; BBC Broadcast was spun off as a separate company in 2002, and in 2005, it was sold off to Australian -based Macquarie Capital Alliance Group and Macquarie Group Limited and rebranded Red Bee Media . The BBC's IT , telephony and broadcast technology were brought together as BBC Technology Ltd in 2001, and

28060-568: The country in shame, amidst accusations of murder. He spent over 40 years in self-imposed exile and it seemed that Harry had come back to his childhood home to die. Harry's death upsets Rod and he leaves Walford soon after to travel the world. Phil Mitchell , played by Steve McFadden , first arrives in Albert Square on 20 February 1990, and is soon joined by his brother, Grant ( Ross Kemp ), sister Sam ( Danniella Westbrook ) and mother Peggy ( Jo Warne / Barbara Windsor ). He has become one of

28290-576: The country via the airport, and avenges Den's death by punching her whilst echoing the last words she told Den before killing him. Following Chrissie's arrest, she is later sentenced to life imprisonment after pleading guilty, and Den is finally given a proper burial in his "original" grave next to Angie. In 2015, it is revealed that Den was once in a gang which included Phil's father Eric Mitchell, along with his partner-in-crime Gavin Sullivan ( Paul Nicholas ) and their associates: Henry Hubbard and Ted Hills ( Brian Croucher ). It soon transpires that Gavin

28520-448: The country with Louise, after Phil's current wife, Kate ( Jill Halfpenny ), hands her over to Lisa after deciding to cut all ties with Phil. The feud brings Dennis closer to his father. Having lost his wife, his daughter and his freedom, Phil manages to escape several weeks later, confronting Den on Christmas Day; after an intense brawl in which Den hits Phil with a chair to avoid being killed, Den pays Phil off and he flees. Den then spends

28750-553: The division was later sold to the German company Siemens IT Solutions and Services (SIS). SIS was subsequently acquired from Siemens by the French company Atos . Further divestments included BBC Books (sold to Random House in 2006); BBC Outside Broadcasts Ltd (sold in 2008 to Satellite Information Services ); Costumes and Wigs (stock sold in 2008 to Angels Costumes ); and BBC Magazines (sold to Immediate Media Company in 2011). After

28980-411: The end of his son's relationship with Kathy Beale ( Gillian Taylforth ). However, within a few months, Eddie has changed his mind and asks Eibhlin to marry him. Eddie is murdered by Nick Cotton ( John Altman ) in September 1991, and John is devastated to lose his pride and joy, especially in such horrific circumstances. After this time, John is not seen in Walford until January 1993, when he attends

29210-523: The episode. Despite huge efforts from all involved the Venice episodes were only moderately successful, although the revelations discovered by Den in the episode set the scene for one of EastEnders' most renowned episodes, which aired on Christmas Day that year. After over-hearing his wife confess that her illness was fabricated, Den filed for divorce. 30.1 million viewers tuned in on Christmas Day in 1986, to witness Den handing Angie her divorce papers, giving

29440-407: The facilitation of a loan to Prime Minister Boris Johnson . Dame Elan Closs Stephens was appointed as acting chairwoman on 27 June 2023, and she would lead the BBC board for a year or until a new permanent chair has been appointed. Samir Shah was subsequently appointed with effect from 4 March 2024. In October 2024 it was announced that the BBC along with Sky Sports signed a deal to broadcast

29670-409: The family and ignoring Mo after the death of their father. Joan and Graham then take Mo to a restaurant, as Mo believes that Pat and Frank are trying to poison her and refuses to eat another meal served there. Afterwards, when Joan leaves, Mo begs her not to and hides from Frank when he comes into the room, bursting into tears, believing he will kill her. After a brief talk with Dot, it is decided that it

29900-404: The famous Australian soprano Dame Nellie Melba . The Melba broadcast caught the people's imagination and marked a turning point in the British public's attitude to radio. However, this public enthusiasm was not shared in official circles where such broadcasts were held to interfere with important military and civil communications. By late 1920, the pressure from these quarters and uneasiness among

30130-447: The first fully electronic television system in the world to be used in regular broadcasting. The success of broadcasting provoked animosities between the BBC and well-established media such as theatres, concert halls and the recording industry. By 1929, the BBC complained that the agents of many comedians refused to sign contracts for broadcasting, because they feared it harmed the artist "by making his material stale" and that it "reduces

30360-466: The first time with the headline "EASTENDERS STAR IS A KILLER." The security gates at the BBC Elstree Centre (where EastEnders is filmed) were swamped with journalists and photographers, and so began a "double-edged" relationship between EastEnders and the popular press. The devisers of the programme were quick to realise that whilst a newspaper's publicity may sometimes boost a soap's position in

30590-429: The following year, BBC Choice was launched as the third general entertainment channel from the BBC. The BBC also purchased The Parliamentary Channel, which was renamed BBC Parliament . In 1999, BBC Knowledge launched as a multimedia channel, with services available on the newly launched BBC Text digital teletext service (later rebranded as BBC Red Button), and on BBC Online . The channel had an educational aim, which

30820-402: The forthcoming ending of the remaining £253 million funding towards pensioner licence fees would increase financial pressures. In January 2021, it was reported that former banker Richard Sharp would succeed David Clementi , as chairman, when he stepped down in February. In March 2023, the BBC was at the centre of a political row with football pundit Gary Lineker , after he criticised

31050-499: The four national channels, a series of local BBC radio stations were established in 1967, including Radio London . In 1969, the BBC Enterprises department was formed to exploit BBC brands and programmes for commercial spin-off products. In 1979, it became a wholly owned limited company, BBC Enterprises Ltd. In 1974, the BBC's teletext service, Ceefax , was introduced, created initially to provide subtitling, but developed into

31280-562: The full cost of running the BBC World Service and the BBC Monitoring service from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and partially finance the Welsh broadcaster S4C . Further cuts were announced on 6 October 2011, so the BBC could reach a total reduction in their budget of 20%, following the licence fee freeze in October 2010, which included cutting staff by 2,000 and sending a further 1,000 to

31510-490: The funeral of Frank's first wife, June. Joan also meets Janine properly for the first time, and, when questioned by her, reveals that she has no children because of fertility issues. Throughout the day, Frank and Joan snipe at each other about their lack of contact, until Pat ( Pam St. Clement ) intervenes. When Joan goes to leave, using her job at an Oxfam as an excuse, Mo suddenly becomes lucid and begs her to stay overnight. Later, Joan argues with Frank over her involvement in

31740-584: The future. Den's downfall ironically begins just hours later on Christmas Eve when he discovers that Sharon and Dennis have resumed their affair. On Christmas Day, he hears that they are planning on leaving for the United States, unless he can accept them both as a couple. To split them up, Den persuades Zoe to lie that she is pregnant with Dennis's baby, which is successful, and he gleefully watches as Dennis soon decides to stay with Zoe. However, Den's plan backfires when Sharon decides to leave alone instead, as she

31970-633: The government. Throughout the 1930s, political broadcasts had been closely monitored by the BBC. In 1935, the BBC censored the broadcasts of Oswald Mosley and Harry Pollitt . Mosley was a leader of the British Union of Fascists , and Pollitt a leader of the Communist Party of Great Britain . They had been contracted to provide a series of five broadcasts on their parties' politics. The BBC, in conjunction with The Foreign Office of Britain, first suspended this series and ultimately cancelled it without

32200-507: The head with an iron doorstop in The Queen Vic, and believes she has killed him. Minutes later, whilst Sam and Zoe go upstairs, Den stirs and grabs Chrissie's ankle, telling her, "You'll never get me out of The Vic!" Chrissie responds by striking him over the head again, finally managing to kill him. Sam secretly witnesses the fatal blow, but Chrissie continues to allow Zoe to think it is she who has killed Den. The three women bury Den in The Queen Vic cellar and concrete it over. Arguments between

32430-405: The higher resolution 625-line standard which had been standardised across Europe. BBC2 was broadcast in colour from 1 July 1967 and was joined by BBC1 and ITV on 15 November 1969. The 405-line VHF transmissions of BBC1 (and ITV) were continued for compatibility with older television receivers until 1985. Starting in 1964, a series of pirate radio stations (starting with Radio Caroline ) came on

32660-451: The hope that she will become attached to her child, who is originally called Billie, but is later renamed Jasmine . It is a rough ride for Disa, as she is severely lacking parenting skills. She also finds it difficult to bond with her baby initially, but with the help of Diane and Mark she begins to settle into life in the Square, and she soon grows to love her baby. Dot Cotton ( June Brown ), who often attracts waifs and strays, looks after

32890-651: The house, where he sees a few teenagers breaking into the laundrette. After saving Dot, the two have a heart-to-heart, and Den agrees to call Chrissie. Upon meeting with Chrissie, Den decides he needs to get some time away and returns to Spain for a few weeks. Den returns in November 2004, apparently a new man. He apologises to Ian, Pat and his family for his earlier mistakes. He also forces an older boyfriend of Vicki's to leave after discovering he cheated on her. Chrissie agrees to get back with Den after much convincing, but threatens to kill him if he ever cheats again. To rebuild his family, Den attempts to regain The Queen Vic from

33120-534: The late 1980s, the BBC began a process of divestment by spinning off and selling parts of its organisation. In 1988, it sold off the Hulton Press Library, a photographic archive which had been acquired from the Picture Post magazine by the BBC in 1957. The archive was sold to Brian Deutsch and is now owned by Getty Images . In 1987, the BBC decided to centralize its operations by the management team with

33350-550: The latter for armed robbery; formed a friendship with Dot Cotton ( June Brown ); slept with Phil's ex-wife Kate Morton ( Jill Halfpenny ) and his sister Sam ( Kim Medcalf ) as revenge; became publicly humiliated after losing a high-stakes poker game to the square's crime kingpin Andy Hunter ( Michael Higgs ); and conned Sam into relinquishing her ownership of The Queen Vic back to him by blackmailing her lawyer Marcus Christie ( Stephen Churchett ). Grantham left in 2004, and Den

33580-665: The leader of the Free French, made a speech, broadcast by the BBC, urging the French people not to capitulate to the Nazis. In October 1940, Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret made their first radio broadcast for the BBC's Children's Hour , addressing other children who had been evacuated from cities. In 1938, John Reith and the Government of the United Kingdom , specifically the Ministry of Information which had been set up for WWII, designed

33810-446: The letter she wrote to him. In a heated confrontation, she smashes a teapot. Joan leaves Walford that evening, and agrees with Frank that they should keep in contact for Mo's sake, although her departure is marred by Mo's insistence on leaving with her - she is still afraid that Frank wants to kill her. Joan placates her by saying she will talk to Graham first. Unable to cope with his mother's illness, Frank begins talking about fulfilling

34040-419: The lie with Den. During this time, Den pretends to care for Dennis, who finally begins to see him as a father figure. Dennis also looks forward to being a father and even begins to feel love for Zoe, who he had initially shunned out of his feelings for Sharon. However, when Dennis eventually catches Zoe and Den in bed together, he rejects the two of them and packs his bags. Despite this, Den appears pleased. In

34270-489: The loss-making consortium, and Reith was keen that the BBC be seen as a public service rather than a commercial enterprise. The recommendations of the Crawford Committee were published in March the following year and were still under consideration by the GPO when the 1926 United Kingdom general strike broke out in May. The strike temporarily interrupted newspaper production, and with restrictions on news bulletins waived,

34500-406: The man flee, and Disa disappears. The following day, on Christmas Eve, Diane is approached by a homeless man who agrees to bring Disa to her in exchange for money. Diane finally gets a chance to speak to her friend, but Disa refuses to take her help, and orders Diane to stay out of her life and leaves. On Christmas Day Disa goes into labour, alone in a derelict building near Walford, and gives birth to

34730-448: The man, whose name is later revealed to be Harry Osborne . They discover that he had travelled the world before his recent return to Walford. Hazel – spurred on by Harry's tales – leaves Rod to do some travelling of her own. Harry is seen regularly over the following weeks, mysteriously enquiring about old faces on the Square and cryptically turning up at the christening of Steven Beale , much to everyone's bemusement. Rod learns that he

34960-754: The material their broadcasts would cover. Nothing was to be added outside the preordained news items. For example, the BBC Polish Service was heavily censored due to fears of jeopardising relations with the Soviet Union . Controversial topics, i.e. the contested Polish and Soviet border, the deportation of Polish citizens, the arrests of Polish Home Army members and the Katyn massacre , were not included in Polish broadcasts. American radio broadcasts were broadcast across Europe on BBC channels. This material also passed through

35190-530: The modest, church-going elderly or a member of the Clergy . Until 1928, entertainers broadcasting on the BBC, both singers and "talkers" were expected to avoid biblical quotations, Clerical impersonations and references, references to drink or Prohibition in the United States , vulgar and doubtful matter and political allusions. The BBC excluded popular foreign music and musicians from its broadcasts, while promoting British alternatives. On 5 March 1928, Stanley Baldwin,

35420-413: The new corporation adopted the coat of arms , including the motto "Nation shall speak peace unto Nation". British radio audiences had little choice apart from the upscale programming of the BBC. Reith, an intensely moralistic executive, was in full charge. His goal was to broadcast "All that is best in every department of human knowledge, endeavour and achievement.... The preservation of a high moral tone

35650-477: The new landlord of The Queen Victoria public house , which he buys from Frank Butcher ( Mike Reid ). He is a serious minded landlord, far different from his predecessors Den Watts ( Leslie Grantham ) and Frank. Not everyone takes to him, particularly when they discover his prior profession. Eddie doesn't really have any real friends in Albert Square , but his father John ( Paddy Joyce ), often turns up in Walford to keep his son company. Whilst being landlord at

35880-473: The next year. In its 2017–18 report, released July 2017, the BBC announced plans to "re-invent" its output to better compete against commercial streaming services such as Netflix . These plans included increasing the diversity of its content on television and radio, a major increase in investments towards digital children's content, and plans to make larger investments in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland to "rise to

36110-491: The night of Den's murder, Johnny killed Andy by throwing him off a motorway flyover, although the coroner recorded a verdict of suicide. After working together to extract CCTV footage of Chrissie confessing Den's murder to her boyfriend Jake Moon ( Joel Beckett ) in Johnny's nightclub, Dennis and Sharon help the Mitchells prove Sam's innocence; the police are called and Chrissie is arrested after Sharon intercepts her attempt to flee

36340-413: The notice of the public. Less radical politicians faced similar censorship. In 1938, Winston Churchill proposed a series of talks regarding British domestic and foreign politics and affairs but was similarly censored. The censorship of political discourse by the BBC was a precursor to the total shutdown of political debate that manifested over the BBC's wartime airwaves. The Foreign Office maintained that

36570-492: The occupants of the soap's local pub, now famously known as The Queen Vic . Holland, who had worked as a barman in his youth, called upon his own personal experiences to invent the Watts family and the pub they lived in. Holland and Smith had always been critical of the way pubs had been portrayed on television feeling they lacked vitality and life, so they were determined that their pub and occupants were going to be more realistic. The Watts family were seen by Holland as integral to

36800-541: The opinions of those in Parliament who are not nominated by Party Leaders or Party Whips, thus stifling independent, non-official views. In October 1932, the policemen of the Metropolitan Police Federation marched in protest at a proposed pay cut. Fearing dissent within the police force and public support for the movement, the BBC censored its coverage of the events, only broadcasting official statements from

37030-422: The opportunity to shine through. The next 18 months saw Den and Angie struggle to get by without each other, and eventually they reunited as business partners. However, at the beginning of 1988 Anita Dobson decided that she wanted to move on after three years of playing Angie. She made her final appearance in May that year. Leslie Grantham had also decided that he wanted to move on, but Julia Smith didn't want

37260-409: The other way around. When Michelle gives birth to their daughter, Vicki , she refuses to give Den any contact with her – though he financially supports Michelle in secret. For many years the secret is kept hidden but Michelle's mother, Pauline ( Wendy Richard ), is one of the first to realize the truth, igniting a feud between her and Den, which intensifies when he admits to her in January 1988 that he

37490-407: The people of Britain and broadcast content according to these perceived standards. Reith effectively censored anything that he felt would be harmful, directly or indirectly. While recounting his time with the BBC in 1935, Raymond Postgate claims that BBC broadcasters were made to submit a draft of their potential broadcast for approval. It was expected that they tailored their content to accommodate

37720-401: The police to save his life and is remanded in custody in September 1988 at Dickens Hill prison. In Dickens Hill, Den struggles initially, as many inmates refuse to trust him. Homosexual inmate Queenie Price (John Labanowski) takes an instant dislike to Den and suspects him of being a "grass", leading to Queenie and his friends beating him up in his cell. Despite this, Den unveils Queenie as

37950-567: The police ultimately decide not to charge him with any crimes, realising that he had still been in Spain when Dalton was killed. Den soon gets embroiled in a feud with Sharon's former boyfriend, Phil Mitchell ( Steve McFadden ), after hearing that Phil hit her and also arranged for Dennis to be beaten up by a gang. As revenge, Den sleeps with Phil's younger sister Sam ( Kim Medcalf ) – then dumps her promptly. He later promises another of Phil's former girlfriends, Lisa Fowler ( Lucy Benjamin ), that he will help her get back her daughter Louise , who

38180-435: The positive impression created by its balanced coverage of the views of government and strikers, Seaton has characterised the episode as the invention of "modern propaganda in its British form". Reith argued that trust gained by 'authentic impartial news' could then be used. Impartial news was not necessarily an end in itself. The BBC did well out of the crisis, which cemented a national audience for its broadcasting, and it

38410-460: The possibility of Den returning in the future. In protest, Tony Holland and Julia Smith had their names taken off the episode's credits. Den's exit ended up being the creators' final contribution to the show. BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation ( BBC ) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London , England. Originally established in 1922 as

38640-476: The post, with a note saying 'We regret, etc.'" In the 1930s music broadcasts also enjoyed great popularity, for example the friendly and wide-ranging BBC Theatre Organ broadcasts at St George's Hall , London by Reginald Foort , who held the official role of BBC Staff Theatre Organist from 1936 to 1938. Television broadcasting was suspended from 1 September 1939 to 7 June 1946, during the World War II , and it

38870-539: The production team had no real idea of other material that would have to fit around it. The character was eventually to bow out on 23 February 1989 in one of the programme's most famous episodes which attracted well over 20 million viewers. After being abducted by a group of gangsters who ambushed the taxi taking him to court, Den escaped from his captors and returned to the famous canal (in Alperton ) for one last rendezvous with Michelle. The episode ended with Den being shot by

39100-412: The programme and the BBC, Smith decided not to withdraw Grantham from the role. In her opinion, he had paid the full penalty that society requires for a mistake committed in his past and it was a "Christian duty to forgive". The story found its way into the British press much faster than expected. Three days after the transmission of episode one, EastEnders made the front page of a national newspaper for

39330-419: The programme to suffer the double blow of losing both Den and Angie so close together. The solution to the problem was one of the soap's most complicated and creative exercises, that required intricate planning. The idea was to enable Den to stay as an on-screen presence into 1989, while keeping Grantham working for EastEnders only until the autumn of 1988. Tony Holland and writer/editor Bill Lyons came up with

39560-461: The programme, 3 October 1985. The episode was written by series co-creator/script editor Tony Holland and directed by co-creator/producer Julia Smith, and was considered to be a landmark episode in the show's history. Four possible suspects were seen leaving the Square in the early half of the episode: Tony Carpenter ( Oscar James ), Ali Osman ( Nejdet Salih ), Andy O'Brien ( Ross Davidson ) and Den Watts. As Michelle waited by their rendezvous point

39790-451: The programme. Den soon became involved in storylines that mostly contributed to the character's magnanimous and "bad boy" persona, such as Den impregnating 16-year-old Michelle Fowler ( Susan Tully ) – which resulted in a long-standing feud with Michelle's mother Pauline ( Wendy Richard ); teaming up with longtime companion Pete Beale ( Peter Dean ) to force their enemy Nick Cotton ( John Altman ) out of Walford for causing trouble around

40020-440: The pub, Eddie rents a room to his barmaid Sharon Watts ( Letitia Dean ). Although he never approves of her relationship with the local thug, Grant Mitchell ( Ross Kemp ), and this often makes things awkward between the pair. Eddie never married as a policeman, however, in Walford, he decides he needs a mate. He patiently pursues Kathy Beale ( Gillian Taylforth ), but she sees him kissing Eibhlin O'Donnell (Mary Conlon), who

40250-477: The public mainstream. One such cartoon showed the British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher , telling her cabinet that the best way to alert the country to the dangers of AIDS was to give the disease to Den. During 1986 the series became dominated by Den and Angie's storylines and the focus of the programme was very much concentrated on their combustible relationship. The emphasis began early in 1986 with

40480-459: The public should not be aware of their role in the censorship. From 1935 to 1939, the BBC also attempted to unite the British Empire's radio waves, sending staff to Egypt, Palestine , Newfoundland , Jamaica, India, Canada and South Africa. Reith personally visited South Africa, lobbying for state-run radio programmes which was accepted by South African Parliament in 1936. A similar programme

40710-423: The radio and television divisions joining forces together for the first time, the activities of the news and currents departments and coordinated jointly under the new directorate. During the 1990s, this process continued with the separation of certain operational arms of the corporation into autonomous but wholly owned subsidiaries , with the aim of generating additional revenue for programme-making. BBC Enterprises

40940-402: The ratings, it could equally help to tarnish it. In conjunction, soaps could help to sell newspapers, and from then on stories about EastEnders and the cast began to fill their pages. Grantham was hounded by the press and the BBC was forced to put out a statement supporting him and their decision to employ a convicted murderer. To keep the press at bay, Grantham was smuggled out of the studios by

41170-407: The recently murdered Jack Dalton – who was shot dead by Dennis after revealing that Den had survived the shooting. Eventually, Sharon forgives him and Den returns to live in Walford to assist Sharon in managing her nightclub, Angie's Den. Police soon learn of Den's return to Walford and promptly arrest him for perverting the course of justice. However, Den remains silent during intense questioning and

41400-547: The rest of Christmas happily with his family, before leaving for Spain on Boxing Day to tie up some loose ends. Family problems arise when Den returns three months later, and discovers that Sharon and Dennis are in a romantic relationship; Den considers it to be incest, despite Sharon and Dennis not being blood-related. During an intense meeting between the two in The Queen Vic, Den calmly attempts to persuade Dennis to break up with Sharon, but when this fails, he turns nasty and mocks Dennis for believing that their bonding at Christmas

41630-489: The rest of the Tavernier clan: father Celestine ( Leroy Golding ), mother Etta ( Jacqui Gordon-Lawrence ), grandfather Jules ( Tommy Eytle ), older brother Clyde ( Steven Woodcock ) and twin sister Hattie ( Michelle Gayle ). Lloyd suffers with sickle-cell anaemia and because of this his entire family tend to 'wrap him up in cotton-wool', which often leaves him feeling smothered. His father's strict rules only seek to alienate him further so he spends most of his time on

41860-535: The rule that no actor was ever to appear in public "in character". Despite the controversy surrounding Grantham, the Watts, with Anita Dobson as the newly appointed Angie, were the surprise hit characters of the show. Angie and Den were a live-wire couple whose on/off relationship made the Queen Vic pub exciting and unpredictable and the viewers tuned in their millions to watch the destruction of their relationship on-screen. Den's clashes with Angie brought EastEnders to

42090-443: The sales of OBs and costumes, the remainder of BBC Resources was reorganised as BBC Studios and Post Production , which continues today as a wholly owned subsidiary of the BBC. The 2004 Hutton Inquiry and the subsequent report raised questions about the BBC's journalistic standards and its impartiality. This led to resignations of senior management members at the time including the then Director General, Greg Dyke . In January 2007,

42320-487: The same time. Portrayed as an intelligent, independent young woman, Hattie remains in the serial after the departures of many of her screen family, covering issues such as miscarriage and sexual harassment. Michelle Gayle quit the role in 1993 to embark on a pop career. Gayle filmed no official exit storyline for Hattie. Her last scene aired on 21 December 1993, with Hattie departing to visit her parents off-screen in Norwich for

42550-399: The show was contributed with the introductions of his and Michelle's daughter Vicki ( Scarlett Alice Johnson ), as well as Den's biological son Dennis Rickman ( Nigel Harman ), and later the character's manipulative second wife Chrissie ( Tracy-Ann Oberman ) in 2004. His second stint on the programme saw Den repeatedly clash with Dennis over his romantic feelings for Sharon – which sparked

42780-612: The show's success, partly because he had already guessed that the pub was going to be a monstrous battleground where emotions would run high on a regular basis, and also because the occupants would be providing the majority of the drama. Den's original character outline as written by Smith and Holland appeared in an abridged form in their book, EastEnders: The Inside Story . In this passage, Den will be referred to as Jack, his wife as Pearl, his daughter as Tracey and his dog as Prince (known now as Angie, Sharon and Roly respectively). EastEnders ' lead director Matthew Robinson recommended

43010-428: The soap its highest ever episode rating, which has yet to be beaten by any other plotline from any other soap in the UK. This storyline saw the separation of Den and Angie. Holland and Smith had anticipated that Den and Angie would be popular, but they had not guessed how hysterical the reaction to them would be. It was decided that Den and Angie would have to be played down for a while so that other characters would have

43240-455: The soap's most popular characters and is the second longest-running male protagonist to appear in the serial. He is first introduced as the lesser of two thugs, but becomes a darker character after Grant leaves. More recent storylines, such as the return of his son Ben , have shown a softer side to the character. In 2010, McFadden was given six weeks off EastEnders, so he could appear in pantomime. He has, at various times, owned many businesses in

43470-405: The square attempting to rebel against them. His condition means that he becomes easily tired so he is forbidden from getting a job as his parents fear that he would over-exert himself. Lloyd ignores his family's wishes and secretly gets a job as a paper boy. He regrets his defiance however, as he collapses in the playground with sickle cell crisis, and is rushed to hospital frightening his family with

43700-433: The square; romancing with his mistress Jan Hammond ( Jane How ); and getting revenge on business rival James Willmott-Brown ( William Boyde ) for raping Pete's beloved wife Kathy ( Gillian Taylforth ). Grantham quit the series in 1988, and in February 1989, Den was apparently killed off after getting shot due to his involvement with The Firm – a criminal organization which ended up trying to have him murdered in light of

43930-460: The staff of the licensing authority, the General Post Office (GPO), was sufficient to lead to a ban on further Chelmsford broadcasts. But by 1922, the GPO had received nearly 100 broadcast licence requests and moved to rescind its ban in the wake of a petition by 63 wireless societies with over 3,000 members. Anxious to avoid the same chaotic expansion experienced in the United States,

44160-427: The strategy for the corporation, assesses the performance of the BBC's executive board in delivering the BBC's services, and appoints the director-general. Ofcom is responsible for the regulation of the BBC. The board consists of the following members: The executive committee is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the broadcaster. Consisting of senior managers of the BBC, the committee meets once per month and

44390-457: The streets. Disa first appeared in flashback sequences involving Diane on 27 and 29 March 1990, before returning from 18 December. The character was written out of the series the following year and departs in episode 633, first broadcast on 28 February 1991. Graveson reprised the role in 2022 for the funeral of Dot Cotton ( June Brown ). Disa is first seen in March 1990, in flashback scenes set from January. Diane Butcher has run away from home and

44620-520: The streets. In an attempt to get Disa back within his power, Ken kidnaps Jasmine, leaving Disa frantic with worry. With the help of the police, Dot manages to trap him. Ken is arrested and imprisoned, and the baby is returned to Disa unharmed. Disa refuses to admit to the sexual abuse she has been subjected to, even when she is told that Ken would be imprisoned for a long time if she did. However, she does confide in Kathy Beale ( Gillian Taylforth ) through

44850-409: The teenage pregnancy of Michelle Fowler ( Susan Tully ). Press interest in the show escalated as journalists continuously tried to predict who had fathered Michelle's baby. In true whodunit fashion, the audience had been kept in the dark as to the real identity of the father and were given teasers implicating several residents on the Square. The audience finally discovered the culprit in episode 66 of

45080-449: The true prison-snitch and gains respect, rising through the ranks to become "No.1" of his landing. On the outside, the Firm still feel that Den is a liability; fearing that he will tell the police about their dealings and decide that Den has to die. They ambush and kidnap Den when he is being accompanied to trial on 23 February 1989, but Den escapes again and makes plans to leave the country. He contacts Michelle, requesting that they meet by

45310-483: The truth when Phil and his brother Grant ( Ross Kemp ) – who had previously been married to Sharon during Den's 14-year absence – return to help their mother Peggy ( Barbara Windsor ) bring down Chrissie and prove Sam innocent. It is then that both the Mitchell and Watts families found themselves entangled in a conflict with Den's old friend, Johnny Allen ( Billy Murray ), a local mob boss who recently usurped Andy from his position as Walford's reigning crime kingpin; on

45540-563: The value of the artist as a visible music-hall performer". On the other hand, the BBC was "keenly interested" in a cooperation with the recording companies who "in recent years ... have not been slow to make records of singers, orchestras, dance bands, etc. who have already proved their power to achieve popularity by wireless." Radio plays were so popular that the BBC had received 6,000 manuscripts by 1929, most of them written for stage and of little value for broadcasting: "Day in and day out, manuscripts come in, and nearly all go out again through

45770-416: The wake of this, Dennis leaves in search of Sharon, but not before encountering Chrissie and telling her about Zoe and Den's affair. Chrissie does not reveal to Den that she knows what he has done. Instead, Chrissie slowly plans her revenge and when Zoe discovers she is pregnant with Den's child, Chrissie persuades her to abort the baby, not letting on that she knows Den is the baby's father. She also concocts

46000-478: The way home via the Orient Express and admits to a barman that she is not dying, unaware that Den has overheard her drunken confession. He bides his time and gets revenge by serving her divorce papers on Christmas Day. The couple's divorce is finalised in 1987 and Angie damages Den by demanding a large divorce settlement. Den runs The Queen Vic alone, initially assisted by Jan, but this relationship ends when Jan grows disillusioned with Den's treatment of her. Den has

46230-702: The wish in Mo's letter, worrying Joan. The next day, in more lucid moments, Mo phones for minicabs to take her to Colchester, calls which Frank and Dot Cotton ( June Brown ) have to cancel afterwards. Joan and Graham visit Walford that day and Joan suggests that she and Graham take Mo to stay with them temporarily, saying that the break may do Mo's memory some good and give both Frank and Pat a chance to relax. However, when Frank points out that Mo's memory will never get better, Joan accuses him of not wanting Mo to get better. She and Frank then argue, with Frank accusing Joan of only getting involved out of guilt, due to her estrangement from

46460-414: The women occur, and Sam and Chrissie become embroiled in a feud to regain ownership of The Queen Vic, with Sam blackmailing Chrissie and eventually digging up Den's body in the hope that Chrissie will be imprisoned, and Chrissie subsequently framing Sam for Den's murder, which leads to Sam's imprisonment. Sharon and Dennis had returned to Walford and married by the time this happened, and she eventually learns

46690-509: The £700 million cost for free TV licences for the over-75 pensioners, and rapid inflation in drama and sport coverage costs, was given as the reason. Duplication of management and content spending would be reduced, and there would be a review of BBC News . In September 2019, the BBC launched the Trusted News Initiative to work with news and social media companies to combat disinformation about national elections. In 2020,

46920-471: Was a springboard to future emotional fireworks and a precursor to Angie's further dependence on alcohol and her attempted suicide. Den and Angie's traumatic two-hander episode in October 1986 was another risky experiment for EastEnders — A thirty-minute episode with only two people in it had never been attempted in a soap before. Holland and Smith feared that the episode would not hold up, however press and audience alike were in agreement that it did. Once it

47150-442: Was a widely reported urban myth that, upon resumption of the BBC television service after the war, announcer Leslie Mitchell started by saying, "As I was saying before we were so rudely interrupted ..." In fact, the first person to appear when transmission resumed was Jasmine Bligh and the words said were "Good afternoon, everybody. How are you? Do you remember me, Jasmine Bligh ... ?" The European Broadcasting Union

47380-495: Was adopted in Canada. Through collaboration with these state-run broadcasting centres, Reith left a legacy of cultural influence across the empire of Great Britain with his departure from the corporation in 1938. Experimental television broadcasts were started in 1929, using an electromechanical 30-line system developed by John Logie Baird . Limited regular broadcasts using this system began in 1932, and an expanded service (now named

47610-447: Was dead. The body found in 1990 was in fact that of the gangland boss, Mr. Vinnicombe, who was murdered as punishment for failing in his attempt to have Den killed. Hearing this, Vicki traces Den and brings him back to Walford in September 2003. Sharon has mixed emotions, being pleased that he is alive, but angry that he faked his own death, and also berating him for his mistakes that he made before his alleged death. Dennis explains that

47840-513: Was divided on how to handle the BBC, but ended up trusting Reith, whose opposition to the strike mirrored the PM's own. Although Winston Churchill in particular wanted to commandeer the BBC to use it "to the best possible advantage", Reith wrote that Stanley Baldwin 's government wanted to be able to say "that they did not commandeer [the BBC], but they know that they can trust us not to be really impartial". Thus

48070-627: Was done, it set a precedent and the programme has featured two-handers ever since. The episode was structured like a "tennis match" between Angie and Den, with a non-speaking window-cleaner forever strolling innocently into the action. It began with Den trying to tell Angie that he wanted a divorce. Angie was shocked and for a moment defeated, but she then dropped her bombshell and told Den that she only had six months to live. At first Den didn't believe her, but eventually Angie's hysterical performance convinced him. He crumbled and promised to stay with her and only after he left did Angie smile in triumph, letting

48300-530: Was far brighter than Frank and, after graduating from school with 7 O-levels and an A-level , she married a chief accountant, Graham (Ian Thompson). Following their marriage, Joan and Graham moved to Colchester , and kept little contact with Joan's family in Walford. After Mo is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 1990, she starts speaking of and referring to people (mostly Diane ( Sophie Lawrence ), her granddaughter) as Joan, which gives some light into their relationship: Mo believes that Joan sees herself in

48530-516: Was fatally bludgeoned to death by Chrissie. The character's death was watched by 14.34 million viewers – and would later serve as the most important storyline of 2005 with Sharon teaming up with Phil, along with his brother Grant ( Ross Kemp ) and their mother Peggy ( Barbara Windsor ), to exonerate Sam after Chrissie framed her for Den's murder. Den Watts and his wife Angie ( Anita Dobson ) are landlords of The Queen Victoria public house in Albert Square , Walford . They have been there since

48760-640: Was followed by the Government's acceptance of the recommendation made by the Crawford Committee (1925–26) that the British Broadcasting Company be replaced by a non-commercial, Crown-chartered organisation: the British Broadcasting Corporation. The British Broadcasting Corporation came into existence on 1 January 1927, and Reith – newly knighted – was appointed its first director general. To represent its purpose and (stated) values,

48990-425: Was formed on 12 February 1950, in Torquay with the BBC among the 23 founding broadcasting organisations. Competition to the BBC was introduced in 1955, with the commercial and independently operated television network of Independent Television (ITV) . However, the BBC monopoly on radio services would persist until 8 October 1973 when under the control of the newly renamed Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA),

49220-453: Was its first director of music. The company was to be financed by a royalty on the sale of BBC wireless receiving sets from approved domestic manufacturers. To this day, the BBC aims to follow the Reithian directive to "inform, educate and entertain". The financial arrangements soon proved inadequate. Set sales were disappointing as amateurs made their own receivers and listeners bought rival unlicensed sets. By mid-1923, discussions between

49450-450: Was later reported missing in action and presumed dead. Doris subsequently married Morris Miller. When Harry returned, he managed to find employment working on the docks , where he occasionally got his hands on scarce food items, which he smuggled out and shared with his neighbours. On one occasion, he gave some meat to a nine-year-old girl. However, the meat turned out to be unsanitary and it accidentally poisoned her. She died and Harry fled

49680-406: Was left to BBC Radio broadcasters such as Reginald Foort to keep the nation's spirits up. The BBC moved most of its radio operations out of London, initially to Bristol , and then to Bedford . Concerts were broadcast from the Bedford Corn Exchange ; the Trinity Chapel in St Paul's Church, Bedford was the studio for the daily service from 1941 to 1945, and, in the darkest days of the war in 1941,

49910-486: Was made explicit for the duration of its current broadcast licence, as was the prohibition on advertising. To avoid competition with newspapers, Fleet Street persuaded the government to ban news bulletins before 7 pm and the BBC was required to source all news from external wire services. The Radio Times , the world's first and longest-running radio and television listings magazine, was launched by Reith in September 1923. The first edition, subtitled "The official organ of

50140-400: Was modified later on in its life to offer documentaries. In 2002, several television and radio channels were reorganised. BBC Knowledge was replaced by BBC Four and became the BBC's arts and documentaries channel. CBBC , which had been a programming strand as Children's BBC since 1985, was split into CBBC and CBeebies , for younger children, with both new services getting a digital channel:

50370-464: Was once the boyfriend of Lou Beale 's ( Anna Wing ) sister, Doris. Lou died in 1988 but Harry is persuaded to pay her daughter, Pauline ( Wendy Richard ), a visit to find out about Doris. He knocks on her door but fearfully flees before she answers. It soon becomes clear that Harry's past isn't the only thing troubling him, he is also suffering from ill health and is seen clutching his chest in obvious pain. One cold, rainy afternoon, Harry sits in pain on

50600-516: Was persuaded to return to the role for brief stints during a period of heavy media criticism aimed at EastEnders . The return proved to be a ratings success, though Kemp has since been sceptical about the possibility of another return. A popular character, prominent in the series, Grant is portrayed as a tough persona, known for his fiery temper and his tendency to resort to violence. Family is important to him, particularly his relationship with his brother, Phil ( Steve McFadden ). Grant and Phil known as

50830-549: Was played by a non-speaking and uncredited extra. Jules Tavernier , played by Tommy Eytle between 1990 and 1997, is depicted as a flirtatious older gentleman. He is introduced in 1990 and remains in the show after the departures of all of his on-screen family. He is largely semi-regular during the latter part of his stint, and is not featured again after December 1997. Jules Tavernier appears in more than 150 episodes over his seven-year tenure. Lloyd Tavernier , played by Garey Bridges , arrives in Albert Square in July 1990 with

51060-463: Was pregnant, as he had undergone a vasectomy – this led Laura to believe that Garry Hobbs ( Ricky Groves ) had got her pregnant following an earlier fling. Ian eventually accepts Bobby as his son and asks Den to be godfather at the christening. However, Den still cannot remain monogamous, and when Chrissie discovers that he has been sleeping with Kate, she leaves Walford. Furious with Den, Sharon and Vicki leave on holiday and contrary to his claims, Den

51290-419: Was put on remand at Dickens Hill prison in September 1988. For the next five months he was seen, in the company of a small group of new but ultimately short-lived characters also confined in the prison, on a regular basis in EastEnders . This material was shot in less than a month at Dartmoor Prison , Devon . When these segments were written and recorded, they were done so entirely in isolation and in advance;

51520-771: Was real. This leaves Dennis deeply upset but he recovers, and again refuses to break up with Sharon, leading to Den clashing with him in The Queen Vic. Dennis laughs this off and tells Den that he is leaving to return to Sharon. Playing his last card, Den goads Dennis about his neglected childhood and implies that he suffered sexual abuse whilst in care, successfully provoking Dennis into accidentally hitting Sharon, who had just arrived, whilst trying to attack Den. A guilt-ridden Den later apologises and explains his reasons for not wanting his son and daughter together, because he wants both of them in his life, and he cannot have that if they are sleeping together. Den then tries to explain to Dennis that his feelings for Sharon are simply misguided due to

51750-410: Was reorganised and relaunched in 1995, as BBC Worldwide Ltd. In 1998, BBC studios, outside broadcasts, post production, design, costumes and wigs were spun off into BBC Resources Ltd. The BBC Research & Development has played a major part in the development of broadcasting and recording techniques. The BBC was also responsible for the development of the NICAM stereo standard. In recent decades,

51980-479: Was replaced by BBC Two HD in the same month. On 18 October 2007, BBC Director General Mark Thompson announced a controversial plan to make major cuts and reduce the size of the BBC as an organisation. The plans included a reduction in posts of 2,500; including 1,800 redundancies, consolidating news operations, reducing programming output by 10% and selling off the flagship Television Centre building in London. These plans were fiercely opposed by unions, who threatened

52210-410: Was running with another character: the rape of Kathy Beale ( Gillian Taylforth ). After simultaneously getting in way over his head with a criminal organisation (The Firm), Den torched Kathy's rapist's wine bar in retaliation, and was then made to take the blame for the deed by the firm. After he refused, went on the run, and was nearly killed by the firm's heavies, Den turned himself into the police and

52440-570: Was showing favouritism to the Mitchell brothers. When the council attempts to close part of the market for a possible development, Jackie, along with the other traders, petitions and protests against it. Fruit and veg trader Pete Beale ( Peter Dean ) is not impressed with his efforts and usurps his post as chairman. The councilman in charge of the development, Stuart Kendle (Mark Sproston), attempts to bribe Pete and Jackie to drop their opposition. Impressed by Pete's determination, Phil and Grant break into Kendle's office and find evidence that proves he

52670-408: Was the product of Den's fling 30 years earlier with a younger woman, Paula Rickman, the daughter of one of Den's friends. Like Den, Dennis has been involved with The Firm, and after some digging he discovers that Den is not actually dead; after surviving the shooting in 1989, Den fled to Spain with help from Jan and lived there in hiding for the next 14 years, while everyone else in Walford believed he

52900-566: Was ultimately killed-off for good on 18 February 2005, during the show's 20th anniversary episode that also featured Andy being murdered by his gangland successor Johnny Allen ( Billy Murray ) – who would later have Dennis killed on New Year's Eve 2005. Chrissie had conspired with Sam and Zoe to get revenge on Den for victimising them. They did so by destroying his relationship with Sharon, an act which prompted Den to attack Chrissie, that resulted in Zoe hitting him with Pauline's dog doorstop; this seemingly killed Den until he regained consciousness and

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