178-559: The Mitchell family is a fictional family in the UK soap opera EastEnders . They were first introduced in February 1990, when brothers Phil ( Steve McFadden ) and Grant Mitchell ( Ross Kemp ) bought the local garage, the Arches. Their sister Sam ( Danniella Westbrook / Kim Medcalf ) was introduced later in 1990, and their mother Peggy ( Jo Warne ) shortly after in 1991, before being reintroduced as
356-513: A "cheery soul". Brown ( Radio Times ) described Callum as "loveable" and a "cheeky chappie", while Hughes ( Radio Times ) called Callum a "chirpy chap" who is "troubled" when he returns. A Soaplife reporter described Callum as a "sweet and simple soldier", who is also slow-witted. Producers established a relationship for Callum when they paired him with Whitney Dean, who is Lee's former wife. Brown ( Radio Times ) said that Callum "anxiously prepares" for his date with Whitney. Rory O'Connor from
534-571: A "face to rival a neon sign", holding a Yorkshire Terrier in one hand and a pint of Guinness in the other. Other characters created included Jewish doctor Harold Legg , the Anglo-Cypriot Osman family ( Ali , Sue and baby Hassan ), black father and son Tony and Kelvin Carpenter , single mother Mary Smith and Bangladeshi couple Saeed and Naima Jeffery . Jack, Pearl and Tracey Watts were created to bring "flash, trash, and melodrama" to
712-405: A baby and they agree to try for one. Callum later tells Whitney they should put the baby on hold and save up to buy an apartment instead. Callum is called up to the army again and his doctor, Dr. Cosslett ( Hywel Simons ), deems him fit to return. Upset by the result of the assessment, Callum tries to harm himself, which is witnessed by Ben Mitchell ( Max Bowden ). Jay Brown ( Jamie Borthwick )
890-401: A better haircut. When Callum returns to the show, he is 27 years old. Callum is a comedic character, which Laura Morgan of Digital Spy liked as she felt scenes including Callum were "always funnier [than those without him]". Crick believed that Clay's background in stand up comedy would be resourceful when portraying Callum. Clay also observed that Callum is comedic, which he thought was
1068-465: A close and continuing association between EastEnders and audience research, which, though commonplace today, was something of a revolution in practice. The show's creators were both Londoners, but when they researched Victorian squares, they found massive changes in areas they thought they knew well; however, delving further into the East End of London, they found exactly what they had been searching for:
1246-530: A comedic character who was jovial, dopey and "happy-go-lucky" and who wore shabby clothing and beanie hats . Callum's initial stint on the show focuses on his relationship with the Carter family and establishing a relationship with Whitney Dean ( Shona McGarty ). The actor was only contracted for two months and Callum departs in the episode first broadcast in the United Kingdom on 16 February 2018. Afterwards, Clay
1424-468: A darker and more menacing character during the previous year, and five characters are suspected of being the culprit, who is revealed to be his ex-girlfriend Lisa Shaw ( Lucy Benjamin ). It is then Lisa gets pregnant with Phil's child, Louise . Lisa later takes Louise and emigrates to Portugal after her marriage to Mark Fowler ( Todd Carty ) ends. Phil follows her and returns with Louise in October 2002. Lisa
1602-456: A distraction from your own life, it should be an exploration of the life shared by the audience and the characters." O'Connor planned to stay with EastEnders until the end of 2017, but announced his departure on 23 June 2017 with immediate effect, saying he wanted to concentrate on a career in film. John Yorke returned as a temporary executive consultant. Kent said, "John Yorke is a Walford legend and I am thrilled that he will be joining us for
1780-471: A dominating force in Walford, quick to avenge any misdoings towards them. When Kathy fakes her death in early 2006 without anyone's knowledge, a 10-year-old Ben (now Charlie Jones ) comes to England to live with Phil. Phil gets engaged to Stella Crawford (Sophie Thompson), unaware that she was physically and mentally abusing Ben behind his back, which gets revealed on their wedding day. Stella commits suicide in
1958-463: A drink in The Queen Vic, and Whitney turns up in casual clothes and wearing no makeup but Callum has prepared for a date, giving her a rose and having candles. He asks if she fancies him and then pulls a ring from his pocket, to which Whitney says she will not marry him but he says he only wants her to be his girlfriend. She turns him down and leaves, and he follows, leaving the ring behind. Mick finds
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#17328690509012136-403: A full fringe, which differs from Clay's appearance. Claire Crick of Digital Spy thought that Clay could not "look less like his character if he tried." Clay had his hair cut for the role of Callum as he thought it would suit his character. Clay described the hairstyle as "mad" and thought people sympathised with the character because of it. He hoped that Whitney would decide to take Callum for
2314-508: A liver transplant. In 2017, Ronnie remarries Jack, but on the wedding night, she and Roxy drown in a hotel swimming pool. In April 2022, Sam (played by Kim Medcalf again) resurfaces to Walford. In January 2023, Sam's twelve-year-old son Ricky (Frankie Day) has a one-night stand with Stacey Slater ( Lacey Turner )'s twelve-year-old daughter Lily (Lillia Turner) resulting in Lily's pregnancy. Peggy Mitchell 's sister, Sal , occasionally appears but
2492-694: A main aspect to his character is that he does not like keeping secrets and wants to share everything with Whitney. Also, there is a clear change in Callum's personality when he returns, which is due to the secret. Clay thought it would be "exciting" for the audience to witness his journey. In his return episode, it is shown that Callum has been wounded while in the Army. Johnathon Hughes of the Radio Times described Callum's injury as "a large, very painful-looking wound". The following episode sees Callum reveal to Whitney that he
2670-631: A major story line that follows Phil's ongoing battle with alcoholism and ends with Peggy's suicide due to terminal cancer. Throughout their time on the show, the Mitchells make several references to their late patriarch Eric ( George Russo ), who first appeared in 2022 during a flashback episode to 1979 and served as a recurring impact for most of the family members, especially Phil and Peggy. The flashback episode also introduced Billy's father Stephen (Dean Roberts/ Alan Ford ) and brother Charlie (Charlie Heptinstall); Charlie's son Jamie ( Jack Ryder ) becomes
2848-555: A meeting with the BBC. Everyone agreed that EastEnders would be tough, violent on occasion, funny and sharp—set in Margaret Thatcher 's Britain—and it would start with a bang (namely the death of Reg Cox ). They decided that none of their existing characters were wicked enough to have killed Reg, so a 24th character, Nick Cotton was added to the line-up. He was a racist thug, who often tried to lead other young characters astray. When all
3026-488: A new regime for EastEnders , giving the writers of the serial more authority in storyline progression, with the script department providing "guidance rather than prescriptive episode storylines". By the end of 1992, Greaves had left, and Lewis became executive and series producer. He left EastEnders in 1994 after the BBC controllers demanded an extra episode a week, taking its weekly airtime from 60 to 90 minutes. Lewis felt that producing an hour of "reasonable quality drama"
3204-405: A nice characteristic. He explained that Callum tries to do good and wants to feel "included", and stated that Callum is a jovial character. He described Callum as "happy-go-lucky". Clay felt that although he and Callum shared similar mannerisms, he was not as "dopey" as his character. Callum often misinterprets moments with other people and says "things at the wrong time". Clay thought that this
3382-407: A past event that has affected Callum. After his first few episodes, Gary Gillatt, writing for Inside Soap , hoped that Callum would stay in the show because of his "tons of charisma". Reporters from Digital Spy liked the character, with Laura Morgan calling him "the kind of light comic relief we've all needed at the start of 2018." Morgan's colleague, Ben Lee, described Callum's initial stint on
3560-402: A positive response from critics, with a Soaplife columnist describing him as "a welcome ray of sunshine in the bleak world of Albert Square ", and Laura-Jayne Tyler of Inside Soap opining, "Square chiefs had clearly found a diamond in the rough with actor Tony Clay". Callum sends Mick Carter ( Danny Dyer ) a text message saying he is coming to his area. Callum later shoots Mick when he
3738-453: A programme that was more in touch with the real world than it had been over the previous year. A new era began in 1990, with the introduction of Phil Mitchell ( Steve McFadden ) and Grant Mitchell ( Ross Kemp )—the Mitchell brothers—successful characters who would go on to dominate the soap thereafter. As the new production team cleared the way for new characters and a new direction, all of
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#17328690509013916-447: A real East End spirit, an inward-looking quality, a distrust of strangers and authority figures, a sense of territory and community that the creators summed up as "Hurt one of us and you hurt us all". When developing EastEnders , both Smith and Holland looked at influential models like Coronation Street , but they found that it offered a rather outdated and nostalgic view of working-class life. Only after EastEnders began, and featured
4094-444: A regular character in 1994, with the role recast to Barbara Windsor . Since then, the family has been significantly expanded to include both the immediate and extended families. Phil has been the longest running Mitchell on the show, and the family has expanded significantly in the years since, remaining a large presence on the square. The Mitchell's have mostly been associated with the ownership of local pub The Queen Victoria ; Peggy
4272-419: A secret (" The Secret Mitchell "), until it is discovered by Archie. He manipulates her into thinking that Ronnie hated her and would reject her if she knew who she is. Archie and Peggy become engaged, and at the wedding reception Danielle reveals her true identity to Ronnie, who refuses to believe her, as Archie had stolen the locket that would have been proof to what Danielle was saying. However, Ronnie discovers
4450-445: A secret hanging over them, Callum confesses to Whitney he cheated on her with Ben. Whitney is devastated, but she still decides to go through with the wedding. However, Whitney changes her mind and jilts Callum at the altar, telling him she loves him too much to let him live a lie. Later, Hunter Owen (Charlie Winter) holds the pub hostage, shooting Ben in the process. Callum decides to be open with everyone in his life; he tells Stuart he
4628-409: A secret. It was reported that Whitney would be overjoyed when Callum returns but that she would notice that "Callum's mind seems to be elsewhere". Clay explained that it is evident from his return that something has happened to Callum, despite his efforts to hide this. He said that Callum wants to share his secret with Whitney as he is a good person and it "conflicts him a bit". The actor expressed how
4806-630: A set that is outdoors and open to weather. In 2014, the BBC announced plans to rebuild the set entirely. Filming commenced on the new set in January 2022, and it was first used on-screen in March 2022. Demolition on the old set commenced in November 2022. EastEnders has received both praise and criticism for many of its storylines, which have dealt with difficult themes including violence, rape, murder and abuse. It has been criticised for various storylines, including
4984-466: A short period to oversee the show and to help us build on Sean's legacy while we recruit a long-term successor." Yorke initially returned for three months but his contract was later extended. In July 2018, a special episode was aired as part of a knife crime storyline. This episode, which showed the funeral of Shakil Kazemi ( Shaheen Jafargholi ) interspersed with real people talking about their true-life experiences of knife crime. On 8 August 2018, it
5162-500: A silent voicemail from Stuart, Callum panics that he is suicidal; he and Shirley visit Stuart's apartment where she finds a defaced photo of Callum. With Shirley's help, Whitney and Callum reunite. Callum meets Stuart and they argue. Stuart later asks for Callum's help and he protects Stuart from the Carters, claiming that he is in Dublin, as Stuart burns photos of Callum with the Carters. Stuart
5340-448: A special episode which "broke new ground" and knife crime, both of which have created "vital" discussions. The soap won the award for Best Continuing Drama at the 2019 British Academy Television Awards ; its first high-profile award since 2016; however, in June 2019, EastEnders suffered its lowest ever ratings of 2.4 million due to its airing at 7 pm because of the BBC's coverage of
5518-560: A stunt on the River Thames leading to the death of Dennis Rickman Jr ( Bleu Landau ). It was announced on 18 March 2020 that production had been suspended on EastEnders and other BBC Studios continuing dramas in light of new government guidelines following the COVID-19 pandemic , and that broadcast of the show would be reduced to two 30-minute episodes per week, broadcast on Mondays and Tuesdays, respectively. A spokesperson confirmed that
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5696-414: A sweet goodbye. After leaving his bag behind, he returns and passionately kisses Whitney, before leaving again. Callum and Whitney stay in contact via video calls. When Callum returns, he is hiding a wound from his abdomen but later tells Whitney that he was injured by shrapnel in an explosion. He and Whitney have sex for the first time. Callum reveals that he saved a child's life in the explosion and he
5874-423: A teenager. The following day, he offers his assistance in The Queen Vic as an apology, although annoys the Carters when he accidentally orders too much alcohol and breaks glasses. Tiffany Butcher ( Maisie Smith ) sets Callum up to spend time with her adoptive sister, Whitney Dean ( Shona McGarty ). Callum offers to buy Whitney food and makes her laugh, so she considers meeting him again. They arrange to meet for
6052-606: A video online about it. After discovering that Stuart attacked Mick's aunt, Tina Carter ( Luisa Bradshaw-White ), when they were younger, the Carters reject Stuart and warn Callum to do the same. Stuart manipulates Callum into leaving the Carters and moving into his apartment; Callum tells the Carters that Stuart needs someone to believe him. Whitney visits Callum, who tells her that Tina attacked Stuart. After Whitney visits Stuart, he tells Callum that Whitney tried to kiss him; Callum ends their relationship. When Stuart confesses that he lied, Callum disowns him and leaves. After receiving
6230-598: A ward of Billy and later is killed off on Christmas Day 2002. As of 2024, a total of thirteen Mitchell blood relatives appear on the program: Phil; his sons Raymond Dawkins and Albie Watts ; Ben's daughter Lexi Pearce (Isabella Brown); Sam's son Ricky (Frankie Day) and his daughter Charli Slater ; Roxy's daughter Amy ( Ellie Dadd ); Phil’s cousins Billy ( Perry Fenwick ) and Teddy ( Roland Manookian ); Billy's children Janet (Grace) and Will (Freddie Phillips), and Teddy's children Harry (Elijah Holloway) and Barney (Lewis Bridgeman). There are others that marry into
6408-496: A week was the maximum that any broadcasting system could generate without loss of integrity. Having set up the transition to the new schedule, the first trio of episodes—dubbed The Vic siege—marked Lewis's departure from the programme. Barbara Emile then became the Executive Producer of EastEnders , remaining with EastEnders until early 1995. She was succeeded by Corinne Hollingworth . Hollingworth's contributions to
6586-504: Is Ben's daughter. Phil forms an attachment to Lexi following Ben's arrest and double-crosses Lola, pretending to help her regain custody of Lexi while really wanting to keep Lexi himself. He eventually hands Lexi back. Sharon, now Sharon Rickman, returns in 2012 and begins a relationship with Phil after her engagement to Jack fails. Ronnie is released from prison in 2013. Billy resumes custody of Janet in 2014 when Honey moves to Canada with William. Roxy briefly marries Alfie, but their marriage
6764-454: Is a 19th-century street, named after Prince Albert (1819–1861), the husband of Queen Victoria (1819–1901, reigned 1837–1901). Thus, central to Albert Square is The Queen Victoria Public House (also known as The Queen Vic or The Vic). The show's producers based the square's design on Fassett Square in Dalston . There is also a market close to Fassett Square at Ridley Road . The postcode for
6942-431: Is also considered to be part of the family. Following the Mitchells' arrival in 1990, Phil starts an affair with Grant's wife, Sharon Watts , in 1992 (" Sharongate "). Samantha "Sam" Mitchell ( Danniella Westbrook ) stays with her brothers to escape overbearing Peggy. Their father Eric had died five years earlier. After the affair is discovered in October 1994, Sharon and Grant divorce, and Grant and Phil's mother Peggy
7120-438: Is also dying from a relapse of breast cancer. Phil finds Louise, only to be rushed to a hospital shortly after. Phil's drinking worsens, and he destroys the car lot that leads to Louise nearly losing her life. In 2016, Peggy commits suicide rather than face a slow death from cancer; Grant discovers he has a son with Michelle Fowler ( Jenna Russell ), named Marcus ( Ned Porteous ); and Phil remains sober for long enough to receive
7298-526: Is also more confident than Callum. Clay believed that the differences in their personalities is evident. Sometimes, Callum admires his brother, but other times, he can feel untrusting of Stuart. Clay opined that their relationship is "quite Marmite at times". Clay told Duncan Lindsay of the Metro that Callum has "a need to feel included by his brother". Stuart and Mick are childhood friends, which Callum dislikes as he does not want Stuart to ruin his friendship with
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7476-537: Is and they end up kissing. Still confused about his sexuality, Callum proposes to Whitney, who happily accepts. Callum later contacts his estranged father, Jonno Highway ( Richard Graham ), and he comes to Walford. Jonno berates Callum for his lifestyle and they fall out. Afterwards, Ben comforts Callum and kisses him, which Stuart witnesses. Stuart confronts Callum about the kiss, so Callum confesses; Stuart then attacks Ben. The guilt over cheating on Whitney eats away at Callum. Not wanting to begin their life together with
7654-494: Is annulled when she realises on their wedding day that he is still in love with Kat. In the aftermath of her rejection, Roxy enters into a relationship with Carl White ( Daniel Coonan ), who has a troubled relationship with Phil, after sending him to the hospital earlier in the year as part of his plan to put Max Branning ( Jake Wood ) in prison. Ronnie tries to warn Roxy about Carl, but he attacks her, being killed by her in self-defence when he threatens to rape her. She disposes of
7832-445: Is arrested in 2003. He escapes prison and goes on the run from the police for over a year. Following Phil's departure, Sam (now Kim Medcalf ) takes control of the Mitchell empire, and a feud forms between Sam and the remaining Mitchells against Den Watts and his family in 2004. The Mitchell empire falls when Den blackmails their old friend of the family, Marcus Christie ( Stephen Churchett ), into scamming them of all their assets. Den
8010-474: Is born in 1996, but he contracts meningitis, which leaves him partially deaf. Whilst in France, Phil confesses to Kathy that he has slept with Lorna Cartwright ( Janet Dibley ), and they divorce in 1999. Kathy emigrates to South Africa with Ben in 1998. Grant marries Tiffany Raymond ( Martine McCutcheon ) in 1996, and they have a daughter, Courtney , who is born in early 1997. After a problematic marriage, Tiffany
8188-501: Is exposed. Phil is sent to prison, but found not guilty. Ben panics about his father's return, and kills Shirley's best friend Heather Trott ( Cheryl Fergison ) while arguing with her. Phil covers up the death, despite Shirley's devastation at her friend's death. Ben's crime is exposed several months later and he is sent to prison, while Shirley ends her relationship with Phil. Lola is accused of not being able to care for her baby, Lexi , and Phil takes custody of her when he finds out she
8366-455: Is gay and is accepted by him. Later at the hospital, Ben awakens and asks Callum on a date, to which he accepts. Actor Tony Clay was cast in the role of Callum "Halfway" Highway on a two-month contract. The character's introduction was not publicised in the media and he made his first appearance in the episode broadcast in the United Kingdom on 1 January 2018. Following his first episode, in which established character Mick Carter ( Danny Dyer )
8544-740: Is hailed a hero by the Carters, who throw him a party, but Callum dislikes the attention. Callum's brother, Stuart Highway ( Ricky Champ ) arrives and realises Callum is lying about his injury. Callum tells Mick that when he saved the child, his friend lost his legs and the child's mother was killed, but Mick says Callum was not to blame. Mick and Callum later assist Stuart in his work exposing paedophiles. Hoping to prove himself to Stuart, Callum confronts Fred Lewis (Malcolm Freeman), but lets him go when Mick threatens him with violence. When Linda finds out, she warns Mick and Callum that they could get hurt. Regardless, Callum tells Stuart that he wants to confront Fred again; Stuart confronts him instead and posts
8722-489: Is impressed with Callum when he gets one of his clients, Mrs. Coombes (Jonna Wake), to upgrade her husband's funeral plan and offers him a job as an undertaker at the funeral parlour. Whitney and Callum also move into the apartment above the parlour. Callum angrily confronts Ben over selling him a stolen van and it leads to a charged moment between the pair. Ben accuses Callum of being attracted to men as well as women, but he denies it. Ben tells Callum he should not hide who he
8900-551: Is introduced as the new landlady of the Queen Vic, replacing Sharon, who had lived in the pub all her life, but leaves Walford to live in America with her mother. In 1993, Phil marries Romanian immigrant Nadia Borovac (Anna Barkan) to let her stay in the country, but starts a relationship with Kathy Beale ( Gillian Taylforth ) at the same time. In order to marry her, Phil divorces Nadia, and he and Kathy marry in 1995. Their son, Ben ,
9078-450: Is killed in a hit-and-run accident. Peggy marries Frank Butcher ( Mike Reid ) in 1999, but they divorce two years later due to Frank having an affair with Peggy's best friend and Frank's ex-wife Pat Evans ( Pam St Clement ). Soon enough Grant leaves in October 1999 to start a new life in Brazil with Courtney. The extended Mitchell family is introduced in 1998; Jamie Mitchell ( Jack Ryder )
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#17328690509019256-554: Is later shot in The Queen Vic by an unknown assailant with Callum and the Carters being interviewed by the police. Shirley argues with Callum when she accuses him of shooting Stuart, which he denies. Stuart admits to Callum that he shot himself, before claiming that Mick shot him; Mick is arrested and Callum and the Carters vow to prove his innocence. Mick is later released, and Stuart is rejected by Callum. Whitney and Callum panic when she tells him that she may be pregnant. Whitney turns out not to be pregnant, but they decide they would like
9434-546: Is murdered in 2005, but Sam witnesses the death and keeps it secret for several months. When Den's killer, his estranged wife Chrissie ( Tracy-Ann Oberman ), begins manipulating everyone into thinking Sam was insane, Sam digs up Den's body from the Vic cellar to try and expose Chrissie, only to be arrested for the murder herself. Phil and Grant return from Brazil to clear her name, and she follows them back to Brazil once that happens. The Mitchell brothers return in October 2005 and become
9612-438: Is not Amy's father, resulting in their divorce. Billy marries Honey Edwards ( Emma Barton ), and have two children together: Janet, who has Down's Syndrome, and William. Billy and Honey divorce several years later, and Honey moves away with the children. Danielle Jones ( Lauren Crace ) arrives in the square in 2008, and is soon revealed to be the daughter Ronnie gave up for adoption many years earlier. Danielle keeps her identity
9790-542: Is not a blood relation to the main Mitchell family. Tucker Mitchell was referenced at Sal's funeral in 2024. The Mitchells won the Best Family accolade at the 2006 Inside Soap Awards . They received a nomination in the same category at the 2009 ceremony. In 2019, Rebecca Koncienzcy of the Liverpool Echo called the Mitchells "one of the soap's most iconic families", and said: "The Mitchells have dominated storylines in
9968-494: Is not easy considering Whitney's relationship history. Callum Crumlish of the Daily Express described Callum and Whitney's relationship as "unlikely". Following Callum's departure in February, Morgan hoped that producers planned to reintroduce the character by quitting his army job and returning to be in a relationship with Whitney. When he reappeared in the following episode and kissed Whitney, fans expressed their delight at
10146-448: Is offered Shirley's bedroom, he feels awkward about the situation because of Callum and Shirley's relationship, but Clay found the situation amusing. When asked where he wanted his character to be in a year, Clay replied that he wanted his close relationships developed further. He added, "I'd like to just see him quite happy, but with a lot of stuff going on, a lot of fingers in different pies." Clay hoped that Lee would be reintroduced to
10324-481: Is pregnant; she initially lies and says that the child is Ricky Butcher's (Sid Owen) to try and reconcile with him, but Ronnie exposes that the baby is the son of her now fiancé Jack Branning: Ronnie and Jack married in November 2010 and Ronnie gave birth to their son James in late December. However, days after he was born he died of sudden infant death syndrome , and she swaps her dead child with Kat and Alfie's newborn son. She does not reveal her actions until April 2011;
10502-551: Is released from prison in September, and began to stalk Phil when the latter refuses to accept that he is gay, sending him threatening notes for several months. Billy's granddaughter Lola Pearce ( Danielle Harold ) is introduced as a new teenage troublemaker, and is impregnated by Ben, her distant relative, when they test his sexuality. Ben's stalking is revealed when D.C.I. Jill Marsden ( Sophie Stanton ) returns to arrest him and accuses him of murdering Stella Crawford after her abuse
10680-475: Is reported missing, which causes the police to suspect Phil of murdering her. Kate Morton ( Jill Halfpenny ), Phil's third wife, betrays her job as an undercover cop due to her feelings for Phil. He marries her in 2003 but Lisa returns on their wedding day, scheming to kill Phil despite her appearance as a reformed character. After convincing Lisa not to kill Phil, Den Watts ( Leslie Grantham ) helps her take her revenge by setting Phil up for armed robbery, and he
10858-413: Is robbing a van that Callum is in, not realising it was Mick under a mask. However, Callum recognises Mick and tries to help him by accompanying him to his home, The Queen Victoria public house , with his wife, Linda Carter ( Kellie Bright ), and mother, Shirley Carter ( Linda Henry ). It emerges Callum knows Mick and Linda because he was friends with their son, Lee Carter ( Danny-Boy Hatchard ), as
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#173286905090111036-503: Is shot by Callum, it was suggested by Joe Anderton from Digital Spy that Mick would know his shooter. When viewers suggested that the shooter could be Mick's son Lee Carter , with the role recast from actor Danny-Boy Hatchard to Clay, David Brown of the Radio Times doubted that this would be true. In his second episode, Callum was confirmed to be the shooter and Lee's friend. Clay agreed with Daniel Kilkelly of Digital Spy that it
11214-502: Is struggling to be intimate with Whitney because he is a virgin . In April 2018, Clay stated that he was open to Callum and Whitney marrying, adding that he would love to film a soap wedding. As a friend of the Carter family, Callum shares many scenes with them. Morgan pointed out that he had become "an honorary Carter" and a "surrogate older son" for Mick and Linda in the absence of their sons, Lee and Johnny Carter ( Ted Reilly ), adding that Callum could be considered "a lucky charm for
11392-523: Is taken in by Phil as he flees from his abusive guardian and uncle, Billy Mitchell ( Perry Fenwick ). Billy, Phil and Grant's cousin, moves to Walford as well, and becomes a lackey for the Mitchell brothers and their schemes. Jamie is killed off in December 2002, while Billy remains a regular after being reformed. In the spring of 2001, Phil is at the center of the Who Shot Phil? story line. Phil had become
11570-517: Is what brings him back." On Mick and his wife, Linda Carter ( Kellie Bright ), offering Callum a room at their home, The Queen Victoria public house , as a thank you for helping them with their financial troubles, Clay explained that Callum wants to return to The Queen Vic and that after helping the Carters, he feels better about himself. He also noted that the Carters gave Callum "their word that they would always try to look after him whenever he needed it". Callum's return to EastEnders and secret
11748-454: The 2010 baby swap storyline , which attracted over 6,000 complaints, as well as complaints of showing too much violence and allegations of national and racial stereotypes. However, EastEnders has also been commended for representing real-life issues and spreading awareness on social topics. The cast and crew of the show have received and been nominated for various awards . In March 1983, under two years before EastEnders ' first episode
11926-528: The 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup . As of 2019, the soap is one of the most watched series on BBC iPlayer and averages around 5 million viewers per episode. The soap enjoyed a record-breaking year on the streaming platform in 2019, with viewers requesting to stream or download the show 234 million times, up 10% on 2018. The Christmas Day episode in 2019 became EastEnders biggest ever episode on BBC iPlayer, with 2.14 million viewer requests. In February 2020, EastEnders celebrated its 35th anniversary with
12104-433: The 28th National Television Awards under his leadership. On 26 September 2024, it was announced Clenshaw would step down as series executive producer in February 2025, following the soap's 40th anniversary; Ben Wadey was announced as his successor. The central focus of EastEnders is the fictional Victorian square Albert Square in the fictional London Borough of Walford . In the show's narrative, Albert Square
12282-533: The Daily Express said that Callum "gives Whitney a shock" when she thinks Callum is proposing marriage. Lindsay ( Metro ) reported that following the date, Callum continues to show his feelings for Whitney and starts "to win her round with his likeable personality." Clay said that although Callum is not Whitney's typical boyfriend, his effort and charm would impress her. He felt that his characteristics were more appealing to Whitney than his appearance. He added that
12460-515: The District and Hammersmith & City lines. Walford has the postal district of E20. It was named as if Walford were part of the actual E postcode area which covers much of east London, the E standing for Eastern . E20 was entirely fictional when it was created, as London East postal districts stopped at E18 at the time. The show's creators opted for E20 instead of E19 as it was thought to sound better. In March 2011, Royal Mail allocated
12638-459: The theme music and Alan Jeapes created the visuals. The visual images were taken from an aircraft flying over the East End of London at 1000 feet. Approximately 800 photographs were taken and pieced together to create one big image. The credits were later updated when the Millennium Dome was built. The launch was delayed until February 1985 due to a delay in the chat show Wogan , that
12816-577: The 23 characters needed, in just 14 days. They took a holiday in Playa de los Pocillos, Lanzarote , and started to create the characters. Holland created the Beale and Fowler family , drawing on his own background. His mother, Ethel Holland, was one of four sisters raised in Walthamstow. Her eldest sister, Lou, had married a man named Albert Beale and had two children, named Peter and Pauline. These family members were
12994-406: The BBC launched a new advertising campaign using the slogan "There's more to EastEnders ". The first television advert showed Dot Branning with a refugee baby, Tomas , whom she took in under the pretence of being her grandson. The second and third featured Stacey Slater and Dawn Swann, respectively. There have also been adverts in magazines and on radio. In 2009, producers introduced a limit on
13172-590: The Carter family. Stuart has a dark personality, which Clay thought would allow the audience to see "what makes Callum who he is". He expected the audience to pick up on moments of animosity between the brothers and warned them to be frightened of Stuart. Clay commented, "The relationship with his brother will be quite telling, and that'll be an interesting thing to watch." Producers used Stuart's introduction to explore Callum's backstory, specifically his childhood. Clay explained that Callum's childhood shaped his personality and confirmed that there would be an insight into
13350-502: The E20 postal district to the 2012 Olympic Park . In September 2011, the postcode for Albert Square was revealed in an episode as E20 6PQ. EastEnders is built around the idea of relationships and strong families, with each character having a place in the community. This theme encompasses the whole Square, making the entire community a family of sorts, prey to upsets and conflict, but pulling together in times of trouble. Co-creator Tony Holland
13528-861: The Executive Producer of EastEnders in 2000. Yorke was given the task of introducing the soap's fourth weekly episode. He axed the majority of the Di Marco family, except Beppe di Marco ( Michael Greco ), and helped introduce popular characters such as the Slater family . As what Mal Young described as "two of EastEnders' most successful years", Yorke was responsible for highly rated storylines such as " Who Shot Phil? ", Ethel Skinner 's ( Gretchen Franklin ) death, Jim Branning ( John Bardon ) and Dot Cotton 's ( June Brown ) marriage, Trevor Morgan 's ( Alex Ferns ) domestic abuse of his wife Little Mo Morgan ( Kacey Ainsworth ), and Kat Slater 's ( Jessie Wallace ) revelation to her daughter Zoe Slater ( Michelle Ryan ) that she
13706-572: The ITV network) was very different in style and approach from EastEnders . The British Film Institute described Market in Honey Lane thus: "It was not an earth-shaking programme, and certainly not pioneering in any revolutionary ideas in technique and production, but simply proposed itself to the casual viewer as a mildly pleasant affair." The target launch date was originally January 1985. Smith and Holland had eleven months in which to write, cast and shoot
13884-452: The Queen Vic on the former College Park Hotel pub in Willesden at the end of Scrubs Lane at the junction with Harrow Road NW10 just a couple of miles from BBC Television Centre. Walford East is a fictional London Underground station for Walford, and a tube map that was first seen on air in 1996 showed Walford East between Bow Road and West Ham , in the actual location of Bromley-by-Bow on
14062-448: The Queen Vic pub. On Christmas Day 2009, Archie is murdered by an unknown assailant (" Who Killed Archie? "). Phil, Peggy, Sam, Ronnie, and Billy are all suspects in the murder, but in the following February Stacey Branning ( Lacey Turner ) is revealed to be the murderer. Following Archie's death, Ronnie and Roxy's mother, Glenda ( Glynis Barber ) is introduced, having come to reunite with her girls after leaving them as teenagers due to
14240-403: The Queen Vic, but he escapes and sets the pub on fire. Phil nearly dies and Peggy is devastated when the pub burns down (" Queen Vic Fire Week "). Realising how her controlling behaviour made Phil the way he is, Peggy leaves Walford and hands the pub over to Phil. He rents it out to Alfie ( Shane Richie ) and Kat Moon ( Jessie Wallace ). Sam returns to Walford in late 2010 and reveals that she
14418-493: The Square (they were later renamed Den , Angie and Sharon ). The characters of Andy O'Brien and Debbie Wilkins were created to show a modern couple with outwardly mobile pretensions, and Lofty Holloway to show an outsider; someone who did not fit in with other residents. It was decided that he would be a former soldier, as Holland's personal experiences of ex-soldiers were that they had trouble fitting into society after being in
14596-477: The UK, prohibiting the "promotion of homosexuality" by local authorities , by the first on-the-mouth gay kiss in a British soap when Colin kissed a new character, Guido Smith (Nicholas Donovan), an episode that was watched by 17 million people. Writer Colin Brake suggested that 1989 was a year of big change for EastEnders , both behind the cameras and in front of them. Original production designer Keith Harris left
14774-401: The aftermath. The wedding introduces Phil's cousins, Ronnie ( Samantha Womack ) and Roxy Mitchell ( Rita Simons ), as wild and fun-loving sisters from Ibiza, who buy the local club, R&R. They are the daughter of Eric's brother, Archie ( Larry Lamb ), who is introduced in 2008, and has a good relationship with Roxy but a bad one with Ronnie; the reason behind the latter is that Archie had
14952-476: The all-time top 10 most-watched programmes in the UK, including the number one spot, when over 30 million watched the 1986 Christmas Day episode. EastEnders has been important in the history of British television drama, tackling many subjects that are considered to be controversial or taboo in British culture , and portraying a social life previously unseen on UK mainstream television. Since co-creator Holland
15130-553: The area, E8 , was one of the working titles for the series. The name Walford is both a street in Dalston where Tony Holland lived and a blend of Walthamstow and Stratford—the areas of Greater London where the creators were born. Other parts of the Square and set interiors are based on other locations. The railway bridge is based upon one near BBC Television Centre which carries the Hammersmith & City line over Wood Lane W12, and
15308-491: The army. When they compared the characters they had created, Smith and Holland realised they had created a cross-section of East End residents. The Beale and Fowler family represented the old families of the East End, who had always been there. The Osmans, Jefferys and Carpenters represented the more modern diverse ethnic community of the East End. Debbie, Andy and Mary represented more modern-day individuals. Once they had decided on their 23 characters, they returned to London for
15486-411: The audience after becoming embedded into the cast. Clay told Tyler of Inside Soap that when a fan recognised him on the train, he did not know how to react, but explained that he was friendly and took a photo with her. For his portrayal of Callum, Clay was nominated for Best Soap Newcomer at the 2018 Digital Spy Reader Awards; he came in seventh place with 5.4% of the total votes. His introduction
15664-423: The audience's opinion of Callum as it showed he is a "hopeless romantic". Tyler found Callum's location for the date amusing because in a recent storyline, Whitney's friend, Abi Branning ( Lorna Fitzgerald ), died after a fall from there. She described his actions as "thoughtful", but commented, "And they say romance is dead!" A journalist from Soaplife pointed out that Callum makes Whitney smile, which they said
15842-457: The award-winning soap for decades and show no sign of stopping with the Sharon's affair with Keanu set to explode this Christmas." The Mitchell family was longlisted for "Best Family" for the 2023 Inside Soap Awards . EastEnders EastEnders is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in
16020-548: The baby Ronnie had as a teenager adopted out against her will. Archie and Peggy, once his sister-in-law, start a relationship soon after he moves to Walford. Roxy and Ronnie's relationship becomes complicated when Roxy has a one-night stand with Ronnie's on-off boyfriend, Jack Branning ( Scott Maslen ), and gets pregnant, giving birth to a daughter that she names Amy Mitchell that November. Suzy Branning ( Maggie O'Neill ), Phil's latest girlfriend, reveals on Christmas Day 2008 that Roxy's husband, Sean Slater ( Robert Kazinsky ),
16198-402: The basis for Lou Beale , Pete Beale and Pauline Fowler . Holland also created Pauline's unemployed husband Arthur Fowler , their children Mark and Michelle , Pete's wife Kathy and their son Ian . Smith used her personal memories of East End residents she met when researching Victorian squares. Ethel Skinner was based on an old woman she met in a pub, with ill-fitting false teeth, and
16376-415: The bleak world of Albert Square". Clay said that after his first appearance, he received "a few looks" from members of the public and several messages from fans on Twitter asking "Dude, what have you done?", as people believed that he had shot Mick. He recalled the first time that he was recognised in public, calling it "quite surreal" and "an odd moment". He added that he received positive feedback from
16554-456: The body and tells Phil what she did. Phil sells the Queen Vic to Mick Carter ( Danny Dyer ), unaware that he is Shirley's brother. Phil and Sharon become engaged when she is badly injured in an attack on Phil's bar, The Albert, which she runs. Phil was behind the attack, and wanted to scare Sharon into becoming more reliant on him, and he proposes out of guilt. Ronnie discovers she is pregnant and leaves Walford. Ben (now Harry Reid ) returns for
16732-694: The breakdown of her and Archie's marriage. Sam returns, is promptly arrested, and is sent to prison for her part in Den's murder. Louise is reintroduced when Lisa abandons her on Phil's doorstep. she is abused by Ben, who is still scarred by Stella's abuse. He is sent to juvenile detention when he attacks Jordan Johnson ( Michael-Joel David Stuart ). The stress of these events cause Phil to become addicted to cocaine , ending his long-term relationship with Shirley Carter ( Linda Henry ). Peggy takes Louise back to live with Lisa, which ruins her relationship with Phil. Determined to help her son break his addiction, she locks Phil in
16910-420: The challenges in production and filming of the show has led to the show's reduced output, but also stated that the crew had been "trialing techniques, filming methods and new ways of working" to prepare the show for its return. Filming recommenced on 29 June, with episodes airing from 7 September 2020. On 9 April 2021, following the death of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh , the episode of EastEnders that
17088-417: The characters had been created, Smith and Holland set about casting the actors, which also involved the input of lead director Matthew Robinson , who supervised auditions with the other directors at the outset, Vivienne Cozens and Peter Edwards. Through the next few months, the set was growing rapidly at Elstree, and a composer and designer had been commissioned to create the title sequence. Simon May wrote
17266-516: The characters introduced under Gibbon were axed from the show at the start of the year. Ferguson introduced other characters and was responsible for storylines including HIV, Alzheimer's disease and murder. After a successful revamp of the soap, Ferguson decided to leave EastEnders in July 1991. Ferguson was succeeded by both Leonard Lewis and Helen Greaves , who initially shared the role as Executive Producer for EastEnders . Lewis and Greaves formulated
17444-433: The characters of Tony Carpenter and Kelvin Carpenter , did Coronation Street start to feature black characters, for example. They came to the conclusion that Coronation Street had grown old with its audience, and that EastEnders would have to attract a younger, more socially extensive audience, ensuring that it had the longevity to retain it for many years thereafter. They also looked at Brookside , but found there
17622-448: The children, but is "surprised and heartened" when Mick is not upset by the news. Clay told Duncan Lindsay of the Metro that Callum returns to Albert Square , the show's setting, because he views it as a home and opined that "he's ever really had a place to call home, this is where he feels loved by Whitney and I think he feels like this is his family, this is his world now and I think this
17800-505: The continually-cursed Carters". Clay explained that the Carters help Callum feel like a member of their family. He described the Carter family as his "surrogate EastEnders family". He stated that everyone, in particular Bright, had looked after him after joining the show. Clay wanted to explore other parts of his character's personality and thought there was the opportunity to explore dramatic storylines for Callum. Mick's mother, Shirley Carter ( Linda Henry ), calls Callum "Halfwit" in
17978-501: The death of Bradley Branning ( Charlie Clements ) at the conclusion of the " Who Killed Archie? " storyline, which saw Bradley's wife Stacey Slater ( Lacey Turner ) reveal that she was the murderer. Viewing figures peaked at 16.6 million, which was the highest viewed episode in seven years. Other events to mark the anniversary were a spin-off DVD, EastEnders: Last Tango in Walford , and an Internet spin-off, EastEnders: E20 . Santer officially left EastEnders in March 2010, and
18156-473: The decision was made to reduce transmission so that EastEnders could remain on-screen for longer. Two months later, Charlotte Moore , the director of content at the BBC, announced plans for a return to production. She confirmed that EastEnders would return to filming during June 2020 and that there would be a transmission break between episodes filmed before and after production paused. When production recommenced, social distancing measures were utilised and
18334-497: The departure of two of the soap's most popular characters, Den and Angie Watts ( Anita Dobson ), left a void in the programme, which needed to be filled. In addition, several other long-running characters left the show that year, including Sue and Ali Osman ( Sandy Ratcliff and Nejdet Salih ) and their family; Donna Ludlow ( Matilda Ziegler ); Carmel Jackson ( Judith Jacob ) and Colin Russell ( Michael Cashman ). Brake indicated that
18512-416: The episode broadcast in the United Kingdom on 16 February 2018, signalling the conclusion of Clay's contract. Claire Crick of Digital Spy pointed out that Callum was a plot device introduced only to support the Carter family's storylines, especially when Callum is revealed to be in ownership of an expensive ring, which he lets the Carters sell when they need money to save their home, a plot that Crick thought
18690-427: The family like Phil's ex-wives Kat Slater ( Jessie Wallace ), Sharon Watts ( Letitia Dean ) and Kathy Beale ( Gillian Taylforth ). Billy’s ex-wife Honey Mitchell ( Emma Barton ), Teddy’s ex-wife Nicola Mitchell (Laura Doddington) and Ben's husband Callum ( Tony Clay ), while Ben's best friend, who he considers a brother, and Billy's foster son Jay Brown ( Jamie Borthwick ), sometimes credited as Jay Mitchell,
18868-522: The father of her newborn son Matthew Mitchell-Cotton . She also discovers that Vincent Hubbard ( Richard Blackwood ) is a police informant working to take down the Mitchells, but she and Phil take him down. In his drunken downward spiral, Phil drunkenly causes a car crash which hospilatises Sharon's young son Denny. An enranged Sharon subsequently leaves Phil, who is told he had months to live due to cirrhosis . Phil then tracks down his daughter Louise (now Tilly Keeper ) to right wrongs, and learns that Peggy
19046-458: The feel of the week is active and exciting and not too reflective. There'll be those moments for some of our longer-serving characters that briefly reflect on themselves and how they've changed. The characters don't know that it's the 25th anniversary of anything, so it'd be absurd to contrive too many situations in which they're reflective on the past. The main engine of that week is great stories that'll get people talking." The live episode featured
19224-545: The fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London , the programme follows the stories of local residents and their families as they go about their daily lives. Within eight months of the show's original launch, it had reached the number one spot in BARB 's television ratings, and has consistently remained among the top-rated series in Britain. Four EastEnders episodes are listed in
19402-525: The first two episodes consolidating to ratings of 13.21 to 13.34 million viewers. On Friday 11 November 2005, EastEnders was the first British drama to feature a two-minute silence. This episode later went on to win British Soap Award for "Best Single Episode". In October 2006, Diederick Santer took over as Executive Producer of EastEnders . He introduced several characters to the show, including ethnic minority and homosexual characters to make
19580-653: The ideal partner for Whitney despite not matching the profile of her usual partner. Clay explained that Callum returns to Walford because he wants to develop his relationship with Whitney, which he treasures. He told Rachel Lucas of What's on TV that Callum sees his relationship with Whitney as "a new life". Callum's intimacy issues are explored through his relationship with Whitney when she tries to get intimate with him. Clay stated that this shows another dimension to his character. He explained that Callum struggles to connect with people and often misses prompts from other people, such as Whitney. On-screen, Callum reveals that he
19758-422: The locket in her wine glass, and heads off to reunite with her daughter, who is killed by Janine Butcher 's ( Charlie Brooks ) speeding car. Sam (played by Danniella Westbrook again) returns in 2009. The Mitchells bail her out, but when she flees Walford a few months later, they lose their bail money, which cause them to go bankrupt. Archie and his new girlfriend, Janine, prey on their vulnerability and take over
19936-563: The media began investigating the private lives of the show's popular stars. Within days, a scandalous headline appeared – "EASTENDERS STAR IS A KILLER". This referred to Leslie Grantham , and his prison sentence for the murder of a taxi driver in an attempted robbery nearly 20 years earlier. This shocking tell-all style set the tone for relations between Albert Square and the press for the next 20 years. The show's first episode attracted some 17 million viewers, and it continued to attract high viewing figures from then on. By Christmas 1985,
20114-444: The names of his own family for the characters. Callum %22Halfway%22 Highway Callum Highway is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders , played by Tony Clay . He was introduced in the episode first broadcast in the United Kingdom on 1 January 2018. Callum is introduced as a friend of the Carter family, which was not publicised beforehand. Callum was originally
20292-417: The new era of EastEnders ." EastEnders started broadcasting in high definition on 25 December 2010. Old sets had to be rebuilt, so The Queen Victoria set was burnt down in a storyline (and in reality) to facilitate this. In November 2011, a storyline showed character Billy Mitchell , played by Perry Fenwick , selected to be a torch bearer for the 2012 Summer Olympics . In reality, Fenwick carried
20470-644: The new fish in such a famous big pond, but he's settled in more quickly than most, and made the part of Callum 100% his own." Tyler of Inside Soap opined that Callum is "the real treasure to emerge from the bonkers plot [the heist storyline]". She added, "Square chiefs had clearly found a diamond in the rough with actor Tony Clay". Rachel Lucas of What's on TV described Callum as the "unlikely villain [who] shot Mick Carter during Aidan Maguire's botched robbery! But he redeemed himself by helping Mick Carter save The Vic and then he won Whitney Carter's heart." A Soaplife columnist called Callum "a welcome ray of sunshine in
20648-455: The number of speaking parts in each episode due to budget cuts, with an average of 16 characters per episode. The decision was criticised by Martin McGrath of Equity, who said: "Trying to produce quality TV on the cheap is doomed to fail." The BBC responded by saying they had been working that way for some time and it had not affected the quality of the show. From 4 February 2010, CGI was used in
20826-476: The opinion that Callum had given his kidney to Aidan Maguire ( Patrick Bergin ) to repay him; 15% of readers believed that Callum left the Army; 13% were convinced that he had been stabbed; and the remaining 7% of readers thought it was something else. There was a positive reaction to his return on Twitter with fans excited that Callum and Whitney had been reunited. Callum's costume consists of "scruffy clothes and woolly headwear", mainly beanie hats , and he has
21004-576: The potential relationship. In Callum's absence, Whitney's former boyfriend, Woody Woodward ( Lee Ryan ), returns to Walford. When Callum returns, he is not bothered by Woody's presence as he is not afraid of Whitney's former partners. Clay explained that Callum is "oblivious" to Woody because he is in love with Whitney and has the backing of the Carter family. Ben Lee of Digital Spy thought that Callum's return would be good for Whitney as it suggested that their relationship would continue, while Digital Spy 's Laura Morgan thought that Callum would be
21182-404: The pre- EastEnders figure of seven million, though EastEnders then climbed to highs of up to 23 million later on in the year. Following the launch, both group discussions and telephone surveys were conducted to test audience reaction to early episodes. Press coverage of EastEnders , which was already intense, went into overdrive once the show was broadcast. With public interest so high,
21360-465: The private lives of the cast. Anticipation and rumour grew in equal measure until the first transmission at 7 p.m. on 19 February 1985. Neither Holland nor Smith could watch; they both instead returned to the place where it all began, Albertine's Wine Bar on Wood Lane. The next day, viewing figures were confirmed at 17 million. The reviews were largely favourable, although, after three weeks on air, BBC1's early evening share had returned to
21538-416: The production team decided that 1989 was to be a year of change in Walford, commenting, "it was almost as if Walford itself was making a fresh start". By the end of 1989, EastEnders had acquired a new executive producer, Michael Ferguson , who had previously been a successful producer on ITV 's The Bill . Brake suggested that Ferguson was responsible for bringing in a new sense of vitality and creating
21716-421: The recast of Amy Mitchell ( Ellie Dadd ), as well as the reintroduction of Cindy Beale ( Michelle Collins ), who returned from the dead after 25 years. Public opinion on Clenshaw then changed and he has been credited for improving ratings and garnering critical acclaim for the soap, with EastEnders winning the award for Best British Soap at the 2023 British Soap Awards and the award for Serial Drama at
21894-507: The ring and has it valued at £20,000, telling Callum that he could use the money to buy back The Queen Vic, and Callum agrees, revealing that he found the ring during the robbery. When the ring turns out to be worth £200,000, Callum tells Mick to save his pub as long as there will always be a room for Callum if he needs it. Whitney is touched when Callum recalls how his grandfather brought him up to treat women with respect. When Callum leaves for army duty, Whitney apologises to him and they share
22072-425: The role, that Callum is "such a lovely role to play" and that he wanted to explore the character further. He had already begun filming when his return was publicised. On 20 April, Sophie Dainty of Digital Spy reported that Callum would return in the episode broadcast on 30 April and teased that he may return with a secret. Further details about his return were released two days later, confirming that he would have
22250-419: The shared love between Callum and Whitney makes them a nice couple. Clay liked Callum and Whitney's relationship and looked forward to seeing it develop. When Callum arranges a second date, a romantic meal on the roof of The Queen Vic, Clay said, "It's that kind of thing that you fall in love with." He told Laura-Jayne Tyler of Inside Soap that his relationship with Whitney and the romantic meal helped alter
22428-527: The show "feel more 21st Century". Santer also reintroduced past and popular characters to the programme. On 2 March 2007, BBC signed a deal with Google to put videos on YouTube. A behind the scenes video of EastEnders , hosted by Matt Di Angelo , who played Deano Wicks on the show, was put on the site the same day, and was followed by another on 6 March 2007. In April 2007, EastEnders became available to view on mobile phones , via 3G technology, for 3 , Vodafone and Orange customers. On 21 April 2007,
22606-512: The show and thought it would be "amazing" to see what would happen between Callum and Lee. Clay is familiar with Hatchard as they studied alongside each other. Clay told Kilkelly ( Digital Spy ) that there are several characters that he wants to star alongside, including Dot Branning ( June Brown ), the Slater family , Kim Fox-Hubbard ( Tameka Empson ) and Billy Mitchell ( Perry Fenwick ). Plans to introduce Callum's brother, Stuart Highway , were announced on 28 March 2018. Actor Ricky Champ
22784-483: The show as "a very eventful few weeks", while Daniel Kilkelly and Sophie Dainty pointed out that Callum had "proved popular with fans" during his initial stint on EastEnders . Morgan found the character funny and liked his "infectious energy and warmth". She compared him to former character Fatboy ( Ricky Norwood ) and thought that he could become Dot Branning 's ( June Brown ) lodger, as Fatboy was. On Clay's performance as Callum, Morgan opined, "It's never easy being
22962-403: The show due to his dim-witted personality. Clay enjoyed the nickname, which he called "fun", and thought it was accurate at times. He explained that Callum accepts the nickname that Shirley has given him because although he understands that it is not the nickname associated with him, he does want to argue with Shirley. Clay said that he and Henry share a good relationship. When Callum returns and
23140-634: The show for the first time, with the addition of computer-generated trains. EastEnders celebrated its 25th anniversary on 19 February 2010. Santer came up with several plans to mark the occasion, including the show's first episode to be broadcast live , the second wedding between Ricky Butcher ( Sid Owen ) and Bianca Jackson ( Patsy Palmer ) and the return of Bianca's relatives, mother Carol Jackson ( Lindsey Coulson ), and siblings Robbie Jackson ( Dean Gaffney ), Sonia Fowler ( Natalie Cassidy ) and Billie Jackson ( Devon Anderson ). He told entertainment website Digital Spy , "It's really important that
23318-559: The show has been broadcast every weekday from Monday to Thursday in a 7:30 pm slot, making it the first time in the show's history that the programme began airing permanently on Wednesdays. On 2 June 2022, EastEnders aired an episode celebrating the Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II . Charles, Prince of Wales and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall guest starred in the episode; it also marked the first executive producer credit for Clenshaw. Clenshaw's first major decision as executive producer
23496-416: The show now." He said that " EastEnders has always had a distinctly different tone from the other soaps but over time we've diluted our unique selling point. I think we need to be ourselves and go back to the origins of the show and what made it successful in the first place. It should be entertaining but it should also be informative—that's part of our unique BBC compact with the audience. It shouldn't just be
23674-506: The show" in the absence of the show. Jon Sen , the show's executive producer , expressed his excitement at the new series, dubbing it "a unique opportunity to see from the cast themselves just what it is like to be part of EastEnders ". Plans for the show's return to transmission were announced on 12 June 2020. It was confirmed that after the transmission break, the show would temporarily broadcast four 20-minute episodes per week, until it could return to its normal output. Sen explained that
23852-431: The show's 20th anniversary episode, " Get Johnny Week ", " The Secret Mitchell ", " Who Killed Archie? ", and " Who Killed Lucy Beale? " scenarios. In 2010, EastEnders celebrated Windsor's exit from the soap with " Queen Vic Fire Week ", in which a fire engulfs the long-standing pub and risks the lives of Walford regulars, including Peggy and Phil. In 2016, Windsor, Kemp, and Westbrook briefly reprised their roles as part of
24030-484: The show's 30th anniversary in 2015 with a week of live episodes . Treadwell-Collins announced his departure from EastEnders on 18 February 2016. Sean O'Connor , former EastEnders series story producer and then-editor on radio soap opera The Archers , was announced to be taking over the role. Treadwell-Collins left on 6 May and O'Connor's first credited episode was broadcast on 11 July Although O'Connor's first credited episode aired in July, his own creative work
24208-450: The show's cast were required to do their own hair and make-up, which is normally done by a make-up artist. It was announced on 3 June 2020 that EastEnders would go on a transmission break following the broadcast of episode 6124 on 16 June. A behind-the-scenes show, EastEnders: Secrets From The Square , will air in the show's place during the transmission break and is hosted by television personality Stacey Dooley . The first episode of
24386-458: The show, and Holland and Smith both decided that the time had come to move on too, their final contribution coinciding with the exit of one of EastEnders' most successful characters, Den Watts ( Leslie Grantham ). Producer Mike Gibbon was given the task of running the show, and he enlisted the most experienced writers to take over the storylining of the programme, including Charlie Humphreys, Jane Hollowood and Tony McHale . According to Brake,
24564-420: The soap was criticised for its boring storylines and its lowest-ever figures pointing at around 4.8 million. Dominic Treadwell-Collins was appointed as the new executive producer on 19 August 2013 and was credited on 9 December. He axed multiple characters from the show and introduced the extended Carter family. He also introduced a long-running storyline, " Who Killed Lucy Beale? ", which peaked during
24742-512: The soap were awarded in 1997 when EastEnders won the BAFTA for Best Drama Series. Hollingworth shared the award with the next Executive Producer, Jane Harris . Harris was responsible for the critically panned Ireland episodes and Cindy Beale 's ( Michelle Collins ) attempted assassination of Ian Beale ( Adam Woodyatt ), which brought in an audience of 23 million in 1996, roughly four million more than Coronation Street . In 1998 Matthew Robinson
24920-476: The storyline was initially intended to continue for a longer period of time, but the baby-swap storyline was brought to an early end due to a public outcry. Ronnie is sent to prison in June 2011. Phil has an affair with Glenda behind Shirley's back. In January 2011, he has a heart attack, and asks Shirley to marry him, but on their wedding day he calls it off. Glenda leaves Walford after having been rejected by Ronnie and Roxy for her actions. Ben (now Joshua Pascoe )
25098-475: The streaming service would be beneficial for fans of the show who want to watch at their own chosen pace. Sen also confirmed that the episodes will still air on BBC One throughout the week. The release of these boxsets was extended for a further five weeks, due to similar impacts caused by the 2020 Summer Olympics . On 12 October 2021, it was announced that EastEnders would partake in a special week-long crossover event involving multiple British soaps to promote
25276-435: The tabloids could not get enough of the soap. "Exclusives" about EastEnders storylines and the actors on the show became a staple of tabloid buyers' daily reading. In 1987, the show featured the first same-sex kiss on a British soap, when Colin Russell ( Michael Cashman ) kissed boyfriend Barry Clark ( Gary Hailes ) on the forehead. This was followed in January 1989, less than a year after legislation came into effect in
25454-521: The topic of climate change ahead of the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference . During the week, beginning from 1 November, a social media clip featuring Maria Connor ( Samia Longchambon ) from Coronation Street was featured on the programme while Cindy Cunningham ( Stephanie Waring ) from Hollyoaks was also referenced. Similar clips featuring the show's own characters, Bailey Baker (Kara-Leah Fernandes) and Peter Beale (Dayle Hudson), were featured on Doctors and Emmerdale during
25632-413: The torch through the setting of Albert Square, with live footage shown in the episode on 23 July 2012 . This was the second live broadcast of EastEnders . In 2012, Kirkwood chose to leave his role as executive producer and was replaced by Lorraine Newman . The show lost many of its significant characters during this period. Newman stepped down as executive producer after 16 months in the job in 2013 after
25810-554: The wedding, along with Ronnie, who is sent by Peggy to stop the proceedings. She fails and Phil and Sharon marry. Their marriage is rocky; Kathy is revealed to have faked her death and returns, while her husband Gavin Sullivan ( Paul Nicholas ) makes Phil become addicted to alcohol again. Billy reunites with Honey when she returns from Canada, and Roxy leaves for a while to get over her attempted rape by Dean Wicks ( Matt Di Angelo ). Ronnie briefly marries Charlie Cotton ( Declan Bennett ),
25988-436: The week features exclusive interviews with the show's cast, while the second episode will be a repeat of "iconic" episodes of the show. Beginning on 22 June 2020, Dooley interviews two cast members together in the show's restaurant set while observing social distancing measures. Kate Phillips, the controller of BBC Entertainment , explained that EastEnders: Secrets From The Square would be the "perfect opportunity to celebrate
26166-414: The week. In November 2021, it was announced that Sen would step down from his role as executive producer, and would be succeeded by former story producer Chris Clenshaw . Sen's final credited episode as executive producer was broadcast on 10 March 2022 and coincided in a week of episodes that saw the arrest of serial killer Gray Atkins ( Toby-Alexander Smith ). From the week commencing on 7 March 2022,
26344-492: The whole thing; however, in February 1984, they did not even have a title or a place to film. Both Smith and Holland were unhappy about the January 1985 launch date, favouring November or even September 1984 when seasonal audiences would be higher, but the BBC stayed firm, and Smith and Holland had to concede that, with the massive task of getting the Elstree Studios operational, January was the most realistic date; however, this
26522-428: Was "convenient". After the end of his original contract, Clay received a phone call from producers asking him to reprise the role. He thought that because he was invited back, he was "really doing something right", and hoped that he was reintroduced based on a positive first stint. On 28 March 2018, it was announced that Clay would reprise his role as Callum in spring 2018. Clay said that he looked forward to reprising
26700-417: Was Callum's biggest flaw, commenting, "He loves to put his foot in it!" Morgan billed Callum as "hapless", "adorable" and "caring". She observed that Callum acts as "a bit of a dope" and in a silly manner, but is actually quite clever. In article about the character, Morgan expressed her hope that writers would not portray Callum as "a one-dimensional dumbass". Daniel Kilkelly of Digital Spy called Callum
26878-490: Was a lack of central meeting points for the characters, making it difficult for the writers to intertwine different storylines, so EastEnders was set in Albert Square . A previous UK soap set in an East End market was ATV 's Market in Honey Lane ; however, between 1967 and 1969, this show, which graduated from one showing a week to two in three separate series (the latter series being shown in different time slots across
27056-514: Was announced on 10 December 2018 to be taking on the role of executive producer. In late 2016, popularity and viewership of EastEnders began to decline, with viewers criticising the storylines during the O'Connor reign, such as the killing of the Mitchell sisters and a storyline centred on the local bin collection. Since Yorke's and Oates' reigns, however, opinions towards the storylines have become more favourable, with storylines such as Ruby Allen 's ( Louisa Lytton ) sexual consent, which featured
27234-453: Was announced that Kate Oates , who has previously been a producer on the ITV soap operas Emmerdale and Coronation Street , would become Senior Executive Producer of EastEnders , as well of Holby City and Casualty . Oates began her role in October, and continued to work with Yorke until the end of the year to "ensure a smooth handover". It was also announced that Oates was looking for an Executive Producer to work under her. Jon Sen
27412-464: Was anxiety at first that the viewing public would not accept a new soap set in the south of England, though research commissioned by lead figures in the BBC revealed that southerners would accept a northern soap, northerners would accept a southern soap and those from the Midlands , as Julia Smith herself pointed out, did not mind where it was set as long as it was somewhere else. This was the beginning of
27590-695: Was appointed as the Executive Producer of EastEnders . During his reign, EastEnders won the BAFTA for " Best Soap " in consecutive years 1999 and 2000 and many other awards. Robinson also earned tabloid soubriquet "Axeman of Albert Square" after sacking a large number of characters in one hit, and several more thereafter. In their place, Robinson introduced new long-running characters including Melanie Healy ( Tamzin Outhwaite ), Jamie Mitchell ( Jack Ryder ), Lisa Shaw ( Lucy Benjamin ), Steve Owen ( Martin Kemp ) and Billy Mitchell ( Perry Fenwick ). John Yorke became
27768-498: Was broadcast, the show was a vague idea in the mind of a handful of BBC executives, who decided that what BBC One needed was a popular bi-weekly drama series that would attract the kind of mass audiences that ITV were getting with Coronation Street . The first people to whom David Reid, then head of series and serials, turned were Julia Smith and Tony Holland , a well established producer/script editor team who had first worked together on Z-Cars . The outline that Reid presented
27946-407: Was cast in the role of Stuart, who arrives in spring following Callum's return from the Army. Clay thought that Stuart's introduction supported Callum's presence on the show and found that it added a new "dynamic" to the character. He explained that Stuart's arrival would spark a change in Callum's attitude. Stuart is knowledgeable and cunning, which contrasts with Callum's dim-witted personality. He
28124-466: Was created, instead of using E8. Julia Smith came up with the name Eastenders after she and Holland had spent months telephoning theatrical agents and asking "Do you have any real East Enders on your books?" Smith thought " Eastenders " "looked ugly written down" and was "hard to say", so decided to capitalise the second "e". After they decided on the filming location of BBC Elstree Centre in south Hertfordshire , Smith and Holland set about creating
28302-530: Was due to be aired that night was postponed along with the final of Masterchef . In May 2021, it was announced that from 14 June 2021, boxsets of episodes would be uploaded to BBC iPlayer each Monday for three weeks. Executive producer Sen explained that the bi-annual scheduling conflicts that the UEFA European Championship and the FIFA World Cup cause to the soap, premiering four episodes on
28480-725: Was from a large East End family, and such families have typified EastEnders . The first central family was the combination of the Fowler family , consisting of Pauline Fowler ( Wendy Richard ), her husband Arthur ( Bill Treacher ), and teenage children Mark ( David Scarboro / Todd Carty ) and Michelle ( Susan Tully ). Pauline's family, the Beales , consisted of Pauline's twin brother Pete Beale ( Peter Dean ), his wife Kathy ( Gillian Taylforth ) and their teenage son Ian ( Adam Woodyatt ). Pauline and Pete's domineering mother Lou Beale ( Anna Wing ) lived with Pauline and her family. Holland drew on
28658-589: Was from a large family in the East End, a theme heavily featured in EastEnders is strong families, and each character is supposed to have their own place in the fictional community. The Watts , Beales , Mitchells , Brannings and the Slaters are some of the families that have been central to the soap's notable and dramatic storylines. EastEnders has been filmed at the BBC Elstree Centre since its inception, with
28836-403: Was her mother. In 2002, Louise Berridge succeeded Yorke as the Executive Producer. During her time at EastEnders , Berridge introduced popular characters such as Alfie Moon ( Shane Richie ), Dennis Rickman ( Nigel Harman ), Chrissie Watts ( Tracy-Ann Oberman ), Jane Beale ( Laurie Brett ), Stacey Slater ( Lacey Turner ) and the critically panned Indian Ferreira family . Berridge
29014-439: Was hit by shrapnel while saving two children, leaving Whitney "taken aback by Callum's heroism". Dainty ( Digital Spy ) wondered whether Callum was "actually more shaken by his army ordeal than he's letting on". It was reported on 8 May 2018 that Callum would confess to Mick that he was lying about the incident in the Army. In the episodes that followed, Callum tells Mick that he caused another soldier to lose his leg when saving
29192-500: Was invited back to reprise his role and Callum returns two months later after serving in the army. His experience in the army and his relationship with Whitney are explored upon his return. He later breaks up with Whitney and forms a relationship with Ben Mitchell ( Max Bowden ), whom he later marries. Producers introduced Callum's brother, Stuart Highway ( Ricky Champ ); their relationship is initially portrayed as dark, but later becomes supportive. Clay's portrayal of Callum has received
29370-463: Was later to be changed to February. The project had a number of working titles: Square Dance , Round the Square , Round the Houses , London Pride and East 8 . It was the latter that stuck (E8 is the postcode for Hackney) in the early months of creative process; however, the show was renamed after many casting agents mistakenly thought the show was to be called Estate , and the fictional postcode E20
29548-493: Was not seen onscreen until late September. Additionally, Oliver Kent was brought in as the Head of Continuing Drama Series for BBC Scripted Studios, meaning that Kent would oversee EastEnders along with O'Connor. O'Connor's approach to the show was to have a firmer focus on realism, which he said was being "true to EastEnders ' DNA and [finding] a way of capturing what it would be like if Julia Smith and Tony Holland were making
29726-419: Was outed in an internet sex scandal, which coincided with a swift decline in viewer ratings. The scandal led to Grantham's departure from the soap, but the occasion was used to mark the 20th anniversary of EastEnders , with an episode showing Den's murder at the Queen Vic pub. On 21 September 2004, Berridge quit as executive producer of EastEnders following continued criticism of the show. Kathleen Hutchison
29904-537: Was periodically its landlady between 1995 and 2010. They have also been known for their thuggish ways and their tendency to break the law, most notably Phil and Grant, who have sometimes been compared to the Kray twins . The Mitchells have been in several of the show's memorable storylines, such as: their rivalry with the Watts family , and the " Sharongate ", " Who Shot Phil? ", the murder of their rival Den Watts which coincided with
30082-452: Was placed at number four in Digital Spy 's "big soap moments you have to see this week". A Soaplife journalist thought it was "typical" that he was hiding a secret when he returned. The Daily Express ran a poll for readers to vote on what they believed Callum's secret was: 39% of readers thought that Callum was "ashamed" of something that happened in the Army; 26% of readers were in
30260-480: Was replaced by Bryan Kirkwood . Kirkwood's first signing was the reintroduction of characters Alfie Moon ( Shane Richie ) and Kat Moon ( Jessie Wallace ), and his first new character was Vanessa Gold , played by Zöe Lucker . In April and May 2010, Kirkwood axed eight characters from the show, Barbara Windsor left her role of Peggy Mitchell , which left a hole in the show, which Kirkwood decided to fill by bringing back Kat and Alfie, which he said would "herald
30438-410: Was responsible for some ratings success stories, such as Alfie and Kat Slater 's ( Jessie Wallace ) relationship, Janine Butcher ( Charlie Brooks ) getting her comeuppance, Trevor Morgan ( Alex Ferns ) and Jamie Mitchell 's ( Jack Ryder ) death storylines and the return of one of the greatest soap icons, Den Watts ( Leslie Grantham ), who had been presumed dead for 14 years. His return in late 2003
30616-678: Was risky for Callum to shoot Mick in his first episode. It was not confirmed whether Callum would be a regular character. However, executive consultant John Yorke had announced in December 2017 that a new friend for Mick and a new interest for Whitney Dean ( Shona McGarty ) would be introduced in 2018. Kilkelly ( Digital Spy ) wondered whether Callum could be the aforementioned friend of Mick and love interest for Whitney. When asked whether he found joining EastEnders "daunting", Clay replied, "Yes and no" and stated that although he found it surreal to work with Steve McFadden , who portrays Phil Mitchell , his nerves settled quickly. Callum departs in
30794-413: Was swiftly appointed as the Executive Producer of EastEnders , and was tasked with quickly turning the fortunes of the soap. During her time at the soap Hutchison axed multiple characters, and reportedly ordered the rewriting of numerous scripts. Newspapers reported on employee dissatisfaction with Hutchison's tenure at EastEnders . In January 2005, Hutchison left the soap and John Yorke (who by this time,
30972-460: Was the BBC Controller of Continuing Drama Series) took total control of the show himself and became acting Executive Producer for a short period, before appointing Kate Harwood to the role. Harwood stayed at EastEnders for 20 months before being promoted by the BBC. The highly anticipated return of Ross Kemp as Grant Mitchell in October 2005 proved to be a sudden major ratings success, with
31150-431: Was the axing of five series regulars: Peter Beale ( Dayle Hudson ), Stuart Highway ( Ricky Champ ), Jada Lennox (Kelsey Calladine-Smith), Dana Monroe (Barbara Smith) and Lola Pearce ( Danielle Harold ). Viewers criticised the decision, feeling that some of the characters had potential to add to the soap. Clenshaw has since overseen the returns of Alfie Moon ( Shane Richie ) and Yolande Trueman ( Angela Wynter ),
31328-485: Was to be a part of the major revamp in BBC1's schedules. Smith was uneasy about the late start as EastEnders no longer had the winter months to build up a loyal following before the summer ratings lull. The press were invited to Elstree to meet the cast and see the lot, and stories immediately started circulating about the show, about a rivalry with ITV (who were launching their own market-based soap, Albion Market ) and about
31506-467: Was vague: two episodes a week, 52 weeks a year. After the concept was put to them on 14 March 1983, Smith and Holland then went about putting their ideas down on paper; they decided it would be set in the East End of London. Granada Television gave Smith unrestricted access to the Coronation Street production for a month so that she could get a sense of how a continuing drama was produced. There
31684-574: Was watched by over 16 million viewers, putting EastEnders back at number one in the rating war with the Coronation Street ; however, other storylines, such as one about a kidney transplant involving the Ferreiras, were not well received, and although Den's return proved to be a ratings success, the British press branded the plot unrealistic and felt that it questioned the show's credibility. A severe press backlash followed after Den's actor, Leslie Grantham ,
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