Carter family (EastEnders)

The Carter family is a fictional family in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. The family is headed by Stan Carter (Timothy West), but the first member of the family introduced was Stan's grandson, Dean Wicks (Matt Di Angelo) (then known as Deano), brought in by Kate Harwood on 2 January 2006. He arrived in the show's setting of Walford to stay with his great-aunt Pat Evans (Pam St. Clement). He was soon joined by his sister, Carly Wicks (Kellie Shirley) and their step-father Kevin Wicks (Phil Daniels) the nephew of Brian Wicks (Leslie Schofield). Carly's husband Nico Pappas (Gerard Monaco) appeared for a short stint. Shirley Carter (Linda Henry), daughter of Stan, ex-wife of Kevin and mother of Deano and Carly, appeared in December 2006. Carly made a return on 6 September 2012 for two episodes.

In January 2010, Zsa Zsa Carter (Emer Kenny), the niece of Shirley was introduced as a character in the spin-off EastEnders: E20. Her stepfather, Andy (Steve North), was also seen in E20.

An expansion of the Carter family by new producer Dominic Treadwell-Collins introduced Shirley's sister and Zsa Zsa's mother, Tina Carter (Luisa Bradshaw-White), and Shirley's eldest son, Mick Carter (Danny Dyer), though he was believed to be her brother. Mick's partner Linda (Kellie Bright), and their children, Lee (Danny-Boy Hatchard), Nancy (Maddy Hill) and Johnny (Sam Strike/Ted Reilly) also arrived, followed by Stan, Stan's sister-in-law, Babe Smith (Annette Badland), her sister and mother to Shirley and Tina, Sylvie Carter (Linda Marlowe), Linda's mother Elaine Peacock (Maria Friedman), Shirley's childhood lover Buster Briggs (Karl Howman) and Tina's abusive girlfriend Tosh Mackintosh (Rebecca Scroggs). In 2015, Mick and Linda's baby Ollie Carter was born, and Dean's secret daughter Jade Green (Amaya Edward) also made her first appearance.

The Carter family have appeared heavily in the show from 2014, in high-profile storylines including Johnny's homosexuality, the revelation that Shirley is in fact Mick's mother, Linda's rape at the hands of Dean and suffering from bulimia nervosa, Stan's terminal prostate cancer, the domestic violence Tina receives from her partner Tosh, Nancy's epilepsy, Sylvie's Alzheimer's disease, Lee's depression, the revelation that Dean has a daughter, Jade with cystic fibrosis, born after a one-night stand with Shabnam Masood (Rakhee Thakrar), and baby Ollie Carter's accident and potential brain damage.

Storylines

Backstory

Stan Carter (Timothy West) worked as a fishmongster at the Billingsgate Fish Market. With his wife Sylvie Carter (Linda Marlowe) he had two daughters: Shirley Carter (Linda Henry) and Tina Carter (Luisa Bradshaw-White). Stan neglected his family, whereas Sylvie abused Shirley when she was young. Shirley fell pregnant at 14 by Buster Briggs (Karl Howman) and Sylvie pushed Shirley down the stairs to try to kill the unborn baby; however, she was unsuccessful. Deciding to keep the news from Stan, Sylvie took Shirley to a caravan site with her sister, Babe Smith (Annette Badland), where Shirley gave birth to Mick (Danny Dyer). Seeing an opportunity to revive her failing marriage, Sylvie pretended that Mick was her and Stan's son, and he was raised as Shirley and Tina's brother. Sylvie left the family soon afterwards, and Shirley struggled with bringing up her son and her younger sister alone, so she tried to drown Mick in the bathroom. Stan saved him, but after they took Mick to the hospital, social services took Mick and Tina into care. Shirley grew distant from her father and married Kevin Wicks (Phil Daniels). They had one child, Jimbo Wicks, while Shirley had two further children, Carly Wicks (Kellie Shirley) and Dean Wicks (Matt Di Angelo). Carly was the result of a one-night stand named Daniel, but she and Buster reconnected and he also fathered Dean. Kevin raised both children as his own. Shirley disowned Stan after an argument and did not speak to him for 25 years. Shirley walked out on her children when she divorced Kevin. She did not attend Jimbo's funeral, who died of cystic fibrosis at the age of 21.

Tina gave birth to Zsa Zsa Carter (Emer Kenny) at the age of 19 with a man named Mark Reynolds, who was six years her senior, but could not cope with bringing up a child at a young age. She often indulged in alcohol and drugs, leaving Zsa Zsa to bring herself up. Zsa Zsa's father later died. Tina also married a man named Andy, but left him for a man named Miguel and went to Spain. She later began a lesbian relationship with firefighter Fiona "Tosh" Mackintosh (Rebecca Scroggs). They shared a volatile relationship; Tosh was violent towards Tina.

Tina remained close to Mick (without knowing that he is really her nephew, rather than her brother). Mick met a local girl called Linda Peacock (Kellie Bright) when he was six years old and they went to school together. When they were 15, Linda fell pregnant by Mick, three months after the death of her father, and gave birth to their son Lee Carter (Danny-Boy Hatchard). Two years later, they had a daughter, Nancy Carter (Maddy Hill), followed by the premature birth of their youngest son, Johnny Carter (Sam Strike/Ted Reilly). Shirley burnt down their first pub, which led to Mick being estranged from Shirley and they lived with Linda's mother, Elaine Peacock (Maria Friedman).

2006–2012

Shirley is the first Carter to be introduced, in 2006, as the ex-wife of pre-established character Kevin Wicks and mother of his two children, Carly and Deano. Shirley fails to reunite with her family due to her abandonment of them and Jimbo especially. She clashes with many Walford residents, including Denise Fox (Diane Parish) and Pat Butcher (Pam St. Clement), but has support in her best friend Heather Trott (Cheryl Fergison). She continues to try to win over Carly and Deano, but both leave Walford on bad terms with their mother. Shirley eventually begins a relationship with Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden), over their mutual tendency to drink too much.

The second Carter introduced is Shirley's niece Zsa Zsa, Tina's daughter. Zsa Zsa flees her mother and step-father to Walford, and moves in with Shirley and Phil. After Phil becomes addicted to cocaine when his relationship with Shirley ends, Zsa Zsa supports her, but later moves to France, remaining on good terms with her aunt. Shirley continues to try to help Phil escape his addiction, and they reunite when he manages to do so. She provides a false alibi for him when his uncle and step-father, Archie Mitchell (Larry Lamb) is murdered, strengthening their relationship. Shirley shows her maternal skills for the first time since she abandoned Deano and Carly in mothering Phil's son Ben Mitchell (Joshua Pascoe), as he is neglected by Phil due to being gay. She is devastated when Heather is murdered, and, just as she begins to recover, the discovery that it was Ben that killed her and Phil hid this drives Shirley back to being a mess. She ends things with Phil, and sees Ben sent to prison for what he has done. To help her mother recover from Phil's betrayal, Carly returns to Walford and reunites with her. She introduces Shirley to her grandson, Jimmy, named for Jimbo, and Shirley departs Walford with her.

2013–

Shirley returns but disappears after discovering that Carl White (Daniel Coonan) caused a car crash that put Phil in hospital. However, it is revealed that she is staying with Tina. Tina has recently broken up with Tosh as she had been abusing her. They return to Walford. Tina convinces Shirley to visit their estranged brother, Mick, at his pub in Watford, where they clash with Mick's wife Linda. Eventually Shirley reunites with Mick and Mick buys The Queen Victoria, moving to Albert Square with Linda, their son Johnny and family dog Lady Di (Hot Lips). Shirley and Tina move in with them as well, to Linda's chagrin. Mick stops Nancy's wedding to Wayne Ladlow (Malachi Kirby) and Nancy reveals that Johnny is gay; Linda struggles to accept his sexuality. Mick and Tina as Stan for money but Shirley blames Stan for giving them up as children. However, Shirley is forced to ask for the money herself, and Stan agrees. Tina reunites with Tosh when she returns to Walford, to Shirley's fury, and eventually moves out of The Vic to live with Tosh. When Stan is ill, he comes to stay at The Vic, to everyone's displeasure. He accidentally starts a fire, but is saved by Lee, who has fled the army after. He has casual flings with Lucy Beale (Hetti Bywater) and Whitney Dean (Shona McGarty). Mick convinces him to return to the army; on the day before he is due to leave, Lucy is murdered by an unknown assailant (see Who Killed Lucy Beale?). Lee makes a statement before leaving.

Deano (now known as Dean) returns, as Stan wants to reunite him with Shirley. He still angry at Shirley and clashes with Mick. Stan pays for him to open up his own salon in Walford, unaware that Dean is planning to scam him and flee. Stan discovers the plan and stops him, convincing Dean to stay. Dean develops feelings for Linda and overhears a conversation between Mick and Linda, revealing they are not really married. Lee returns from the army. Shirley confesses to Phil that she still harbours intense guilt about her bad relationship with her son. Phil tries to talk Dean around, only to realise that Shirley means Mick; she is secretly Mick's mother. She discloses to him how her mother, Sylvie, hid her pregnancy and then posed the baby as her own. Tina and Tosh decide to use IVF to have a baby, and to help pay for it, Tina turns to Babe and starts dealing drugs but Carol Jackson (Lindsey Coulson) reveals Tina's drug dealing to Tosh and the rest of the Carter family. Tosh ends the relationship, while the Carters demand that Babe dispose of her cannabis. Babe enlist Dean's help with storing it at the salon, but Shirley discovers their plan and burns the drugs to keep Dean out of trouble. As revenge, Babe threatens to reveal Shirley as Mick's mother, but Shirley pleads with her. Babe lies to her family that she has not seen Sylvie for years, but actually Sylvie is living with her.

Dean makes a move on Linda, but she firmly rejects him. When Shirley shoots Phil and quickly leaves, Dean is comforted by Linda and he rapes her. Linda keeps her rape a secret from Mick. Babe discovers Stan has terminal prostate cancer and reveals this to the family. Mick and Dean find Shirley to tell her but she refuses to return home. Mick and Dean tow the caravan in which Shirley was staying to Walford, to find Buster Briggs inside. Shirley arrives on Buster's motorbike, revealing her long-standing relationship with Buster. Dean realises that Buster is his father and they begin to bond. Buster is on day release from prison but intends going away with Shirley and Dean. Mick alerts the authorities and police arrive at the pub. Buster is arrested for not reporting back after his day release. Buster then realises that he is the father of Mick as well. Linda later discovers that she is pregnant, but does not know whether the father is Mick or Dean.

After Tosh badly beats Tina, Shirley attacks her and orders Tosh to leave Tina forever. Shirley and Mick discover that it was Babe let Tosh think Tina was having an affair, so they confront her but they find Sylvie, who is suffering from Alzheimer's disease. Mick is upset when Sylvie tells him that she never had a son. Babe and Shirley convince Mick not to pursue a relationship with Sylvie.

Linda admits her rape to Dean's girlfriend Stacey Branning (Lacey Turner), who ends the relationship. Johnny leaves Walford to travel the world with his new boyfriend. Dean reveals to Lee and Nancy that Mick and Linda are not really married. Linda is adamant that Dean stays away from The Queen Vic on Christmas Day, upsetting the entire family. Dean confronts Linda and threatens to tell Mick that her baby could be his if she does not persuade Stacey to reunite with him. She agrees, however Stacey is not interested. Mick proposes to Linda but she declines and reveals that Dean raped her. Mick reveals the truth to Shirley, who refuses to believe it and confronts Dean, who states that Linda wanted to have sex. Mick violently attacks Dean, but stops when Shirley screams that they are brothers. Mick then throws Shirley out. Linda is devastated to hear Mick telling Stan and Tina that Dean raped her, so she leaves, without her engagement ring. Mick then completely wrecks the pub and throws all of the customers out, before breaking down.

Linda returns the following day with Elaine, and she and Mick rebuild their relationship. They leave for Watford, leaving Lee and Nancy suspicious. Linda decides to report her rape to the police, while Dean continues to tell Shirley lies about how Linda had been leading him on for months. Mick and Linda tell Lee and Nancy the truth. When Lee attacks Dean in the street, they are interrupted when Babe reveals that Stan has collapsed outside the pub while attempting to whisk Sylvie off on holiday. Shirley reveals to Mick all of the wicked things Stan, Babe and Sylvie did while she was pregnant with him, leading to Mick exiling Shirley and Dean from the family and sending Babe and Sylvie home. Tina attempts to persuade Mick to forgive Shirley as she has always looked after the pair of them, however when Mick tries to talk to Shirley, she ignores him to concentrate on Dean.

Mick so abducts Dean from his salon and threatens to kill him if he does not tell the truth. Mick then returns to the pub and reveals that Dean is gone. Dean breaks into the pub cellar and pours petrol everywhere. When Nancy enters, he takes her hostage, but Mick hears her screams and also enters. Dean reveals that just wants revenge by burning the pub down. Mick attacks Dean and pushes his foot on Dean's throat, leaving him unconscious. Linda proposes to Mick and he accepts. Nancy asks Mick if killed Dean and disposed of his body but Mick ignores Nancyher. Nancy reveals Mick and Dean's showdown to Linda, who confronts Mick. He swears that he did not kill Dean, and to calm Nancy's nerves, Linda lies that she telephoned Dean and spoke to him.

Stan's cancer spreads to his spinal cord, and Shirley becomes more involved with the family, and eventually Nancy reveals that Mick may have killed Dean. Shirley confronts Mick, Nancy and Linda, but Dean and Buster then enter, and tell Shirley that they are her new family and that they do not need the others. The three plan to leave Walford for Greece, but first Dean is determined to visit Stan before he dies. When Mick throws Dean out for giving Stan alcohol, Dean assaults a police officer, after Shirley called them on him. When Buster finds out, he leaves Shirley, but returns to her later that day when he realises how much he loves her. Stan is later placed in a hospice when he begins to experience more pain, and eventually peacefully dies in Shirley's arms as they reminisce and their lives. When Shirley reveals the news to the family, they are devastated, and shun Shirley when she continues to protect Dean. She and Buster then tell Dean that Stan has died in prison, leading to him crying and the other prisoners laughing at him. Mick puts pressure on himself by stating he is determined to match Shirley and Buster's contribution to the funeral, however Linda manages to knock down the price after negotiating with Pam Coker (Lin Blakley). On the day of Stan's funeral, Linda is stunned to learn that Dean has been released, and so confronts him at his home. As he is about to confess to raping Linda, Mick storms in and collects Linda, banning Shirley, Dean and Buster from the funeral in the process. After the funeral, Mick, Linda, Nancy, Lee, Tina and Babe are furious to see Shirley, Dean and Buster at the bar of The Queen Vic, stating that they are not going to miss the wake. Babe later leaves and visits Sylvie in her care home. She slaps Sylvie when she makes a remark about her appearance, so Sylvie bites Babe's neck when she tries to comfort her. Sylvie then reveals that Babe broke the law in Ramsgate, but Babe threatens Sylvie to keep quiet.

Babe begins to socialise with Shirley, Dean and Buster as well as the rest of the family. She even attends an event at Dean's salon, however a brick is thrown through the window with the word "rapist" on it. It is later revealed that Babe paid somebody to throw the brick through the window, and is intending on sabotaging Dean's business for what he did to Linda. When Shirley and Buster discover Babe's meddling, Buster throws a trifle over her head, leading to Mick and Linda learning the truth. They exile Babe from the family, so she leaves Walford. Shortly after this, Mick confides in Linda that he feels heavily depressed over her rape, and as she tries to comfort him, he storms off in a rage. As Linda follows him, she trips on her dressing gown rope and falls down the stairs. When she awakens from unconsciousness, she realises she has fallen on her stomach and that her waters have broken. Sonia and Kat get Linda to hospital, while Carol finds Mick and tells him that Linda has gone into labour. She gives birth to a baby boy, later named Ollie. Dean tried to visit Ollie and Linda in hospital and tries to rename him "Kevin", convinced that Ollie is his son after raping Linda. Mick has a blood test to see if he matches Ollie's; he does. He asks Dean and he is revealed not to be a match, meaning that Mick is Ollie's biological father. Dean is secretly heartbroken, and when confiding in Shabnam Masood (Rakhee Thakrar), she reveals that she had a daughter with Dean seven years ago. Dean attempts to pursue Shabnam into telling him where their daughter is, however Shabnam - not wanting to reconnect with her child - lies that she died shortly after birth. Shirley later learns that truth and tells Dean, who ruins Shabnam's engagement party to Kush Kazemi (Davood Ghadami) in revenge. Shirley and Shabnam's father Masood Ahmed (Nitin Ganatra) decide to find the child, who is revealed to be named Jade Green (Amaya Edward), and it is revealed that she is suffering from cystic fibrosis in a foster home. When Shirley and Buster tell Dean, he breaks down as this is the disease which killed his older brother Jimbo. Shirley and Buster decide they want to adopt Jade, however Shabnam will not give her consent to allow them to do so. They later convince her to and begin building a strong custody case. Meanwhile, Lee has developed depression as he struggles to cope with Linda's rape and Ollie's birth, only confiding in Nancy and his girlfriend, Whitney.

Mick, Shirley and Tina later realise that Babe stole Stan's ashes when she left Walford following their argument, so travel to Ramsgate to find her and scatter his ashes. They find her, and Shirley is confused when she finds a photo album filled with young girls and dates on the back of them. She later realises that Babe and Queenie used to go searching for young pregnant girls and sell their babies to parents who could not have children. Shirley is disgusted to learn that they were going to do the same to her with Mick, however Babe changed her mind after seeing Mick. Babe later sets her caravan on fire, and Shirley, Mick and Tina allow her to move to Walford with the rest of the family. The following month, Linda's mother Elaine and her new toyboy lover Jason Adams (Scott Neal) arrive and announce their engagement. However, the next night, Mick and Linda catch Jason in a state of undress with Babe. Linda orders Babe to get Jason to leave, so she records Jason trying to persuade her to help him con the Carters, and plays it to the entire pub. Elaine, hurt and humiliated, slaps Babe. When explaining herself to Elaine and Linda, Babe reveals that she is a virgin and just wanted to know what it felt like to have sex, leading to Elaine pitying her and Linda throwing Jason out. Linda then informs Mick that she has booked their wedding day for New Year's Day 2016.

When Lee is sacked from his job in the army for punching his former boss, his depression worsens, leading to Mick and Babe finding out. Mick takes him to the doctors' surgery, where he is formally diagnosed with clinical depression and prescribed medication, which he refuses to take, but he changes his mind after conversations with Linda and Babe. At Stacey's Halloween party, Lee attempts to fix her plug socket, but does it incorrectly, leading to a heavily pregnant Stacey being electrocuted and her boyfriend, Martin Fowler (James Bye) punching Lee. This sends Lee on a downward spiral, but he feels better when he is informed that Stacey and the baby are fine. Meanwhile, Dean begins a relationship with Roxy Mitchell (Rita Simons), angering her sister Ronnie Mitchell (Samantha Womack) and she does everything in her power to split them up. Firstly, she attempts to persuade Mick to help her murder Dean, but after Mick decides against helping Ronnie in her plans, she tries to poison Dean. Shirley and Buster arrive just in time, however are furious to learn that Mick knew what Ronnie was planning, resulting in Buster punching Mick. Shirley, Buster and Jade spend Christmas dinner with the Carters, infuriating Dean, which results in his throwing a jug at Roxy, which cuts her face. Roxy attempts to leave Dean, but he is extremely apologetic and she forgives him. The next day, after Jack Branning (Scott Maslen) points out that Roxy's feisty personality has gone since she began dating Dean, she tries to leave him and end their relationship. Dean attempts to rape Roxy, but is stopped when Shirley enters, hearing Roxy's cries. Roxy flees, while Shirley finally sees Dean as a rapist. Roxy then bumps into Linda and Elaine, who encourage her to report the matter to the police, which she does. While Dean is having a bath, Shirley attempts to drown him, but she is unsuccessful and Dean strikes her as Linda enters. During an argument over Roxy, Dean admits that he raped Linda in Shirley's presence, and then goes into hiding from the police.

On New Year's Day 2016, Mick and Linda prepare for their wedding at a hotel, but Shirley feels too ashamed to attend after believing Dean over Linda. After being instructed by Linda to attend, Shirley goes, but is furious to see that Tina has brought Sylvie to the ceremony. Dean then arrives and attempts to gatecrash the nuptials, however Shirley takes him outside, leading to an explosive argument by a nearby lake over Linda, Roxy and Shirley's murder attempt on him. When Mick becomes curious of Shirley's whereabouts, Jade informs him that she is arguing with Dean outside. As Mick leaves the hotel, he witnesses Dean throw himself into the lake, taking Shirley with him. Mick dives in to save Shirley, as Dean is trying to drown her, which leads to a fight in the water and Dean floating face down in the water. As Shirley is taken to safety, Linda, Buster and Tina watch in horror as Mick goes back under the water to save Dean; he is successful and Dean survives after being resuscitated by Mick. Dean is then arrested for the attempted rape of Roxy, and Mick and Linda then marry with their friends and family around them.

While Mick and Linda are on their honeymoon, Lee and Nancy are shocked when Whitney asks them whether her fugitive half-brother, Ryan Malloy (Neil McDermott), can stay the night. The pair reluctantly agree, however after Whitney and Ryan argue after Whitney suggests that Ryan hands himself into the police, Ryan steals a large amount of money from the pub and flees. This results in a catfight between Whitney and Nancy as Nancy attempts to call the police on Ryan, however Mick and Linda enter and demand to know what is going on. Whitney fears that she will be kicked out, while Nancy and Babe are confused as to why Mick and Linda have not called the police. The following morning, Ryan contacts Whitney, asking to meet her in the park. She does so, but takes Mick with her, and they manage to retrieve the money and persuade Ryan to give himself up. Later, an emotional Whitney kisses Mick, leaving him stunned. Mick later informs Linda, who is intent on throwing Whitney out, but decides against it when she sees how much she means to Lee. Linda later warns Whitney off Mick, and encourages her to be patient with Lee when he feels depressed. Nancy and her boyfriend of seven months, Tamwar Masood (Himesh Patel) later begin a new business venture into Indian cuisine. Tamwar manages to hire the launderette to hold their first event, however Tamwar leaves due to Shabnam's failing marriage to Kush. Nancy, rushing due to stress, trips over and drops a pan of curry. This results in her suffering an absence and wetting herself, humiliating her. The following day, Nancy is devastated, and refuses to speak to Tamwar for leaving her on her own. Shabnam later visits Nancy to encourage her to forgive Tamwar, however Tamwar ends the relationship, shattering Nancy. Shirley later visits Dean in prison, pleading with him to admit that he attempted to rape Roxy at his upcoming trial. However, Dean pleads not guilty, and he is remanded in custody.

Nancy is offered a job in another pub, but Lee also applies and gets the job. Babe notices Whitney's attraction to Mick, and pushes her to tell Lee, leading to him attacking Mick. Feeling neglected, Lee has sex with Abi Branning (Lorna Fitzgerald) in an alleyway. Whitney decides to leave Walford, but Lee stops her and proposes marriage. Lee admits that he got the job by telling the landlady of the other pub that Nancy has epilepsy, so Nancy moves out. Lee quits his job at the other pub and Mick and Linda give him Nancy's old job, so she accuses him of stealing two jobs from her and being treated unfairly by her parents. Nancy and Lee later fight on Mother's Day, and she pushes him, which causes Ollie to fall from his highchair. Linda refuses to take him to hospital after Mick requests, but later she finds him not breathing in his cot then he suffers a seizure. They are told that Ollie has a bleed on the brain from a severe head injury and he could have brain damage. Mick blames Nancy, while Linda is in denial about Ollie's condition. Mick later pays Nancy to leave Walford so that the family can come to terms with Ollie's condition on their own, which she refuses to do. However, after Johnny returns as a surprise for Linda, he states that he is not returning to Italy, so Nancy asks him to give her the tickets. Tamwar and Nancy then leave the country to travel the world, with Mick finally forgiving Nancy before they depart. The Carters are frustrated by the lack of information the doctors can give them regarding Ollie's condition. Things in Tina and Sonia's relationship begin to turn sour, and things get even worse when Tina gets drunk at the Pride of Walford Awards, makes a fool of Sonia and then has sex with Sophie Dodd (Poppy Rush). She confides in Mick of her betrayal, and decides to tell Sonia, but is stopped when Sonia reveals that she has found a lump on her breast. Tina decides not to tell Sonia as she needs her, but is later shocked when Sophie arrives at the house an reveals their one-night stand to Sonia. She manages to forgive Tina, however she finds it difficult to trust her again. The family is later stunned when Sylvie arrives at the pub with the police, and it is revealed that she ran away from her care home after she was told off for making sexual advances to other patients. The Carters decide to allow Sylvie to love with them, but after she threatens to harm baby Ollie, Linda arranges for a Sylvie to move in with Tina and Sonia, much to Sonia's discomfort.

Elsewhere, Babe has caused trouble for many residents of Albert Square. Firstly, she strikes up a friendship with Abi after she begins working with her in The Queen Vic kitchen, and becomes her confidant as she worries that her boyfriend, Ben, is in love with Paul Coker (Jonny Labey). So, Babe forces Abi to tell Ben, Paul and a busy pub that she is pregnant by him, but later transpires that this is a lie. Abi desperately tries to get pregnant by Ben, but her attempts fail and her plan goes awry when Ben tells her that he has contracted chlamydia and may have given it to her. Babe then advises Abi to sleep with other men to become pregnant, so she has sex with Lee in an alleyway. When Abi tells Babe she wants to end the lie, Babe sees the perfect opportunity when Ben and his father, Phil, scuffle in The Vic. She pushes Abi into the fight, causing her to fall over, and hints to Abi to fake a miscarriage. Babe and Abi continue to scheme even after the faked miscarriage, but after an argument between the pair, Babe posts a letter through Ben's letterbox revealing Abi's pregnancy lie. They are relieved to learn that Ben has not read it, but Abi is shaken when she realises that Ben's troublesome half-sister, Louise Mitchell (Tilly Keeper), has read it and begins blackmailing Abi. Babe then threatens Louise with Abi to leave them alone, which she agrees to. However, Abi later inadvertently reveals to Ben about the pregnancy lie after hearing him arguing with Louise, and he publicly humiliates her half-naked in front of everybody at The Queen Vic. This results in Abi quitting her job with Babe. Babe later attempts to flirt with happily married Les Coker (Roger Sloman), but he harshly declines her in favour of his wife, Pam. Babe later follows Les and Pam to the allotments, where she witnesses them setting fire to women's clothes and accessories. When they leave, Babe investigates and finds a photograph of Les dressed as a woman, and realises that he is a transvestite. Disgusted, Babe begins blackmailing the Cokers for money, in order for Les' "perversion" to be kept secret. When they finally realise that it is Babe blackmailing them, Pam pleads with her to stop it, however Babe has other ideas and increases the weekly payment. Les later threatens to report Babe to the police, but this backfires when she allows Pam to believe that she is going to reveal the photograph to a busy pub and lets her make a fool of herself when it is actually a present for Linda's birthday. Babe does not even stop blackmailing the tortured Cokers when their grandson, Paul, is killed in a homophobic attack. Eventually, Pam confides in her equally ruthless friend, Claudette Hubbard (Ellen Thomas), who threatens Babe to leave Pam and Les alone, which she refuses to do.

After Abi is given her job back at the pub, it is revealed that she had sex with Lee and gave him and Whitney chlamydia, which devastates a now pregnant Whitney. She contemplates leaving Walford, but after a conversation with Linda, she decides to give Lee a second chance. Babe, however, burns Abi's hand on a hot stove in revenge for damaging Lee and Whitney's relationship. Abi then reveals to the Carters all about how Babe forced her to fake a pregnancy, and Whitney in turn reveals how Babe blackmailed her to tell Lee that she kissed Mick. Therefore, the family throw Babe out, and she moves in with Tina and Sonia. This reignites Babe's feud with Sylvie, and she later storms over to Abi's house and threatens to make her life hell for exposing her to her family. Later, Babe decides to leave Walford after a showdown with Sylvie, but Claudette sees her and taunts her, so she decides to stay and warns Claudette that her blackmailing of Les and Pam will not stop. She later visits Les, and orders a payment by the end of the day, or she will expose his secret. Later, when Abi arrives at work, Babe plants some of Abi's hair in the meals, getting Abi fired when she becomes argumentative, pleasing Babe. She later visits Sylvie, and nastily informs her that she is not leaving Walford and threatens her. That night, while Babe is tidying up the kitchen, an unknown assailant enters the pub and locks Babe in the walk-in freezer. Whitney and Linda later find her, and she is rushed to hospital. Claudette then exposes Babe's blackmail of Pam and Les to Mick and Linda, who are yet again disgusted in her. After Sylvie pays the family a visit, Babe tells Mick and Linda that it was Sylvie who locked her in the freezer, and manages to convince the family that she should be put back in a care home. However, after Abi is given her job back, it is revealed that Abi was the real culprit who locked Babe in the freezer, and that Babe lied to have Sylvie exiled from the family. Amidst Babe's dramas, Dean's trial for the attempted rape of Roxy is upcoming, which puts an immense strain on Linda, and focuses on finding Babe's attacker to take her mind off it. She is later devastated by Dean's acquittal, but tells Mick that she is a survivor and will get through it.

Attentions in the Carter family soon turn to Lee and Whitney's upcoming wedding, with Mick and Linda ecstatic about becoming grandparents. After initially having doubts, Lee eventually comes round to the idea of becoming a father, and begins applying for several jobs in order to support his impending family. However, while looking through wedding magazines with Linda and Lauren, Whitney begins bleeding and Mick and Linda insist on taking her to hospital. They contact Lee, and while Whitney has an ultrasound scan performed, the couple are distraught to learn that Whitney has miscarried their baby. The following day, Lee feels immensely guilty as he believes that contracting chlamydia from his one-night stand with Abi contributed to Whitney's miscarriage, but she reassures him that it is impossible. However, Whitney confides in Lauren that it is possible that Lee's chlamydia could have caused her miscarriage. Whitney then decides to visit her adoptive mother, Bianca, in Milton Keynes for a while, devastating Lee and the other Carters. To everybody's surprise, Whitney returns to following day, expressing how much she missed Lee and she throws herself into planning their wedding, which worries Linda. Elsewhere, Mick and Linda threaten to inform the police of Babe's blackmail of the Cokers if she does not return it to them. Babe struggles to find the money, and when Linda believes that she is just making excuses, she throws Babe out. After realizing that Pam and Les have been given their money back, Linda finds Babe and she confesses that she had used the Cokers' money for a savings account for Ollie for when he was older, and also explains that behaving so bitterly makes her feel better. Linda explains that being nice to people can also make her feel good too, before allowing her to move back into The Queen Vic.

Family members

The Carter family tree includes all characters who are descended from Stan Carter. His grandfather, Reginald William Carter, has also been mentioned. Linda Carter also took the surname "Carter", before actually marrying her partner Mick Carter in 2016.

Sylvie's sister Babe Smith is also considered to be a part of the family unit, though not related by blood to Stan. Linda's mother, Elaine Peacock, is also heavily involved with all aspects of the family.

Reception

The Carters were named Best Family at the 2014 Inside Soap Awards.^[1]

References

External links

• Stan Carter at BBC Online
• Babe Smith at BBC Online
• Shirley Carter at BBC Online
• Tina Carter at BBC Online
• Mick Carter at BBC Online
• Linda Carter at BBC Online
• Lee Carter at BBC Online
• Nancy Carter at BBC Online
• Johnny Carter at BBC Online
• Dean Wicks at BBC Online
• Carly Wicks at BBC Online
• Zsa Zsa Carter at BBC Online
• Buster Briggs at BBC Online
• Fiona "Tosh" Mackintosh at BBC Online