List of ''EastEnders'' characters (2001)

The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the BBC soap opera EastEnders in 2001, by order of appearance. All characters were introduced by the show's executive producer, John Yorke. The first character to be introduced was Jill Marsden, a detective chief inspector investigating who shot Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden). April saw the introductions of: Ritchie Stringer (Gareth Hunt), an associate of Phil, Paul Trueman (Gary Beadle), the son of Audrey Trueman (Corinne Skinner-Carter) and brother of Anthony Trueman (Nicholas Bailey), and Donna Andrews (Alison Senior; Paula Jennings), the mistress of Trevor Morgan (Alex Ferns). Harry Slater (Michael Elphick), the brother of Charlie Slater (Derek Martin), and Gary Bolton (Bruce Byron), the father of Robbie Jackson (Dean Gaffney), made their debuts in May, whereas Margaret Walker (Susan George), a love interest for Terry Raymond (Gavin Richards), and Angel Hudson (Goldie), a gangster, made their first appearances in June.

Sean Andrews (Victor and Harry Hunter), the son of Donna and Trevor, was introduced in August, while Patrick Trueman (Rudolph Walker), the former husband of Audrey and replacement parental figure for Paul and Anthony, was introduced in September. Belinda Peacock (Leanne Lakey), Charlie's daughter, and Viv Slater, Charlie's deceased wife, appear for guest stints in October. November saw the only baby being introduced, Louise Mitchell (Rachel Cox), the daughter of Phil and Lisa Fowler (Lucy Benjamin). Also, November saw the first appearances of: Nathan Williams (Doug Allen), the illegitimate son of Roy Evans (Tony Caunter), Nita Mistry (Bindya Solanki), a love interest for Robbie, Jane Williams (Ann Mitchell), Nathan's mother, and Derek Harkinson, the childhood friend of Pauline Fowler (Wendy Richard). Roxy Drake (Tracy Brabin), a pimp who grooms Zoe Slater (Michelle Ryan), Kelly Taylor (Brooke Kinsella), a prostitute groomed by Roxy, and Tom Stuart (Shaun Dooley), a vicar, were introduced in December.

Sue Miller

Sue Miller
EastEnders character
Portrayed by	Sadie Shimmin (2001) Victoria Willing (2002)
First appearance	Episode 2054 9 January 2001
Last appearance	Episode 2304 9 May 2002
Classification	Former; guest
Family Mother Margaret Wilson Husband Neil Miller (until 2005) Adoptive daughters Rebecca Miller

Sue Miller, played by Sadie Shimmin in 2001 and Victoria Willing in 2002, is the adoptive mother of Sonia Jackson (Natalie Cassidy) and Martin Fowler's (James Alexandrou) daughter. Sonia gave birth to baby Chloe in 2000, but decided to give her daughter up for adoption. Chloe was placed with Sue and her husband Neil (Robin Sneller), a childless couple. Martin's mother, Pauline Fowler (Wendy Richard), Sonia and Martin are seen visit Chloe occasionally at the Millers' house Sue and Neil changed Chloe's name to Rebecca.

In 2002, Sonia kidnaps Rebecca while Neil and Sue are out. Sonia tells their babysitter that she is a family friend, and snatches Rebecca, taking her to Walford. Neil and Sue work this out and trace her. While Sonia barricades herself inside her house, the Millers give Dot Branning (June Brown) fifteen minutes to persuade Sonia to hand Rebecca over before they phone the police. Just before the Millers are about to call the police, Dot successfully persuades Sonia to hand Rebecca over.

Sonia reads in a newspaper in 2005 that Sue and Neil have died in a car crash. This leads to her gaining contact with Rebecca again.

Jill Marsden

Detective Chief Inspector Jill Marsden is played by Sophie Stanton. She makes her first appearance on 5 March 2001, when she investigates who shot Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden) which is part of the whodunit storyline, Who Shot Phil?.^[1] She returns in 2002 and 2003, and returns again in 2009 for another whodunit storyline, Who Killed Archie?^[2] and returns again on 5 January 2012 for her third whodunnit storyline, 'Who's Stalking Phil?'.^[3]

When brought back in 2009, Marsden feelings are further explored in a segment of the BBC EastEnders homepage entitled 'Marsden's Video Diaries', documenting the character's thoughts on the storyline she is involved in.^[4] Marsden's relationship with Phil has been explored since her first appearance, the BBC describing their relationship as "romance in negative" and "Her ultimate dream is that some day she'll get [Phil]… behind bars."^[1]

Ritchie Stringer

Ritchie Stringer
EastEnders character
Portrayed by	Gareth Hunt
First appearance	Episode 2094 10 April 2001
Last appearance	Episode 2095 12 April 2001
Classification	Former; guest
Profile
Occupation	Gangster

Ritchie Stringer, played by Gareth Hunt, is a gang boss who knows Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden). Phil contacts him in April 2001 to call in a few favours. Ritchie and Phil have a mutual acquaintance, Dan Sullivan (Craig Fairbrass). Phil asks Ritchie to help him frame Dan. Dan had worked for Ritchie in the past, and so he does not suspect anything untoward when Ritchie provides him with a gun to do a raid on Phil. However it is all part of Phil's plan, and Dan is caught by the police in the middle of the armed robbery. It transpires that the gun Ritchie had given Dan is the same gun that Lisa Shaw (Lucy Benjamin) had used to shoot Phil earlier that year. Dan is blamed for the shooting.

Ritchie Stringer was 10/3 at Ladbrokes bookmakers as the culprit in the "Who Shot Phil?" storyline, despite not being one of the named suspects.^[5] When the BBC announced that actor Gareth Hunt was appearing in EastEnders, there was a massive betting flurry on Ritchie being the culprit. Bookmakers William Hill even "closed the book". William Hill spokesman Graham Sharpe commented that there were "dozens of calls" within half an hour of a 16/1 price being quoted and the bookmakers had nearly been "knocked over in the rush of punters wanting to place bets of hundreds of pounds on the actor".^[6] William Hill decided to reopen the book later in the week after "information from unofficial BBC sources had convinced them that [Gareth Hunt's] character [was] not the killer."^[7]

Paul Trueman

Paul Trueman, played by Gary Beadle, appears between 2001 and 2004. Paul is introduced as part of the already established Trueman family. He is portrayed as a bad boy. Beadle left the role in 2004, following a suspension, reportedly for failing to learn his lines. In his exit storyline, Paul becomes a drug dealer, and Beadle has been critical of the storyline, suggesting it played into black, racial stereotyping. It is implied that Paul is killed upon his exit, though his death is not screened.

Donna Andrews

Donna Andrews
EastEnders character
Portrayed by	Alison Senior (2001) Paula Jennings (2001–2002)
Duration	2001–2002
First appearance	Episode 2100 24 April 2001
Last appearance	Episode 2408 8 November 2002
Classification	Former; recurring
Profile
Occupation	Mistress
Family Sons Sean Andrews

Donna Andrews, played by Allison Senior (2001) and Paula Jennings (2001–2002), is the mistress of Trevor Morgan (Alex Ferns), who first appears on 24 April 2001.

Donna first appears when Billy Mitchell (Perry Fenwick) spots her and Trevor entering Donna's house. A few days later, after much agonising over whether to tell Little Mo Morgan (Kacey Ainsworth), Trevor's wife, Billy takes Little Mo to see for herself. On 28 August, Little Mo's sisters, Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace) and Lynne Hobbs (Elaine Lordan), reveal that Donna is pregnant with Trevor's baby. Little Mo visits Donna several days later, and is urged by her not to let Trevor hurt her any more.

The following summer, Donna appears at Little Mo's trial for assaulting Trevor with an iron and gives evidence against Trevor. This proves fruitless as Little Mo is found guilty and given a prison sentence, although her conviction for attempted murder is quashed on appeal and she is released from prison within weeks of the verdict.

Donna next appears in October, when Trevor forces his way into her home in Swindon, attacks her and kidnaps their son, Sean. On his return to Walford, Trevor also captures Little Mo and attempts to kill them all in a house fire, only for Little Mo and Sean to be rescued, but Trevor and local fireman Tom Banks (Colm Ó Maonlaí) die in the resulting explosion, leaving Donna feeling Little Mo should be grieving for Tom, rather than Trevor. Donna makes her last appearance on 8 November, a week after Trevor's death.

Harry Slater

Harry Slater
EastEnders character
Portrayed by	Michael Elphick
First appearance	Episode 2104 3 May 2001
Last appearance	Episode 2178 4 October 2001
Classification	Former; regular
Profile
Occupation	Bar owner
Family Father Frederick Slater Mother Mary Slater Brothers Charlie Slater Sisters Violet Slater Sons Dermott Dolan Daughters Zoe Slater Nieces Lynne Hobbs Kat Moon Little Mo Mitchell Belinda Peacock

Harold "Harry" Slater, played by Michael Elphick, is the younger brother of Charlie Slater (Derek Martin). Harry groomed Kat as a child and it is later revealed that he had raped her when she was 13 years old, making Kat pregnant with Zoe Slater (Michelle Ryan). Zoe is initially presented as Kat's sister but she is in fact Kat and Harry's daughter. Charlie didn't know the father was Harry so he decided to raise Zoe as his own daughter and Kat had to become her sister. Harry fled to Spain soon after the incident and didn't reappear until the death of his sister, Violet, in 1988. After Violet's funeral, Harry quickly left again.

Storylines

Harry arrives in Walford to visit his older brother, Charlie. Most of the family welcome him, but Kat leaves the room without explanation whenever Harry enters.

He starts dating Peggy Mitchell (Barbara Windsor) and they soon get engaged and Peggy plans to emigrate to Spain, where Harry lives. Zoe announces that she is going with Harry to Spain but a furious Kat refuses to let her go. Zoe storms out saying she's leaving and Kat follows. The two argue and Kat shouts that she is her mother. When Zoe demands that Kat tell her who her real father is, Kat shocks her by revealing that it's Harry. Zoe tells Charlie as he was under the impression that Zoe's birth father was a boy Kat had gone to school with. He goes to find Harry and attacks him in The Queen Victoria public house, but is restrained by the punters. Charlie tells Harry to leave Walford and that if he ever sees him again he will kill him. He also tells him to end his relationship with Peggy and he does so by writing her a letter. Harry tells Charlie he is ashamed of his actions and that it's ruined his life. He admits that Charlie's late wife Viv (April Martin) knew what happened and told him to leave, ruining Charlie's idealised image of Viv in the process. He goes to shake Charlie's hand to say goodbye but Charlie, disgusted by him, spits in his face and calls him a monster.

Kat confronts Harry and he says she must hate him. She denies that she hates him but just thinks he's a pervert. Kat reveals that she got pregnant and that Zoe is the child. She says that Zoe hates him for what he did to her. Harry calls Kat a bitch and leaves in a taxi. Kat attempts suicide but is found in the park by Zoe and rushed to hospital.

The following year, Charlie receives news that Harry has died from a heart attack in Spain. Harry leaves Zoe £18,000 in his will, but when Zoe sees how much the idea of taking anything from Harry is upsetting Kat, she burns the cheque saying she doesn't need his money. In January 2015, Mo receives a cheque from Harry's will for £19,500 to Kat and gives it to her. Kat is upset but refuses to mention it to anyone. After Alfie tells her to consider using the cheque to make a fresh start for their children, she ponders it and later tears up the cheque in front of Alfie. It later emerges that Harry had abused other young people when Kat is visited by a compensation lawyer requesting her to give a statement. In May 2015, Kat visits the convent where she give birth to Zoe and it is revealed to the viewers that Kat had twins – meaning Harry has another child. Later that same day, the nun who had helped Kat when she gave birth gives her advice which culminates in Kat finally giving the police a statement on Harry. In 2015, it is revealed that Zoe is a twin and Kat also gave birth to a son, who was secretly adopted.

Gary Bolton

Gary Bolton
EastEnders character
Portrayed by	Bruce Byron
First appearance	Episode 2108 14 May 2001
Last appearance	Episode 2133 10 July 2001
Classification	Former; guest
Profile
Occupation	Builder
Family Sons Robbie Jackson Kevin Bolton

Gary Bolton, played by Bruce Byron, is the biological father of Robbie Jackson (Dean Gaffney), who appears in three episodes between 14 May and 10 July 2001.

Gary lived with Robbie's mother, Carol Jackson (Lindsey Coulson), as her boyfriend, and her daughter Bianca (Patsy Palmer) until a year after Robbie's birth. When David Wicks (Michael French) is revealed as Bianca's father in 1994, Carol tells Robbie she had left his father because he was having relationships with under-age girls; however, this is retconned when the character appears on-screen for the first time in 2001. He tries to get in touch with Robbie on his eighteenth birthday by phoning Carol's father Jim Branning (John Bardon), but Jim refuses to give Gary Carol's number.

In May 2001, Robbie and his half sister Sonia (Natalie Cassidy) go to Portsmouth to find Gary. They find his number when they see an advert for a builder called G. Bolton. When they go to his house, Gary gives Robbie a present he has saved from his first birthday and a cheque to make up for "backdated pocket money". Robbie then meets his half brother, Gary's son Kevin (Rupert Hill), and when he realises that Gary had left Carol to be with Kevin's mother, he throws the cheque back at Gary and leaves. In June, Gary arrives in Walford to talk to Robbie. He tells Robbie he will pay for him to go to college, but Jim tells him to leave. Later, in July, Gary returns to Walford and is happy to see old friend Mo Harris (Laila Morse). Gary and Mo spend the day reminiscing in The Queen Victoria pub, and when Robbie comes in, Gary gives him a cheque for £10,000. This is the last time Gary is seen. Robbie uses £1,000 of his money to travel to India, and gives Sonia £9,000 to pay her college fees.

Margaret Walker

Margaret Walker
EastEnders character
Portrayed by	Susan George
First appearance	Episode 2120 11 June 2001
Last appearance	Episode 2155 24 August 2001
Classification	Former; guest
Family Brothers David Walker

Margaret Walker, played by Susan George, begins renting a flat from Janine Butcher (Charlie Brooks) and Terry Raymond (Gavin Richards)'s letting agency in June 2001. Terry and Margaret are attracted to each other and a relationship soon develops.

Janine and Margaret do not get along, which makes things awkward for Terry as he and Janine live together. Janine grows extremely jealous of Margaret and Terry's relationship, and she plays various tricks to split them up. Margaret is not perturbed and vows to beat Janine at her own game, leading to numerous squabbles. When Janine discovers a photo of Margaret and another man, she immediately assumes the worst and informs Terry that Margaret is cheating on him. Margaret explains that the man in the photo is her brother, who is dying of cancer and she is paying for his placement in a drug trial in America.

After continued hostility, Margaret tries to persuade Terry to throw Janine out, and he eventually gives in and arranges for Janine to move into one of his bedsits. Janine is aware of Terry's paternal feelings towards her, and she begins using emotional blackmail to manipulate him. Margaret eventually grows tired of all the game playing and so she and Terry book a trip to Paris to spend some time alone together. Janine is furious and Margaret goads her further by telling her that she plans to propose to Terry while they are away.

To prevent this, Janine goes to Margaret's property to steal Terry's passport, and whilst there she witnesses Margaret kissing her supposed brother goodbye. Janine becomes suspicious and when Terry tells her that he is planning to give Margaret £10,000 to help her brother, she tells him that Margaret is conning him and informs him about the kiss she'd witnessed. Furious, Terry goes to Margaret's to discover the truth, but she refuses to let him see her brother and after he insults her, she slams the door in his face.

Later that day Margaret confronts Terry demanding an apology. However Terry is adamant that she has been conning him for his money all along. She denies this, but he refuses to believe her. He brands her a prostitute and orders her to leave. After having one last fight with a smug Janine, Margaret goes home, where it is revealed that the man at her flat really is her brother after all. She puts him into a taxi and tells him that he is all that matters to her.

Although sources prior to the filming of this storyline had suggested that Margaret would be a sophisticated conwoman,^[8] this is never actually confirmed on-screen. The ending is left ambiguous and although the man at Margaret's flat turns out to be her brother, Margaret's final line – "We'll find the money somehow" – does not confirm he is dying.^[9]

Angel Hudson

Angel Hudson
EastEnders character
Portrayed by	Goldie
Duration	2001–2002
First appearance	Episode 2124 19 June 2001
Last appearance	Episode 2344 19 July 2002
Classification	Former; guest
Profile
Occupation	Gangster
Family Wife Precious Hudson

Angel Hudson, played by Goldie, is a gold-toothed gangster who is first seen in June 2001 when he attends a poker game that Steve Owen (Martin Kemp) is holding. His appearance is a huge shock to one of the other gamblers, Paul Trueman (Gary Beadle), and it is soon clear that they have unresolved issues. Later, during a break from the game, Angel tells Paul that he wants what he is owed: £30,000. He tells Paul that he has a week to pay up or he will make sure he disappears for good.

Paul tries to get the money by stealing property from his mother, Audrey Trueman (Corinne Skinner-Carter), pawning the goods and gambling the money he receives. This fails and he ends up with less money than he began with. At the end of the week, Angel comes to collect his money, and when Paul fails to pay, Angel gives him a severe beating and trashes his mother's bed and breakfast. After more threats from Angel, Paul blackmails his brother, Anthony Trueman (Nicholas R. Bailey), into giving him the money. Anthony is the local GP, a respectable man with a worthy profession, but he has a dark secret. When he was 15 years old, after a heavy drinking session, Anthony had driven a car, hit a pedestrian and then left the scene. Not wanting to ruin his brother's chance of a successful career, Paul took the blame and subsequently served 18 months in prison. Paul threatens to tell their mother the truth unless Anthony gives him the money he needs. Anthony feels he has no choice but to oblige, so he takes out a loan and Paul pays Angel. Satisfied, Angel leaves, but tells Paul they will meet again.

Angel returns in June 2002 with more orders for Paul. Angel is soon to stand trial for murder and is using his wife, Precious Hudson (Judi Shekoni), as a fake alibi. He wants Paul to guard her until she can testify. Paul obliges and Precious moves to Albert Square. Paul is initially unaware that Precious is Angel's wife, so when she sets about seducing him, he has no qualms about having sex with her. When he discovers the truth, he is terrified of what Angel will do if he finds out. However, Precious does a runner, leaving Paul to face a furious Angel. Paul goes to get Precious back, while Angel holds his father, Patrick Trueman (Rudolph Walker), and his brother's girlfriend, Zoe Slater (Michelle Ryan), hostage. Luckily, Paul persuades Precious to return before Angel does any real harm. Their affair continues and it soon blossoms into love.

Later in the month, the family of the man that Angel had killed, tries to silence Precious by placing a bomb under her car. Garry Hobbs (Ricky Groves) receives minor injuries but, furious, Precious tells Angel she will only provide his alibi if he promises to divorce her. Angel agrees but, days later, Precious is kidnapped by the victim's family. They convince her that Angel will never let her go and that the only way to be rid of him is to get him locked up. Precious agrees and at the trial, denies being with Angel at the time of the murder. Precious assumes that this will be enough to put Angel away, but is shocked when he is found not guilty.

Paul and Precious decide to leave the country. However, Angel catches up with Precious before she can get away. He tells her that her betrayal doesn't bother him enough to kill her and that she can have her divorce on one condition – she stays away from Paul. If he ever finds out she and Paul are together, he promises to kill them both. Precious has no choice but to finish with Paul and leave Walford alone. Angel's last appearance is in July 2002.

Sean Andrews

Sean Andrews, played by Victor and Harry Hunter (2001) and Oliver Bradley (2002), is the son of Trevor Morgan (Alex Ferns) and Donna Andrews (Paula Jennings), born on 31 August 2001. Sean is the product of his parents' extra-marital affair. Donna was originally Trevor's mistress.

Sean is first mentioned by Trevor's wife Little Mo Morgan (Kacey Ainsworth), who urges Trevor to be a part of Sean's life despite his abusing both her and Donna in the past. Donna then flees to the Slaters' house to hide from Trevor who is on a violent rampage but is eventually found and leaves Sean with Mo Harris (Laila Morse). Trevor bursts into the house and the police are called. A violent Trevor demands to see his son but Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace) fights off Trevor, letting him beat her to prevent him going out the back where Sean is being kept and to stall for the police's arrival. The police arrive and arrest Trevor and Donna takes Sean home. In November 2002, Sean is kidnapped from Donna's house by Trevor. Trevor starts abusing Little Mo but she stands up to him and says she's not frightened of him. He threatens to start a fire but Little Mo shows little interest and goes to get Sean and leave but Trevor grabs Mo, causing her to drop the lit match, and starts a house fire at Little Mo's home. Local fireman Tom Banks (Colm Ó Maonlaí) saves Sean and Little Mo, but dies when going back to save Trevor, who also dies. Donna and Sean leave shortly afterwards.

Patrick Trueman

Patrick Trueman, played by Rudolph Walker, makes his first appearance on 13 September 2001. The character was introduced by John Yorke as a replacement parental figure to the Trueman brothers, Anthony (Nick Bailey) and Paul (Gary Beadle), following the departure of Audrey Trueman (Corinne Skinner-Carter), a character killed-off in the serial in September 2001.^[10] Patrick first appears at Audrey's "rum-fuelled wake" as her estranged husband.^[11] Walker was keen to play a comic element to the character, telling Larry Jaffee of Walford Gazette, "Before joining, I told the producer [comedy] is an area I would like to explore [with the character] because there was not enough of it [in the show]. [Patrick] treats a lot of things with a certain amount of humour. His way of escaping a problem is to find something funny to do or say or sometimes to get himself out of a tight corner. That's really the sort of foundation. I try to put as much humour as possible into the character."^[12]

Belinda Peacock

Belinda Peacock
EastEnders character
Portrayed by	Leanne Lakey (2001–2003) Carli Norris (2016)
Duration	2001–2003, 2016
First appearance	Episode 2176 1 October 2001
Last appearance	Episode 5384 11 November 2016
Introduced by	John Yorke (2001) Dominic Treadwell-Collins (2016)
Spin-off appearances	Slaters in Detention (2003)
Classification	Former; regular
Profile
Occupation	Businesswoman Sales representative Beautician
Family Father Charlie Slater Mother Viv Slater Sisters Lynne Hobbs Kat Moon Little Mo Mitchell Husband Neville Peacock (until 2016) Grandmothers Mo Harris Nephews Tommy Moon Bert Moon Ernie Moon Nieces Zoe Slater Other relatives Stacey Slater Lily Branning Arthur Fowler Kyle Slater

Belinda Peacock, played by Leanne Lakey from 2001 to 2003 and Carli Norris in 2016, is the sister of Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace), Lynne Hobbs (Elaine Lordan), Little Mo Slater (Kacey Ainsworth) and daughter of Viv (April Martin and Natasya Rush) and Charlie Slater (Derek Martin). She is the second youngest of the girls, being older than Little Mo and younger than Kat according to her introductory episode. Belinda rejected her working class roots and likes to think she is superior to her sisters, but is not as classy as she makes out. Lakey made her last appearance as Belinda on 25 December 2003.

Belinda returned for a guest stint between 11 and 21 January 2016, portrayed by Norris.^[13] Of her casting, Norris commented, "Becoming one of the Slaters is an absolute dream, especially to be part of such a big and important storyline. It's brilliant to be working with Shane and Jessie".^[13] Norris returned to the series, with Belinda appearing more regularly from 14 April 2016. Seven months later, on 11 November 2016, Belinda made a previously unannounced departure from the show. Norris thanked her fans and added that she "loved" the role and hoped "to be back one day".^[14]

Storylines

Belinda is married to Neville Peacock (Gary Webster) who is wealthy and Belinda frequently brags about this to her sisters. She wears a blonde wig and speaks in an exaggerated accent, but reveals her true self at Lynne's hen night under the influence of alcohol. Belinda usually turns up in Albert Square when she is having marriage problems. She has brief flings with Jamie Mitchell (Jack Ryder) and her brother-in-law Garry Hobbs (Ricky Groves).

Although Belinda resides in Kent, within driving distance of Walford, she makes great use of her villa in Lanzarote. She often holidays there and her grandmother Mo Harris (Laila Morse) frequently visits, although Belinda often lets down her father Charlie. Belinda is mentioned 2008 when she promises Charlie that she is returning to spend some time with him, only then to cancel, leaving Charlie very upset. Belinda also makes a small cameo appearance in the DVD spin-off Slaters in Detention, where she is arrested after Charlie says she is the only normal daughter he has, but sees Belinda at the station and withdraws the remark. She is mentioned in December 2012 by her sister, Kat, when Mo and Jean Slater (Gillian Wright) take Kat's son Tommy Moon to visit her, and in February 2014 when Kat tells her husband Alfie Moon (Shane Richie) that she was with Belinda while she was actually trying to track down Stacey Branning (Lacey Turner).

Belinda returns in January 2016 after Charlie dies of a heart attack, and accuses Kat of killing him as she was arguing with him when he died.^[15] An explosive argument then ensues between Belinda and Kat over Charlie and Mo, which leads to Kat revealing that she had another son when she gave birth to Zoe, and that Mo knew about him. Belinda believes that Kat is just making excuses and leaves with Mo.^[16] Belinda returns later in January for Charlie's funeral, and eventually manages to make amends with Kat. However, when she makes a thoughtless comment about Stacey, who is suffering from postpartum psychosis, Kat throws a drink over Belinda and then storms off. Belinda catches up with her, and recalls the time when she, Viv, Little Mo and Zoe visited Ireland and saw Viv visit a couple with a boy; Kat realises that was in fact her son.^[17] When Stacey is discharged from the mother and baby unit, she arranges a family lunch and invites Belinda, Jean and Jean's new husband Ollie Walters (Tony O'Callaghan). Belinda learns that her cousin Kyle Slater (Riley Carter Millington) is transgender and when Jean is convinced Kyle is lying, Belinda encourages Stacey to stand up to her. Belinda then tells Stacey and Martin they will have to move out as Kat and Alfie promised to pay their rent for a year, which has now ended.^[18]

Belinda visits Stacey and Buster Briggs' (Karl Howman) realises she is wealthy. He gets her address by offering a fish delivery and later goes with his grandson Lee Carter (Danny-Boy Hatchard) to her house to steal her koi carp. Lee tells his father Mick Carter (Danny Dyer) where they are, so Mick stops them and returns the fish as Belinda returns home and sees him through her window.^[19] The next day, Belinda visits the Carters and invites Mick and his wife Linda Carter (Kellie Bright) to her house for dinner; when they get there, Neville makes it clear to Mick that the couple are into swinging and will not allow Mick to refuse because they have CCTV footage of him in their garden. Mick tells Linda this, so she confronts Neville, accusing him of not having real intimacy in his relationship and wanting power over women. Belinda realises this is true so leaves with Mick and Linda, revealing Neville's CCTV cameras are fake. Neville follows them to Walford, where Belinda ends their relationship because she does not feel loved. He insults her and Mick punches him, forcing him to leave. Belinda then moves in with Stacey, Martin and Kyle. Neville gives Belinda £50,000 as a divorce settlement and she uses the money to open a beauty salon.

In August 2016, Belinda flirts with Grant Mitchell (Ross Kemp), much to the annoyance of his daughter Courtney Mitchell (Alice Nokes). They meet again and they later head to Belinda's flat to have sex, but are interrupted by her family. Stacey later discovers that Belinda's new beauty business, Elysium, is severely struggling financially after all of Neville's money was used to set it up. Due to Belinda's money being relied on to pay the rent monthly, Stacey's husband Martin Fowler (James Bye) rages at Belinda, ordering her to find the money. Belinda resorts to attempting to prostitute herself to wealthier men, however after joining forces with Lauren Branning (Jacqueline Jossa) to help her reduce costs and advertise through social media, Belinda eventually manages to find the rent money. Belinda begins a relationship with Masood Ahmed (Nitin Ganatra), although he initially fears she is after his money and they have sex. However the relationship doesn't last when Belinda asks Masood to call his ex wife Zainab Masood (Nina Wadia) who is in the process of a divorce. Belinda finds an old card from her schoolfriend Maggie O'Shea (Zee Asha) who has recently been through a divorce and contacts her. They both come to a conclusion they should start a new life with their newfound freedom by travelling around Italy and they both leave Walford together.^[20]

Viv Slater

Viv Slater
EastEnders character
Portrayed by	April Martin (flashback) Natasya Rush (Pat and Mo; flashback)
Appears in	Episode 2179 5 October 2001
Spin-off appearances	Pat and Mo (2004)
Family Father Stuart Mullins Mother Mo Harris Adoptive father Jimmy Harris Half-brothers Billy Harris Half-sisters Jean Harris Husband Charlie Slater (1968–99) Daughters Lynne Hobbs Kat Slater Belinda Peacock Little Mo Mitchell Grandsons Freddie Mitchell Tommy Moon Bert Moon Ernie Moon Granddaughters Zoe Slater

Vivienne "Viv" Slater is the late wife of Charlie Slater (Derek Martin), portrayed by April Martin. Viv appears in her daughter Kat's (Jessie Wallace) flashbacks in a near-death sequence when Kat attempts suicide. Additionally, Natasya Rush portrayed Viv as a child in the spin-off episode EastEnders: Pat and Mo.

Viv's parents are Mo Harris (Laila Morse) and Stuart Mullins, and is the result of a one-night stand; she is brought up by Mo and stepfather Jimmy Harris (Alex King), with little contact with her father. After leaving school at 15, Viv meets Charlie Slater at a dance. They began dating and get engaged. After losing her virginity to Charlie, Viv becomes pregnant at 16. Mo, believing Charlie will not want to marry her, tries to force her to have an abortion; however, Charlie proves supportive and Viv gives birth to daughter Lynne (Elaine Lordan). Charlie and Viv marry and Viv goes on to have three more daughters: Kat, Belinda (Leanne Lakey/Carli Norris), and Little Mo (Kacey Ainsworth). As the girls are growing up, Viv becomes a hard, bitter, cold woman. With the death of her stepfather Jimmy, she has no fatherly guidance and resents the fact that she has no sons. She favours her oldest daughter Lynne, whilst Kat, Belinda, and Little Mo all vie for Charlie's attention, making Viv feel second-best to her daughters.

When Viv catches 13-year-old daughter Kat trying to run away, it emerges that Kat was raped by her uncle Harry (Michael Elphick) and is pregnant. When Kat says Harry raped her, Viv pretends not to believe her, then secretly orders Harry to leave and he flees to Spain. She then sends Belinda and Little Mo to live with Charlie's sister, Violet, to hide Kat's pregnancy. When Kat's daughter Zoe (Michelle Ryan) is born, Viv decides to raise Zoe as her and Charlie's youngest daughter. Viv dotes on Zoe but continues to treat her own daughters with contempt; although they loyally stick by her, they come to resent her harsh discipline. Eventually, Viv suffers a stroke and is nursed mostly by Charlie and Little Mo. She manages to make amends with all of her daughters before she dies at the age of 48. In May 2015, it is revealed that Zoe is a twin and Viv had Kat's son adopted. Kat learns the truth: as Kat had passed out during Zoe's birth, Kat did not know about her son. Viv decided they could not pass off both being hers and she called for Mo to help. She did not tell Kat and only took Zoe so the boy did not become like his father, Harry.

Louise Mitchell

Louise Mitchell
EastEnders character
Portrayed by	Rachel Cox (2001–2003) Danni Bennatar (2008) Brittany Papple (2010) Tilly Keeper (2016–)
Duration	2001–2003 2008 2010 2016–
First appearance	Episode 2196 5 November 2001
Introduced by	John Yorke (2001) Diederick Santer (2008, 2010) Dominic Treadwell-Collins (2016)
Classification	Present; regular
Profile
Occupation	Student
Family Family Mitchell Father Phil Mitchell Mother Lisa Fowler Stepfather Mark Fowler (2002–2004) Stepmother Sharon Watts (2014–) Half-brothers Ben Mitchell Raymond Grandmothers Peggy Mitchell Uncles Grant Mitchell Aunts Sam Mitchell First cousins Mark Fowler Courtney Mitchell Ricky Mitchell Other relatives Aunt Sal Ronnie Mitchell Roxy Mitchell Billy Mitchell Will Mitchell

Louise Mitchell (also Fowler) is played by Rachel Cox from 2001–2003, Danni Bennatar in 2008, and Brittany Papple in 2010. On 16 December 2015, it was announced that 18-year-old Tilly Keeper would play Louise.^[21] Keeper first appeared on 15 January 2016.^[22]

Louise is the daughter of Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden) and Lisa Fowler (Lucy Benjamin). Because of their difficult relationship, Lisa does not want Phil to know that he is the father so she marries Mark Fowler (Todd Carty) and names him as the father on Louise's birth certificate. They decide to name her after Mark's late grandmother, Lou Beale (Anna Wing). However, Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean) discovers Louise's true paternity and tells Phil, who ends their relationship. Louise is taken by Steve Owen (Martin Kemp) as he drives to the airport to leave Walford, but Phil chases after Steve who crashes his car. Phil manages to rescue Louise and goes back for Steve, but the car explodes into flames, killing Steve. Wanting his daughter, Phil goes after Lisa, soon persuading her to reconcile with him and move into the flat above The Queen Victoria public house with him. It is soon clear that Phil and Peggy want Louise, not Lisa. They take over caring for Louise, excluding Lisa and hiring a nanny, Joanne Ryan (Tara Lynne O'Neill), telling her that Lisa is mentally unstable. This comes to a head on the day Peggy throws a party to celebrate changing Louise's name to Mitchell. Desperate to get away, Lisa and Louise go to Portugal, joining her best friend Melanie Owen (Tamzin Outhwaite). When Phil finds a postcard with Mel's address, he goes after her; returning with Louise and tells his family that Lisa will not be back. The police are suspicious and send undercover officer, Kate Morton (Jill Halfpenny), trying to get Phil to confess to Lisa's murder. Kate gets a confession but it is not what she and her boss expect – he bullied Lisa to give him custody of Louise and told her to stay away so Louise would not be confused. Phil goes on to marry Kate, and is shocked when Lisa returns on their wedding day, wanting Louise back. Lisa plans to shoot Phil again but Den Watts (Leslie Grantham) talks her out of it and looks after her. He and his son, Dennis Rickman (Nigel Harman), frame Phil for armed robbery; when he is arrested, Lisa takes Louise and leaves Walford.

In 2007, Phil suggests to his son Ben (Charlie Jones) that they find Louise. Ben is not keen so Phil drops it but later in the year, Jack Branning (Scott Maslen) tells Phil he knows where Louise is and helps him find her. Jack gives Phil a picture of Louise and her address so Phil visits her on 4 January 2008 and tells her that he is her father, only to be disappointed when she points to another man and calls him her father. Louise returns^[23] on 16 March 2010, though she is initially credited as "Little Girl".^[24] A show insider said "Her arrival is going to be massive. It will send shockwaves around the square."^[25] Louise is dropped outside the tube station in a car where Phil's cousin, Ronnie Mitchell (Samantha Womack), approaches her. Louise tells Ronnie she is looking for her father and shows Ronnie a photo. Ronnie tells her that she knows him and will take her to see him. Louise tells Ronnie that her mother went on holiday but did not return. When Ronnie finds Phil, she sees him arguing with people in the pub and tells Louise that she could not find him. Wanting better for Louise, she calls Social Services who take her into care. However, Phil finds out that Louise visited and angrily confronts Ronnie, just as Louise enters The Queen Vic. Louise spends the weekend with her father and he tries to keep her visit a secret. When the police arrive, he tells them he has not seen her. Phil allows her to stay off school, annoying Ben. After Phil speaks to Shirley Carter (Linda Henry), he decides to contact Social Services who take Louise away but Phil vows to fight for custody. However, he soon learns that he will need a DNA test to prove he is Louise's father as Mark is listed as Louise's father on her birth certificate. The results show that Phil is the father and a social worker, Terry (Jon Foster), visits Phil's home. After Billie Jackson (Devon Anderson) and his gang hold up the bar, Terry decides it is not a safe environment for Louise but Shirley tells him that Phil is moving in with her so Louise moves in with Phil and Shirley, but her arrival upsets Ben, especially when she tells him she does not like Shirley. She causes further problems for Ben by stealing his diary and writing entries in it, then reading them to her friends. Phil forces Louise to apologise but she does not, and when Phil is out, Ben burns Louise's hand with a hot spoon.

Louise sees Ben with alcohol that he took from the pub and tries to get Ben in trouble by asking Phil what alcohol tastes like. Later, Ben tells Louise that Phil will not believe her if she says anything but if she does, he will make her pay for it. Ben is asked to take Louise to school but locks her in a shed all day, making Phil think she has run away because he saw a note she wrote saying she wishes she was not there. Ben "finds" Louise and takes her home and she blames Jordan Johnson (Michael-Joel David Stuart) for locking her up. Ben tells her she is a good girl and will not lock her in the shed again. The next day, Phil sees burns on her arm and she blames Ben. A suspicious Phil questions Ben but he denies burning Louise and locking her in the shed. Phil asks Heather to keep an eye on them but Ben sends Heather out for some crisps and a DVD. Worried, Phil rushes home and sees Louise's doll in pieces and Ben about to burn his sister. Ben claims he is playing a game but Phil angrily punches him. Ben is later imprisoned for attacking Jordan.

Phil learns that Lisa has applied for contact but he keeps this from her, asking Ritchie Scott (Sian Webber) to find a legal way of stopping Lisa seeing Louise. Louise asks Peggy when Lisa is returning from her holiday. Peggy reveals that she already has and that she wants to see Louise. Louise demands to see her mother but Peggy insults her, so Louise storms off and then runs away. Phil eventually finds her and she tells him she wants to see her mother and needs to know if she still loves her but Phil shouts at Louise, telling her not to mention her mother again and she sees Phil slap Peggy when she says he is not fit to be a parent. Phil shuts Louise in the house, telling nobody to answer the phone or door but Peggy sneaks Louise out to apologise for insulting Lisa. Louise asks if she can see her mother so Peggy takes her there, where she slaps Lisa. Peggy is unable to assure Lisa that Phil will never harm Louise and leaves her with Lisa, providing Phil can visit regularly. When Peggy goes home, she tells Phil what she has done and he drives to Lisa's house and kicks down the door to find the house empty.

In January 2016, Phil visits Peggy to ask for Louise's address to give her some money. Eventually, Phil finds Louise, now 14 years old, at her school and gives her the money, but she is not interested in taking it or making amends with her father, until Phil suddenly collapses and loses consciousness.^[22] Louise arrives in Walford and meets Shirley again. After telling her about Phil, Shirley takes Louise to see the family and informs them that Phil collapsed at her school before being taken to the hospital due to his liver. Louise's stepmother, Sharon, refuses to believe Louise, having been told of it from Phil the previous night, and claims Louise is being paid by Phil to facilitate a lie. Louise denies taking the money and says she thinks that her family no longer cares about Phil's health until Shirley and Kathy Sullivan (Gillian Taylforth) agree to visit Phil in the hospital. Later in the café, Louise is harsh towards Sharon about her attitude towards Phil, convincing Sharon to go to the hospital, where she learns that Phil has discharged himself from the hepatology ward, making Sharon realise that Louise was right. Lisa later calls Louise as she knows she is not in school, but Louise tells her not to call her if it happens again. Louise later notices Jay Brown (Jamie Borthwick) and smiles at him, but leaves hastily after seeing Ben (now played by Harry Reid).^[26] Louise goes to Phil's with her belongings, but Ben answers the door and sends her away.^[27] A drunken Phil starts destroying his businesses, using a digger to demolish the car lot. The residents realise someone is trapped and Jay believes it is his girlfriend, Linzi Bragg (Amy-Leigh Hickman), however, Louise is found under the rubble and Phil breaks down, fearing he has killed her. Louise is hospitalised with broken ribs and concussion. On her return, she asks Phil to stay at home instead of sleeping in his garage, prompting him to accept help. She persuades him to go to his alcohol support group. Louise then uses Phil's credit card and spends over £2,000. Ben's girlfriend, Abi Branning (Lorna Fitzgerald) catches her and tells her to return everything she has bought or they will tell Phil. Louise does so but then discovers that Abi has lied to Ben about being pregnant and tells Abi to move away with Ben or she will reveal the truth to Ben. However, Abi says that Ben would never believe her. Abi later catches Louise and Ben arguing over the credit card but Abi assumes it is about the pregnancy lie, so Abi inadvertently reveals it to Ben, saying Louise was blackmailing her. Ben is angry with Louise so pushes her head into a toilet.

Jay attempts to resolve the argument and after he stops Phil from drinking, Louise thanks him and tries to kiss him. Jay rejects her because she is underage and he has a girlfriend, Linzi. On Louise's first day at school, she gets into a fight and when Jay collects her, he is shocked that Linzi is the one who Louise has been fighting with. During Louise's suspension, she attempts to steal a bottle of wine and when Denise Fox (Diane Parish) believes Phil is not going to punish her, she phones the police. Louise posts poo in a bag through Denise's door and she confronts Louise and Phil in The Vic. Linzi's mother, Thelma Bragg (Lorraine Stanley), tells everyone in The Vic about Jay's relationship with her underage daughter. Louise comforts Jay and Phil demands to know from Jay and Louise whether Jay has touched Louise, but Louise does not answer and Jay admits to her kissing him. Jay is arrested and Louise is interviewed by the police. After Bex Fowler (Jasmine Armfield) told her mother Sonia Fowler (Natalie Cassidy) that she has had sex, Sharon, Honey Mitchell (Emma Barton) and Sonia talk to Louise and Bex about the pressures and consequences of sex.^[28] Bex develops a crush on Shakil Kazemi (Shaheen Jafargholi) and Louise makes Bex jealous by flirting with him. At Martin Fowler (James Bye) and Stacey Fowler's (Lacey Turner) wedding reception, a jealous Louise witnesses Bex and Shakil kiss. Louise then tells Bex to "treat him mean to keep him keen", which leaves Shakil confused when Bex turns down his offer of a drink. However Louise's plans fail when Shakil decides to start a relationship with Bex.

Following a night out with Paul Coker (Jonny Labey), Ben's family are told he is dead, but it turns out to be Paul. Louise helps Phil out by working at The Arches, but she gets Jay to help her, however, Phil demands that Louise and Billy sack him. After Bex decides not to have sex with Shakil, Bex discusses it with Louise, who tells her that Shakil will not wait long. Louise fears Ben is going to do something stupid to Paul's killers, so she asks Paul's grandfather Les Coker (Roger Sloman) to speak to Ben and she is relieved when Ben agrees to drop things. However, Ben goes back on his word when Jay locates Paul's killers. Louise reports them to the police and they return to Walford but Paul's killers break into the house and kidnaps both Ben and Jay. Louise and her cousin Courtney Mitchell (Alice Nokes) hide in one of the bedrooms, with Courtney calling her father Grant Mitchell (Ross Kemp) for help during the struggle. Louise and Courtney find Phil injured in the cupboard.

Louise thinks Phil is drinking again when he appears to be drunk. She searches for alcohol in the house and calls Shirley for help and Louise tells Shirley that Ben has offered to be a liver donor. Louise and Shirley find Phil on the floor in pain and Louise blames herself. Phil is diagnosed with an infection and Louise is angry with Sharon for thinking he was drinking. Sharon finds Phil making a will with Ritchie and she is furious he has left everything to Louise and he amends the will to include Sharon and her son Dennis Rickman Jnr (Bleu Landau). Louise skips school to join Phil and Sharon at Phil's hospital appointment and Louise and Sharon are devastated to learn that Phil may only have 12 months to live, despite being eligible for a transplant. Sharon later comforts Louise and they agree to be positive. Louise suggests that Phil gives Ronnie away at her wedding to Jack and Phil tells his family he is not going through with the transplant. Louise is delighted when Phil changes his mind about the transplant, having been overheard comforting Dennis about his fears of phil dying. Jay has a visit from his police public protection officer and he tells Jay he will have to move out as Louise is underage. Phil refuses to make Jay leave, despite being told that Louise could be taken into care. Derek Evans (Simon Lowe) meets with Sharon and tells her if Jay does not move out, they will have to move Louise as her needs come first.^[29]

Louise attends a drama club and takes a liking to Travis Law-Hughes (Alex James-Phelps). Louise is thrilled when Travis asks her on a date, but when he does not turn up, Keegan reveals he was pretending to be Travis and he teases Louise with things she said in the messages. Louise, Bex, Shakil and Keegan are involved in a bus crash and are trapped at the top of the bus. Shakil helps Louise to overcome her fears and later she tells Bex that he saved her life. Louise is then teased over a video posted online by Keegan of the bus crash. Louise's friends Alexandra D'Costa (Sydney Craven) and Madison Drake (Seraphina Beh) convince her that Shakil is to blame and encourage her to get revenge. Louise sends Shakil's naked photo to them from Bex's phone, leaving Bex distressed when she finds out and that the photo has been sent to another person. Louise tells Bex not to tell Shakil who sent his photo and Louise chooses to spend time with Madison and Alexandra instead of Bex. Bex receives an anonymous Valentine's card and believes Shakil sent it, however, realises that Madison and Alexandra sent it as a joke so confronts Louise who tells her to get over it. Shakil tells Louise that Bex was with Travis, so Louise confronts Bex but she says they are just friends; Bex and Louise make up. When Keegan makes a porn video with Bex's face imposed on the model's body in revenge for Shakil's naked photo being distributed and sends it around school, the police get involved and discover the photo of Shakil, for which Bex takes the blame. After Bex is told she will be interviewed under caution, she tells Louise she will admit the truth, but Louise confesses that Madison and Alexandra were responsible for sending the image on and she should think about bringing them into it. Bex tells Louise, Madison and Alexandra she took the blame, but they are in the wrong. Madison and Alexandra overhear Bex insult them when she confronts Louise over their friendship. In the toilets, Madison and Alexandra push Bex, tear her shirt and write on her face whilst Louise stands outside, too scared to help Bex. Bex admits to teachers Mrs Robyn Lund (Polly Highton) and Mr Gethyn Price (Cerith Flinn) that Louise, Madison and Alexandra were responsible for her attack and sending the photo but Madison and Alexandra deny knowledge and urge Louise to do the same. After Louise reluctantly does so, Bex calls her out on her cowardice and ends their friendship. Louise confronts Dennis over him fighting with Michelle Fowler (Jenna Russell) and he reveals that Michelle and Preston are having an affair. Bex does not believe Louise when she tells her, accusing Madison and Alexandra of putting her up to it, but soon sees that it is true. Louise tries to stop Madison and Alexandra from destroying Bex's guitar but she is unable to, and later, Madison tricks Bex into eating mud wrapped in chocolate, which is filmed by Alexandra and Louise.^[30] Sonia returns to Walford after Bex tells her about the bullying and Sonia confronts Louise and Sharon. Sharon tells Louise that unlike Bex, Madison and Alexandra are not true friends. Louise discovers that when Sonia went to the school, Bex asked her not to mention Louise's name, so realises she needs to apologise, but Bex rejects this.

Sharon and Michelle bring Louise and Bex to the allotments for them to talk about what has happened and Louise agrees to stop being friends with Madison and Alexandra. When Bex and Louise bump into Madison and Alexandra, Bex is annoyed when Louise says she is not friends with her. Madison and Alexandra hide Louise's school books, causing her to get detention and miss a drama class. Louise flirts with Travis and Madison and Alexandra tell Louise she could have a chance at going out with Travis, but they laugh at Louise's crush when she leaves the room. Sharon and Michelle return home drunk, which angers Louise due to Phil's alcoholism, and Louise tells Madison and Alexandra about it, so they decide to use it against her. They suggest to Louise they have a girls' night for the three of them at her home, which Sharon agrees to. Madison and Alexandra invite Travis to the party, which Bex overhears and tries to warn Louise that Madison and Alexandra cannot be trusted, but Louise accuses Bex of being jealous that she has friends. Madison and Alexandra arrive at Louise's with hidden vodka and people later start arriving, including Keegan and Travis and Louise frets about alcohol in the house, but Madison and Alexandra reassure Louise that they will make non-alcoholic drinks for the three of them. Louise unknowingly has drinks that Madison and Alexandra spiked, resulting in Louise getting drunk and being sick, which is filmed by Keegan, while Alexandra and Madison take selfies with her. As Louise staggers outside, she collapses after bringing up blood, panicking Bex, Madison, Alexandra, Keegan and Dennis. Louise is taken to hospital with paralysis and Sharon tells Louise about Bex finding her. When Louise is sent home, she invites Bex round, but Madison and Alexandra turn up so Bex leaves. They tell Louise that Keegan filmed what happened and was going to post it online but they convinced him not to, and they deny knowing anything about how Louise got drunk. Louise apologises to Bex and thanks her for helping, but Bex says one apology will not fix things. Madison and Alexandra then tell Louise, Sharon and Ben that Travis was responsible for spiking her drink. Louise believes Travis could have been framed, but Madison and Alexandra convince her that he is lying and Bex tries to get Louise to see that Travis is telling the truth. After speaking to Dennis about the party on Travis's behalf, Bex tells Louise that Alexandra followed Travis into the kitchen and Alexandra interrupts them. Alexandra gets herself out of trouble by telling Louise and Bex that Travis may not have been responsible for spiking her drink and Louise insists that Madison and Alexandra are still her friends.

Louise starts dating Travis. Sharon wants to meet Travis, inviting him for dinner, but Louise calls it off when Madison and Alexandra tell her that he is only interested in sex, and when Travis kisses her, she runs away. Keegan, Madison and Alexandra tell Louise that she had sex with Keegan at the party while she was drunk. Bex persuades Louise to do a pregnancy test, but Bex's father, Martin Fowler (James Bye), catches Bex purchasing the test for Louise and wrongly assumes it is for herself. Martin buys a test when they admit Louise needs it and the result is negative. Madison and Alexandra then tell Louise that Keegan has chlamydia, so she panics. Bex accompanies Louise to the clinic, where she gets tested for sexually transmitted diseases and the nurse reassures Louise that despite only being fifteen, it's confidential and the nurse asks Louise if she wanted to have sex. Louise is upset when she finds out Keegan is the son of a new neighbour. Louise is heartbroken when Travis dumps her, believing the rumours about her and Keegan. Louise tearfully confides in Sharon about her fears that she has been raped and the police take a statement from Louise. Sharon confronts Keegan's mother, Karen Taylor (Lorraine Stanley), about what Keegan has said and Karen punches Sharon. Louise has to undergo a physical examination and Keegan, despite saying he made the rumour up because he likes Louise, is arrested on suspicion of rape. The investigation is dropped due to the lack of evidence and Sharon decides to get answers from Keegan for Louise. Keegan tells Louise and Sharon that Dennis told him about Louise's birthmark and Keegan apologises.

Louise decides she wants to change schools and Sharon is furious that Louise spoke to Phil. Travis wants to take Louise to prom and apologises to Louise about the incident with Keegan. Louise goes to see Bex at the showcase, despite being grounded, and Louise takes on the role of Juliet while Madison and Alexandra bully Bex. Shakil hears the bullying through headphones and exposes it through the soundboard. Louise is approached by a modelling scout and she and Bex make friends. Louise is excited when Travis asks her to prom. Louise discovers another girl at school has the same dress, so she and Bex swap it for another at Kush Kazemi's (Davood Ghadami) stall. At prom, Louise and Travis win most beautiful couple and Travis arranges an area behind the stage with candles for them. Alexandra and Madison turn up and Louise berates them and their actions and Alexandra pushes Louise onto lit candles, setting off the fire alarms and sprinklers. Louise is in agony as Mr Pryce and other students help Louise by cooling the burns with water. Keegan is sickened by Madison and Alexandra and drags them onto the stage, where Alexandra denies it being their fault. The police arrive to get statements and Louise is taken to hospital Sharon arrives at the hospital when she is contacted by the school and Bex tells her what happened. Madison and Alexandra are both arrested. Sharon, Bex and Sonia are told Louise has third degree skin burns and requires skin grafts. Lisa shows up at the hospital and Louise orders her out, choosing Sharon to remain whilst she is given pain relief. Lisa and Sharon argue over Phil being away in Italy and leaving Louise and Sharon tells Lisa how Louise gained her injuries. Lisa insists on caring for Louise instead of Sharon. Lisa tells Sharon that Louise wanted to live with Phil when she got a new boyfriend, which she admits was a relief. She is furious that Sharon went to Italy with Phil and Louise was left in the care of Michelle, who she never has met. Sharon gives Lisa the choice of being there or not for Louise and she opts to remain. Louise argues with Lisa over feeling abandoned and getting the blame, but opens up to Lisa, admitting she is scared. Lisa meets Ben and Lisa criticises Ben's past behaviour towards Louise. Lisa apologises to Ben and they make amends as Phil turns up, who is unimpressed with Lisa's presence and Lisa, Sharon and Louise ask Phil to give Lisa a chance. Lisa apologises to Phil for the past mistakes regarding Louise and says that they both need to be there for her, but Phil physically throws Lisa out of the hospital, ordering her to stay away from Louise. Lisa stays with Louise at the hospital and Lisa stands up to Phil, telling him she is not going and Phil allows Lisa to visit Louise. Phil warns Lisa not to mess up. Bex goes to see Louise, but Lisa says Louise has requested no visitors and Lisa tells Bex her plans for Louise if she was well. Louise is distressed when Lisa and Bex arrange for Travis to visit her and Travis gives Louise a promise ring. Lisa talks to herself as she watches Louise with Phil, Sharon and Bex. The doctor gives Lisa consent to take Louise outside and Lisa tells Louise she has been discharged. Lisa plans to take Louise, going to Liverpool Street station. Phil and Sharon find Louise's room empty and the doctor reassures them of Lisa and Louise's whereabouts, although they find Louise's belongings gone. Phil is angry as the doctor explains how Louise is at a crucial stage in her recovery and the police tell Phil and Sharon what they are doing. Phil and Sharon are told Lisa switched cabs and find Lisa's flat, which is empty. Louise wakes up and Lisa lies to her that she and Phil agreed for her to be away from the square while Phil and Sharon question Lisa's capabilities. The police, Phil and Sharon discuss Lisa being traced through her cash withdrawals in Castle Point and that she has a mental health team. Louise is in agony without her medication and Lisa prevents Louise from using the phone by cutting the cord. Louise figures out Lisa is off her medication. Louise's phone dies as she tries to phone the police and Lisa prevents Louise from leaving, but when Lisa allows her to go, Louise chooses to stay with and comfort Lisa when she is distressed. Bex gives Phil and Sharon information on a hotel where Lisa and Louise are at and compared to Sharon, Phil shows a lack of regard to Lisa's mental health. Phil finds Louise and she wants him to leave. Phil gains entry to their room and Lisa hits Phil over the head with a phone. Phil shouts at a struggling Lisa as Louise deteriorates and Lisa and Louise go to hospital together. Louise is discharged and refuses to believe Sharon telling her that Travis will dump her because of her scars. Louise asks Phil if she could have inherited Lisa's condition and Phil admits his part in causing Lisa's illness. Louise confides in Phil about her guilt of leaving Lisa when she was ill and she rubbishes Phil's belief he is a bad father.

A reporter writing for the Inside Soap Yearbook 2017 included Louise and Denise's short feud in their "A to Z" list of 2016, noting that "vengeful Louise popped a poo in a bag through the letterbox of Walford's Denise", which is something "you don't get to experience every day!"^[31] They later described Louise as "amazing" and part of "the new Mitchell dynasty", which they "loved".^[31]

Nathan Williams

Nathan Williams
EastEnders character
Portrayed by	Doug Allen
Duration	2001–2002
First appearance	Episode 2201 13 November 2001
Last appearance	Episode 2312 24 May 2002
Classification	Former; regular
Profile
Occupation	Car dealer
Family Father Roy Evans Mother Jane Williams Half-brothers Barry Evans Nephews Jack Evans

Nathan Williams is a character played by Doug Allen. The character was axed after 6 months, reportedly because of Allen's failure to learn his lines adequately.^[32]

Nathan is the illegitimate son of Roy Evans (Tony Caunter), born, unbeknownst to Roy, out of an extramarital affair with his former employee Jane Williams (Ann Mitchell). Nathan makes his first appearance in Albert Square in 2001, after his mother, who is terminally ill with cancer, confesses to Roy that Nathan is actually his son.

Nathan initially refuses Roy's attempts to get to know him. However, after Jane dies (on the same day that Roy's grandson Jack was born), Nathan is left penniless with a bankrupt business, so he begrudgingly turns to Roy for help. Soon after, he moves in with the Evanses, much to the annoyance of Roy's other son Barry (Shaun Williamson), who resents Nathan and is furious with his father for betraying his dead mother. It also becomes clear that Nathan equally dislikes Barry and resents the fact that he had known and been brought up by his father, whilst he has only just met him. The pair spend much time winding each other up, with Barry usually ending up looking the fool.

Nathan quickly integrates into life in Albert Square, growing closer to his father and having a brief relationship with Walford resident Melanie Owen (Tamzin Outhwaite). He starts working in the car lot with Roy, whilst Barry stays at home playing at house-husband and looking after his son Jack. Barry resents him even more for this and feels that Nathan is taking over his role as dutiful son. It seems as if Nathan can do no wrong, but it is the petty jealousy and sibling rivalry between him and Barry that is eventually his undoing.

In an attempt to exclude Barry and take his place in his father's heart, Nathan makes a plan to set Barry up and steal the affections of Barry's wife Natalie (Lucy Speed). His first advancement towards Natalie results in the pair kissing, but Natalie is adamant that it will go no further and despite further flirtations from Nathan, their kiss is a one-off occurrence. Undeterred, Nathan continues with his plan. Aware of Barry's past monetary blunders, and knowing that any subsequent mistakes will not be tolerated by Roy, Nathan steals money from the car-lot and sets Barry up for the blame. The plan seems to be working, until Natalie pieces it together and uncovers his ploy. With Nathan's true character unveiled, Roy decides that he wants nothing more to do with him and Nathan is banished from Albert Square in mid-2002.

Nita Mistry

Nita Mistry, played by Bindya Solanki, is a love interest for Robbie Jackson (Dean Gaffney). The character was axed along with Robbie in 2003. In a press report, executive-producer Louise Berridge commented "Dean and Bindya have contributed an enormous amount to the programme. However, we feel that the characters have reached the end of their natural course in the show, and they will both be leaving in Spring 2003. [...] It is always sad to be saying goodbye to a good double act, so we will be leaving the door open for both characters".^[33]

When Nita arrives, she is a single mother to Anish (Ali Zahoor) and a widow. She gets a job at the local shop, the Minute Mart, and becomes involved in the community theatre, where she meets Robbie. In 2003, Nita gets an offer from her family in India, asking her to return and they will support her and Anish. In February 2003, Nita takes up her parents' offer to return to Mumbai. Nita, Robbie and Anish leave for India. This is Anish and Nita's last appearance.

In February 2010, Robbie returns for his sister Bianca Jackson (Patsy Palmer)'s wedding and reveals that Nita is six months pregnant. Nita later gives birth to a boy, Sami Jackson (Shiven Shankar) who appears in Walford in September 2015 as Robbie returns to the square. Robbie reveals that he and Nita have separated.

Jane Williams

Jane Williams, played by Ann Mitchell, is a former employee and the former mistress of Roy Evans (Tony Caunter), who appeared between 26 November 2001 and 11 January 2002.

Jane is first seen when Roy appears at her house to confront her about him being named as the father of her son Nathan Williams (Doug Allen), who had arrived in Walford several days earlier and told Roy this. Jane assures Roy that he is and gives him a gold pen. As it emerges that Jane is dying from ovarian cancer, Roy begins spending more and more time with her, arousing the suspicions of Roy's other son Barry (Shaun Williamson) and Roy's wife Pat Evans (Pam St. Clement). Eventually Roy is forced to confess to his family that Nathan is his son, much to the upset of Barry, as Roy had been having sex with Jane on the night Barry's mother and Roy's first wife Doreen had died. On 11 January, Jane peacefully dies of her progressing cancer on the same day Roy's grandson, Jack Evans (Samuel and Joseph Timson) is born.

Mitchell rejoined the cast of EastEnders in 2011 as Cora Cross,.^[34]

Derek Harkinson

Derek Harkinson
EastEnders character
Portrayed by	Ian Lavender
Duration	2001–2005 2016–
First appearance	Episode 2210 29 November 2001
Introduced by	John Yorke (2001) Sean O'Connor (2016)
Classification	Present; regular
Profile
Occupation	Community centre manager Shop assistant
Family Wife Cynthia Harkinson (backstory) Sons Alex Harkinson Daughters Mary Harkinson Grandsons Danny Harkinson

Derek Harkinson, played by Ian Lavender, originally appears between 29 November 2001 and 19 May 2005. He returned from 15 November^[35] to 29 December 2016 and again on 23 March 2017 permanently.

Derek, a childhood friend of Pauline Fowler (Wendy Richard), reappears in her life through her involvement in the Community Theatre. Pauline makes a play for him but he reveals he is gay. They decide to stay friends and Derek moves in with Pauline, becoming a new father-figure for her son Martin Fowler (James Alexandrou). He helps out with the fruit and veg stall, teaches Martin to drive, and takes the blame when Martin is caught growing cannabis. Derek gets in touch with his estranged son and daughter, Alex Harkinson (Ben Nealon) and Mary Harkinson (Mary Woodvine), and Alex's son Danny Harkinson (Josh Alexander). He has a long string of arguments with Pauline in 2005 and goes to live with Alex.

Derek returns to Walford 11 years later, joining the Walford Players to perform in their Christmas show. Kathy Sullivan (Gillian Taylforth) notices Derek loitering around Ian Beale's (Adam Woodyatt) house, where Pauline used to live, and confronts him, assuming he is from the council. Derek and Kathy meet again at Geraldine Clough's (Gwyneth Strong) play rehearsal and Patrick Trueman (Rudolph Walker) introduces them to each other. Derek and Kathy are both cast as a pantomime horse in the Christmas play, and he sides with Kathy when Geraldine asks who should be the director. Derek is overjoyed at the prospect of directing the play but during rehearsals, he is forced to reprimand Dennis Rickman Jnr (Bleu Landau) for watching Louise Mitchell (Tilly Keeper) and other girls undress. Much to Derek's disappointment, the first night of the performance isn't successful, after which, all the residents refuse to do the play any more. They eventually agree and the following performances are a success. After the show, Patrick fears that Derek fancies him and he feels uncomfortable when Derek invites him to stay with him and Alex. Patrick says he will think about it and Derek leaves Walford. Derek returns a few months later to help Denise Fox (Diane Parish) with a meeting in the community centre. Derek and Denise organise an Easter fair and he tries to get Carmel and Denise talking again after they fall out. He accepts a job at the Minute Mart and irritates his co-worker, Honey Mitchell (Emma Barton), when he makes fun of her display and constantly takes breaks. He annoys her further when they both attend Kim Fox-Hubbard's (Tameka Empson) quiz night alongside Billy Mitchell and Derek has to join their team, but they win the quiz thanks to Derek's knowledge. When Derek confronts shoplifter Keegan Baker (Zack Morris), Honey is pleased to have him working at the shop. While talking with Honey, Derek reveals that he has been chosen as the new face of the Minute Mart. Yolande Trueman (Angela Wynter) then visits and asks to speak with Derek and she informs him that he could lose his job and be kicked out of the back to work programme for failing to disclose his criminal record. Derek has another run-in with Keegan when he tries to steal a magazine and Keegan throws the magazine at Derek and calls him a Queer. When Honey leaves Derek in charge of the shop Yolande calls and tells him that he is sacked. Upset, Derek lashes out at Johnny Carter (Ted Reilly) and berates him for not standing up to Keegan and tells him about the struggles of being a gay man while it was illegal. Johnny tracks Derek down at his flat and questions why he quit at the Minute Mart. Derek explains that he has a conviction that he failed to disclose from when he was younger as he had a boyfriend who was twenty, which was below the age of consent for homosexuals and that he was arrested and imprisoned for nine months.

On 4 November 2016, it was announced that Lavender had reprised the role for a guest stint during the 2016 Christmas period, during which he would be reunited with Martin (now played by James Bye). Lavender commented, "It was a lovely surprise to be back and I had a great time. It was brilliant to work with some old friends again, especially those who I only briefly got to work with before."^[36]

Roxy Drake

Roxy Drake, played by Tracy Brabin, is a pimp who is first seen on 10 December 2001. She grooms Zoe Slater (Michelle Ryan), who has run away from home and is living on the streets. Roxy finds Zoe a flat to live in. However, Roxy forces her to prostitute herself. Roxy and fellow prostitute Kelly Taylor (Brooke Kinsella) dress and make-up Zoe, but Zoe gets drunk on whiskey and vomits on her first client, much to the anger of Roxy. Some days later, Zoe's mother, Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace) comes looking for Zoe along with Anthony Trueman (Nicholas Bailey). They find her and try to take Zoe home, but Roxy tries to prevent Kat taking Zoe. This leads to Kat headbutting Roxy in the face. A humiliated Roxy then gets in her car and drives away, and has not been seen since.

Kelly Taylor

Kelly Taylor, played by Brooke Kinsella, was introduced by executive producer John Yorke, in 2001. She was only due to appear in eight episodes as part of a prostitution/homelessness storyline featuring Michelle Ryan's established character, Zoe Slater, who runs away from home in late 2001 and lives at the same brothel as Kelly. However, the viewer response to Kelly was positive, so she was reintroduced as a regular at the end of 2002. The character remained in the serial until 2004, when executive producer Louise Berridge decided that her storylines had come to a natural end.

In the past, Kinsella had auditioned for the parts of Janine Butcher, Zoe Slater and Sonia Fowler, but had been unsuccessful. Kinsella has commented, "I went up for the part of every girl in the Square. I was closest to getting the part of Zoe. I did workshops with all the Slater girls but you have to say they are all dark and look very alike while I'm blonde. Obviously that wasn't the right one for me. It was hard at the time but I'm very glad because I love playing Kelly. She's totally different from any other character and she's good fun to play."^[37]

Tom Stuart

The Reverend Tom Stuart is a recurring character, played by Shaun Dooley.

Tom is the vicar for the parish of Walford, and one of his earliest appearances is conducting the wedding ceremony of Dot (June Brown) and Jim Branning (John Bardon) on Valentine's Day 2002. However, he is earlier seen in December 2001 talking to Dot and Jim right after Dot returns from a visit to Nigel. His vicarly duties include conducting Jamie Mitchell's (Jack Ryder) funeral, and performing Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace) and Andy Hunter (Michael Higgs)'s wedding ceremony that is crashed by Alfie Moon (Shane Richie). He also occasionally appears when Dot attends church meetings and suchlike. He is replaced off-screen by Reverend Stevens (Michael Keating).

Others

Character	Date(s)	Actor	Circumstances
Diane Irving	9 January 14 April	Sheila Whitfield[38]	A social worker who takes over from Ameena Badawi (Shobna Gulati) on the case of Chloe Jackson, when Ameena is promoted. She eventually finds Chloe a home with Neil (Robin Sneller) and Sue Miller (Victoria Willing), who rename her Rebecca.
George Hawkins	23–24 April	Gary Lucas[39]	A salesman who tries to sell his wares to Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt) at his fish-and-chip shop. He is nicknamed "Cuban Man" by Beppe di Marco (Michael Greco), a minicab driver as he insists on smoking cigars in his taxi.
Norman Dunn	7 May	Roland Oliver	The father of Laura Beale (Hannah Waterman) who appears in Walford for Laura's wedding to Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt) in 2001, along with his wife Edwina (Patricia Maynard/Gay Hamilton). He is very conservative and disapproves of Laura and Ian's marriage, as Ian had been declared bankrupt just a few months earlier. He threatens to disinherit Laura and when she refuses to postpone the wedding, he refuses to attend.
Edwina Dunn	7 May 2001 9 December 2005	Patricia Maynard (2001) Gay Hamilton (2005)	The mother of Laura Beale (Hannah Waterman) who appears for Laura's wedding to Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt) in 2001, along with her husband, Norman (Roland Oliver), but does not attend the ceremony as Norman disapproves of Ian being declared bankrupt in the past. She reappears in December 2005 to attend Janine Butcher's trial for the murder of Laura, and unknowingly persuades Pat Evans to change her testimony, allowing the innocent Janine to walk free.
Kevin Bolton	17 May	Rupert Hill[40]	The son of Gary Bolton (Bruce Byron), and half-brother of Robbie Jackson (Dean Gaffney). He appears when Robbie and his half-sister Sonia (Natalie Cassidy) track Gary down to Portsmouth. He is jealous of Robbie's presence in his father's life.
Kay Bradshaw	14–19 June	Vanessa Earl[41]	A woman who Beppe di Marco (Michael Greco) has a one-night stand with. It is later revealed that she is Beppe's son Joe's (Jake Kyprianou) teacher, when Joe walks in on Beppe and Kay lying together on the sofa, and refuses to go to school the next day.
Sidney Gibbs	2–3 July	James Marcus[42]	Owner of a cleaning firm, Sid's Scrubbers, who are hired by Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean) to get Billy Mitchell (Perry Fenwick) to lower the prices of his cleaning firm.
Jan Sherwood	17–21 September	Cherie Lunghi[43]	A woman who Steve Owen (Martin Kemp) meets when he and his gang attempt a robbery targeting Jan's lover and wealthy businessman Alan Mills. When Steve seduces her, she tricks him and takes off with all the money, leaving him and his gang with nothing. It is however revealed that she and Steve are still working together: Steve fools his gang into thinking Jan had gone with all the money, and then meets up secretly with her and takes half of the money and never sees her again.
John Davies	11 October – 2 December	Huw Higginson[44]	The landlord of 15a Turpin Road. He doubles the rent on the flat, then offers to help Laura Beale (Hannah Waterman) with the money, but only if she will have sex with him.[45]
Chris Wallace	16–19 October	Georgia Reece[46]	An interior designer who redesigns e20 after a fire there, and has an affair with the manager Beppe di Marco (Michael Greco), and contracts a sexually transmitted infection from him, leading to her husband Tony (Andy Capie) discovering the affair and attacking Beppe.
Tony Wallace	1 November	Andy Capie[47]	The husband of Chris Wallace (Georgia Reece), who attacks Beppe di Marco (Michael Greco) at the e20 Halloween party after Beppe and Chris had an affair and Beppe had given Chris a sexually transmitted infection.[48]
Stewart	21 December	David Baukham

References

External links

• Jill Marsden at BBC Online
• Belinda Peacock at BBC Online
• Louise Mitchell at BBC Online