Paul Trueman is a fictional character from the British BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Gary Beadle. The character, who first arrived onto Albert Square on 23 April 2001 and later departed the programme on 23 December 2004, was portrayed as a bad boy who was a member of the already-established Trueman family. In his exit storyline, Paul became a drug dealer, which Beadle has been critical towards, as he suggested it played into black racial stereotyping. It was implied that Paul was killed upon his exit, though his death was not screened.
Pat Evans is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders. She was played by Pam St Clement from 12 June 1986, just over a year after the show first aired, until her departure on 1 January 2012. Pat was also portrayed by Emma Cooke in a soap 'bubble', Pat and Mo: Ashes to Ashes, delving into her past with sister-in-law Mo Harris, which aired in 2004. The character was killed-off on 1 January 2012, shortly after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Her funeral was on 13 January 2012. Pat was one of the longest serving characters on the show, appearing for 25 years and six months. She returned, along with other women from Ian Beale's past, in a concussion-related dream sequence for a Children in Need special on 14 November 2014. She also made a return as a hallucination for Peggy Mitchell's death on 17 May 2016.
Janine Carter is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, introduced in 1989. The character was played by Rebecca Michael from 1989 to 1993, Alexia Demetriou from 1993 to 1996, and Charlie Brooks from 1999 to 2022. Brooks initially departed on 7 May 2004. She returned for a three episode guest stint in April 2008 before returning permanently on 18 December of that year. Brooks later took a break from September 2012 until April 2013, then departed again on 20 March 2014. In April 2021, it was announced that Brooks would reprise the role once again and return later in the year. She returned on 6 September 2021. It was announced on 24 September 2022 that Brooks had only agreed to reprise the role for 12 months and would depart again at the conclusion of her storyline, with her final scenes airing on 26 December 2022. The character has been described as a "super-bitch" and a "classic villainess". She has proven popular with critics and fans of the show. Her storylines typically involve her in an antagonistic role. She has been married five times: to Barry Evans whom she killed on New Year's Day 2004, David, Ryan Malloy, Michael Moon and Mick Carter. Her feuds include a long-standing conflict with former stepmothers Pat Butcher and Peggy Mitchell, Sonia Fowler, Lynne Hobbs, Laura Beale, Kat Slater, Zoe Slater, Stacey Slater, Sharon Watts and Linda Carter. Her initial departure saw Janine being wrongfully charged for the death of Laura Beale. Upon her return, Janine is caught forging a wedding to a wealthy, old-age pensioner, that ends with her new husband abruptly dying of a fatal heart attack upon discovering her false identity. She later accidentally kills local resident Danielle Jones by running her down in her car; conspires with Peggy's husband Archie to defraud the Mitchell family from their ownership of The Queen Victoria public house; and becomes a prime suspect in Archie's murder investigation. Janine later becomes involved in a love triangle with her third husband Ryan and his baby's mother, Stacey. All of this results in Janine framing Stacey for her attempted murder and also attempting to kill Ryan by poisoning him. Janine later gives birth to a daughter, Scarlett, with her fourth husband Michael, and they become embroiled in a custody battle over Scarlett, which leads to Janine murdering Michael, leading to her third departure from the show.
David Wicks is a fictional character from the BBC TV soap opera EastEnders, played by Michael French. David originally appeared from 23 December 1993 to 21 November 1996. He returned to the show on 1 January 2012 and departed two weeks later on 13 January. French returned to the role on 26 September 2013. David has been involved in various storylines, such as his troubled and dysfunctional reconciliation with his biological children Bianca Jackson and Joe Wicks, —his volatile and equally dysfunctional relationship with his mother Pat Butcher, an affair with his sister-in-law Cindy Beale, reuniting with Carol Jackson and struggling to cope with her diagnosis of breast cancer. On 17 May 2014, it was announced that French had once again decided to leave the show. David last appeared on 30 May 2014, after his relationship with Carol broke down.
Frank Butcher is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Mike Reid. Frank makes his first appearance on-screen as a guest character in 1987, but due to a positive viewer reception, he is reintroduced in 1988 as a regular. Reid took a long hiatus from EastEnders in 1994 and Frank remained off-screen for over a year and a half. Frank made his return as a recurring character from December 1995 to January 1998. Frank eventually becomes a regular once again from May 1998 to November 2000, when Reid quit the show. Frank makes three brief reappearances after that, the final one in December 2005. Following Reid's death in July 2007, Frank died off-screen and the character was celebrated with a special week of episodes in April 2008.
The Beales and the Fowlers are a fictional family in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. They were the main family for storylines in early episodes of EastEnders, and remained as such ever since. With at least one member of the family having been a member of the cast from the first episode in February 1985, they are the show's longest serving family. The original Beale/Fowler family consisted of matriarch Lou Beale and her children Pete and Pauline, alongside their families including their children Ian, Mark, Michelle and their spouses Kathy Hills and Arthur Fowler. Additionally, several members of the family have been introduced at a later point, including Pauline and Arthur's son Martin who was the first baby to be born into the show in 1985. The family has been headed with a matriarch first seen with Lou, and over the years, Lou's daughter Pauline, Ian's wife Jane Collins and more recently Pete's wife Kathy, have filled this role.
Roy Evans is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Tony Caunter from 26 December 1994 to 18 March 2003. Introduced by executive producer Barbara Emile in 1994, Roy is scripted as a love interest for Pat Butcher. Caunter remained a regular character until new executive producer Louise Berridge axed him in 2003, a decision which she later stated she regretted.
Liam Butcher is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Sonny Bottomley for two months in 1998 and 1999, twins Jack and Tom Godolphin from 1999, Gavin and Mitchell Vaughan in 2002, and Nathaniel Gleed from 2002 to 2004. Upon his reintroduction in 2008, the character was portrayed by James Forde. Liam is the son of Bianca Jackson and Ricky Butcher and his stories have mostly revolved around his family. The character took a six-month break in 2012 for story purposes. Following his return, producers used Liam in a story about gangs, working with the charity Comic Relief. Forde was written out permanently in 2015 and Liam departs in the episode first broadcast on 17 August 2015. Liam was reintroduced for a short stint in 2021, with the role recast to Alfie Deegan.
Ricky Butcher is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Sid Owen. Introduced as a school boy in 1988, Ricky is one of the longest-running male protagonists to feature in EastEnders. Owen originally left the role in 2000 to pursue a music career. However, he reprised the role in 2002 before being axed by producer Louise Berridge in 2004. In 2008, producer Diederick Santer introduced the character for a third time, along with his wife Bianca Jackson. Ricky is portrayed as unintelligent, simplistic, easily led and bossed around by dominant personalities. On 26 February 2011, it was announced that Owen would take a temporary break from the show. The character exited on 19 July 2011, returning five months later on 13 December 2011. Ricky left EastEnders on 17 January 2012. Ricky returned to EastEnders on 20 June 2012 for the wedding of his sister, Janine Butcher, before departing for the final time on 29 June 2012. In April 2016 he had voiced his interest in returning to EastEnders during an appearance on Celebrity Juice. He reprised his role as Ricky for an eight-week stint from 1 December 2022 to 26 January 2023.
Natalie Evans is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, between 18 January 1994 and 10 May 2004, played by Lucy Speed. Natalie first appeared in January 1994, depicted initially as an unhappy, insecure teenager; she was among various regular characters brought in to increase the cast following the BBC's decision to increase episode output to three per week. She featured most often with the characters Ricky Butcher and Bianca Jackson ; Natalie's affair with Ricky ending his relationship with Bianca was one of the prominent storylines aired in the Winter of 1995. Despite producers offering to extend Speed's contract, she opted to leave the serial in 1995.
Diane Butcher is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Sophie Lawrence. Diane appeared as a regular character between 1988 and 1991, when Lawrence decided to leave. The character made several brief returns in 1993, 1994, and 1997. In 2008, she returned for her father Frank Butcher's funeral, and on 20 June 2012 she returned for her sister Janine Butcher's wedding, departing on 29 June 2012.
The Branning family, together with the Jackson family are a fictional, extended family in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. Introduced in 1993 were the Jackson family, consisting of Carol Jackson, her partner and later husband Alan Jackson, and Carol's four children, Bianca Jackson, Sonia Jackson, Robbie Jackson, and Billie Jackson ; he is the only child fathered by Alan. The family becomes a more dominating presence in 1999, when Carol's father Jim Branning moves to Walford following the death of his wife Reenie due to cancer. Since then, all six of Jim's children have appeared, many of them with their own families.
