Walford | |
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EastEnders location | |
![]() Bridge Street Café before its refurbishment in 2009 | |
Created by | Tony Holland and Julia Smith |
Genre | Soap opera |
In-universe information | |
Type | London borough |
Locations | The Queen Victoria |
Characters | EastEnders characters |
Walford is a fictional borough of east London in the BBC soap opera EastEnders . It is the primary setting for the soap. EastEnders is filmed at Borehamwood in Hertfordshire, towards the north-west of London. Much of the location work is filmed in nearby Watford, which was chosen for many of the exterior scenes due to its close proximity and the town's name being so similar to Walford. Thus, any stray road signs or advertising boards which are accidentally filmed in the back of shots will appear to read Walford. Locations used in Watford include most interior and exterior church scenes of various churches, the snooker club, the County Court and Magistrates' Courts courtrooms, and the cemetery (where most of the deceased characters are interred).
The name Walford is both a street in Dalston where one of the series' creators, Tony Holland, lived and a blend of Walthamstow, where Holland was born, and Stratford. [1] The suffix '-ford' is found throughout Britain (for example, Bradford, Guildford and Telford); it just means the first place you can cross a river. [2] Walford's London postcode district is E20 (real East London postcode districts only went up to E18 [3] until 2011, when E20 was introduced to serve the London 2012 Olympic Park). [4] Walford's fictional tube station, Walford East, is located on the EastEnders tube map in the position normally occupied by the real Bromley-by-Bow tube station. [5] [6] As part of the 2010 Children In Need charity appeal, Walford became twinned with Weatherfield in a special programme uniting the two soaps EastEnders and Coronation Street called "East Street".
The main setting of EastEnders is Albert Square, where many of the characters reside. Central to the Square is the garden. The garden is home to Arthur Fowler's (Bill Treacher) bench, which was placed there in memory of him. The bench is also known as the 'Bench of Tears', as it is often the place where characters will go and cry. One corner of the square is taken up by The Queen Victoria Public House. [7] There is a B&B and a car lot. [7] The square's design was based on Fassett Square in Dalston, [8] and was given the name Albert Square after Prince Albert. The Queen Victoria, was also given its name due to this. [9] The Queen Victoria public house, known to residents as the Queen Vic or simply 'The Vic', stands south of the square at number 46 Albert Square, where it joins with Bridge Street. East of the pub is a building with 2 flats and west of these in the southwest corner leads off to a walkway through to Turpin Way, on which the Walford Community Centre and Playground are found. [7] To the west of the Queen Vic, across the junction with Bridge Street, is the Beale house, 45 Albert Square. Next to that is 43 Albert Square. In the southwest corner of the square is number 41. [7] Between numbers 41 and 43 is Daisy Lane, a pathway connecting Albert Square to Victoria Square. Daisy Lane was named after the daughter of Series Designer Steven Keogh. [10] On the west edge of The Square there are two houses 18 and 20 Albert Square, which have been knocked through as a single property and then later separated again. It was previously Walford's B&B, 'Kim's Palace'. North of the old B&B is the rear of 55 Victoria Road. A row of five terraced houses line the north edge of Albert Square. The westernmost house is number 31. The property next door is split into two flats. Number 25 is the home of Dot Cotton (June Brown). The easternmost property in the terrace is number 23, which was destroyed in September 2014 by a fire. [7] [11] On the northeast edge of Albert Square is a car lot, south of which is another terrace of three elevated properties. The northernmost house is number 5. A road leads north at the square's northeast edge, passing by the car lot. The middle house is at 3 Albert Square. Most southerly of this terrace is number 1, [7] originally flats with the doctor's surgery on the ground floor, which later became a single house.
Bridge Street is the location of the street market and shops including the café, launderette, and mini-supermarket. The café is originally named Al's Cafe and owned by Ali Osman (Nejdet Salih) and Sue Osman (Sandy Ratcliff), where they also operate the taxi firm OzCabs. [12] When Ali develops a gambling addiction, he is forced to sell the café to Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt), who manages it with his wife, Cindy Beale (Michelle Collins), until he sells the business to his mother, Kathy Beale (Gillian Taylforth). [12] Ian buys the café back following the birth of Kathy's son, Ben Mitchell (Matthew Silver), although loses the business when he becomes bankrupt years later. [12] Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden) buys the property and employs Laura Beale (Hannah Waterman), the estranged wife of Ian, to manage it. She renames the property to Laura's Café. [12] Laura dies and Phil is falsely imprisoned so when Phil signs the café to his sister, Sam Mitchell (Kim Medcalf), she naïvely sells the business back to Ian. [12] Ian manages the café with his wife Jane Beale (Laurie Brett) until they divorce and Jane wins the business in the divorce settlement. Jane sells the café to Phil and he lets his partner, Shirley Carter (Linda Henry), manage it. She names the property Shirley's Cafe. [12] Phil sells the business to Ian, and he renames the café to Mandy's Café. When Ian has a nervous breakdown and leaves, his daughter Lucy Beale (Hetti Bywater) takes control of his businesses, calling the cafe Cindy's Café. Upon his return, Ian regains ownership of the café and when she returns to Walford, Jane manages it. [12] A few years later, Kathy returns and when she begins managing the café, Ian renames it to Kathy's Café. [12] A year later, Ian sells the property to Weyland & Co, a property development company, which upsets Kathy. [13] Weeks later, Fi Browning (Lisa Faulkner), a business consultant for the company, gifts the café to Kathy after discovering that her father, James Willmott-Brown (William Boyde) raped Kathy. [14]
The launderette is owned by Mr Papadopolous until his death in 1992; the business passes to his son, Andonis Papadopolous and in 2016, it is passed to Andonis's son, Apostolos Papadopolous. Apostolos sells the launderette to Phil Mitchell and Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace) in 2021, and Kat also sets up a taxi company called “Kat’s Cabs” in the backroom.
Turpin Road is the location of a war memorial, bookmaker, chip shop, funeral parlour, restaurant and an upmarket bar as well as several other businesses. [7] The name Turpin Road was chosen after the show's creator read that the East End was the haunt of notorious highwaymen, such as Dick Turpin. [10]
The nightclub on Turpin Road is originally named Strokes Wine Bar until George Palmer (Paul Moriarty) buys it and renames it "The Cobra Club". He uses the club as a cover for his criminal business. [15] Annie Palmer (Nadia Sawalha), George's daughter, takes over the control of the club when he leaves; she renames the club "The Market Cellar". Annie later sells the club to Steve Owen (Martin Kemp), who renames it "e20". [15] In 1999, under Steve's ownership, Saskia Duncan (Deborah Sheridan-Taylor) is killed in the club after a struggle with Steve and Matthew Rose (Joe Absolom). [15] Beppe di Marco (Michael Greco) and Billy Mitchell (Perry Fenwick) buy the club from Steve, although Beppe sells his majority share to Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean), who rebrands the club "Angie's Den", in memory of her parents Angie Watts (Anita Dobson) and Den Watts (Leslie Grantham). [15] Following a refurbishment, Den buys into the business and co-owns with Sharon. [7] They sell the club to Johnny Allen (Billy Murray), who renames it "Scarlet" after his deceased daughter. [15] Johnny gives the club to his surviving daughter, Ruby Allen (Louisa Lytton), when he is imprisoned. [7] The start of Stacey Slater (Lacey Turner) and Bradley Branning's (Charlie Clements) relationship begins in Scarlet when Bradley is falsely blamed for spiking Stacey's drink. A reporter from Inside Soap labelled the moment "a rather unromantic start to Stacey and Bradders' love story!" [15] Ronnie Mitchell (Samantha Womack) and Jack Branning (Scott Maslen) buy the club, renaming it the "R&R" - the initials of Ronnie and her sister, Roxy Mitchell (Rita Simons). Ronnie and Roxy run the club, while Jack operates as a silent partner. [7] When Ronnie and Jack separate, Ronnie sells her share of the club to Jack, although after a fire in the club, Ronnie and Roxy each buy a share in the club. When Billy tries to woo Carol Jackson (Lindsay Coulson), Carol's daughter Bianca Jackson (Patsy Palmer) becomes aggressive and creates an argument between them, Stacey, Janine Butcher (Charlie Brooks) and Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace). An Inside Soap columnist labelled the argument "one of our favourite catfights". [15] Jack is later shot at the club by gang member Kylie (Elarica Gallacher), [15] and a few months later, he sells his share of the club to Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden). [7] Ronnie and Roxy also sell their shares to Janine. [7] Upon her return to Walford, Sharon becomes the R&R's bar manager and she holds her wedding to Jack at the club. At the altar, Jack jilts Sharon, leaving her saddened. [15] Sharon is also offered a small share in the business by Phil. Janine and Sharon later sell their shares to Phil, leaving him as the sole-owner. [15] The R&R closes at some point in before Christmas 2016, and remains shut until February 2018, when Sharon decides to reopen it, with Mel Owen (Tamzin Outhwaite) as the manager. [15] Mel plans to rename the club "The Phoenix", but her son Hunter Owen (Charlie Winter) sabotages the refurbishment and rebrands it "E20" again in honour of his father, Steve, while infuriating Mel, who goes along with it to keep Hunter happy. When Mel's ex-husband Ray Kelly (Sean Mahon) plans to remarry her, he buys Phil's 50% stake in the E20 and gifts it to Mel as a wedding present. In November 2019, Mel decides to sell her half of the E20 to Ruby and later blackmails Sharon into selling her half too, leaving Ruby as the new sole-owner of the club, which she renames "Ruby’s". In May 2022, Ruby puts the club up for sale and Sam Mitchell (Kim Medcalf) discovers that her brother, Phil’s, money-laundering associate, Jonah Tyler (Mark Mooney), is planning on buying the club from Ruby. She approaches Phil with this news and they agree to outbuy Jonah, reopen the club as a wine bar and run it together; renaming it "Peggy’s" in honour of their late mother, Peggy Mitchell (Barbara Windsor). Co-run by Phil, Sam, Kat and Sharon, the opening night of Peggy’s was on 7 July 2022.
The Dagmar at 10 Turpin Road is first mentioned in 1986 and seen in 1987 when James Willmott-Brown (William Boyde) takes over and turns it into a wine bar. After James rapes Kathy Beale (Gillian Taylforth), the bar is burnt down on the orders of Den. The building is then used for several businesses, including Ian Beale's (Adam Woodyatt) Meal Machine, a catering business, and a bric-a-brac shop, also owned by Ian. It also becomes a beauty salon, first called Sophisti-Kate's, run by Kate Mitchell (Jill Halfpenny), then Booty, run by Tanya Branning (Jo Joyner), Roxy's, run by Roxy Mitchell (Rita Simons), and Beauty, run by Sadie Young (Kate Magowan). It returns to being a wine and cocktail bar in 2014 when Sharon Watts opens The Albert. After Vincent Hubbard (Richard Blackwood) buys half the bar and Sharon later sells her half to Vincent as well, he and his wife, Kim Fox-Hubbard (Tameka Empson), run it until he is forced to sell it to pay people he owes money to and it is left empty in early 2018. Kathy buys the building in 2019, and decides to reopen it as a gay bar called The Prince Albert.
Next door to the nightclub is a building that originally housed the Snooker World snooker club. When Johnny Allen buys Angie's Den, he buys Snooker World and merges the two together to give Scarlet a more open space. After 4 Turpin Road is again separated into two buildings in 2011, Janine Butcher uses it to house her property management business, Butcher's Joints. After Janine's arrest for murder, it is converted into a salon called Blades, owned by Dean Wicks (Matt Di Angelo) until he is arrested for rape. Belinda Peacock (Carli Norris) then opens her own salon called Elysium until she is forced to close it down a few months later due to high debts. It is reopened in 2019 by Denise Fox (Diane Parish) as a salon named Fox & Hair.
George Street is the location of an Italian restaurant, Giuseppe's, which later becomes an Indian restaurant, The Argee Bhajee, when a new owner takes over. Walford East tube station is on George Street, [7] which first appeared on screen in late 1985 when Lou Beale (Anna Wing) collapses outside it. On maps seen inside the station it replaces Bromley-by-Bow on the District line, although the building is in the style of the Bakerloo line stations designed by Stanley Heaps. [16] The train sound was first heard in 1987 and the train's first appearance was in 1988 at Lou Beale's funeral. Trains did not appear again until 4 February 2010, when CGI was used in the show for the first time. [17] Platforms within the station were first seen in 2011 when Charlie Slater (Derek Martin) left Walford. George Street also has a B&B, King George Guest House, which opened in 2008.
Turpin Way includes the local garage, informally known as The Arches, the community centre, a playground and a boxing gym. [7] Other locations seen or mentioned in the series include Victoria Square, Walford Towers, Kingsley Road, [18] Spring Lane and the High Street. Storylines in 2017 mentioned the demolition of Walford Towers, as a means of introducing new characters to the series, although the demolition was cancelled. Walford Common was introduced to the series for the "Who Killed Lucy Beale?" storyline in 2014, while Walford Common underground station was introduced in 2019. Other Walford streets mentioned at various times include Clifton Hill Road, [19] New Street, [20] Fairford Lane, [21] Elwell Road, Sewardstone Road, Clarisdown Street, Wellington Road, Crescent Park Road, Somer Street, Station Road, Elm Road and Montpelier Road.Lou Beale (Anna Wing) also mentions in 1987 that Bassett Street is just off Turpin Road.
Ian Albert Beale is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Adam Woodyatt. He is the drama's longest-serving main character and one of four remaining original characters, the others being his mother Kathy Beale, Sharon Watts and Tracey. The character appeared in his 2,000th episode in the show on 26 March 2007, and his 3,000th on 27 May 2016. Woodyatt took an extended break from EastEnders on 22 January 2021. He made appearances on 12 December 2022 and 22 June 2023, prior to a full-time return on 22 August.
The Queen Victoria is the Victorian public house in the BBC soap opera, EastEnders. It has the fictional address of 46 Albert Square, Walford, London E20.
Phil Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Steve McFadden. He was introduced to the soap opera on 20 February 1990 and was followed by his brother Grant, sister Sam and mother Peggy. Phil was one of the major characters introduced by executive producer Michael Ferguson, who wanted to bring in some macho male leads. Phil and his brother Grant became popularly known as the Mitchell brothers in the British media, with Phil initially portrayed as the more level-headed of the two thugs. Storylines featuring the Mitchell family dominated the soap opera throughout the 1990s, with Phil serving as one of the show's central characters and protagonists since the 1990s. McFadden temporarily left the series in late 2003, then returned in April 2005 for a brief appearance before making a permanent return in October 2005, and has now overtaken Dot Cotton as the second-longest-serving character in EastEnders, surpassed only by original character Ian Beale. A teenage version of Phil, played by Daniel Delaney, appeared in a flashback episode broadcast on 5 September 2022, which focuses on the Mitchell family in the 1970s.
Dean Wicks is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders played by Matt Di Angelo. He made his first appearance on 2 January 2006. It was announced on 18 August 2007 that the characters of Deano and his sister Carly Wicks were being axed by executive producer Diederick Santer. Deano made his final appearance on 7 February 2008. On 15 January 2014, it was announced that Deano, now called Dean, would be returning and he first reappeared on 11 April of that year. Di Angelo took a three-month break from the soap from January to April 2015, with a one-off appearance in February to tie in with the show's 30th anniversary celebrations. In October 2015, it was announced that Di Angelo would leave the show in early 2016. The character is arrested for attempted rape with his final scenes set in court airing on 4 and 5 February 2016. On 19 August 2016, Dean is acquitted of attempted rape after standing trial off-screen. On 30 October 2023, Di Angelo made an unannounced return as Dean.
Lesley Jane Beale is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Laurie Brett. She made her first appearance on 21 June 2004. Brett took maternity leave in 2011 and departed on 19 May. She returned on 8 November and departed again on 27 January 2012. Jane made a temporary return to the show on 6 January 2014 until 20 May of that year and permanently from 24 November 2014 to 23 October 2017. She made two voiceover appearances on 8 and 25 December 2017. The character made an unannounced return in the episode broadcast on 15 July 2024 for a short stint.
Katherine Elizabeth "Kathy" Cotton is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Gillian Taylforth. Portrayed as "an attractive, bright, caring and highly moral woman", Kathy is one of the serial's original characters, appearing in the first episode of EastEnders on 19 February 1985. She is created as the second wife of Pete Beale and mother of their son Ian Beale. Taylforth was originally dismissed for the role of Kathy due to her young age, but was reconsidered when she impressed show bosses. The actress opted to leave the serial in 1997 and Kathy departed on 10 April 1998 after deciding to move to South Africa with her second son Ben. Kathy returned for two separate guest stints in 1999, making her departure on 6 January 2000. Despite reports that Taylforth would be returning to the serial, Kathy was supposedly killed off-screen in a road collision in 2006 to facilitate Ben's reintroduction to the serial. Taylforth reprised the role for a charity special in 2014. In the episode broadcast on 19 February 2015 to celebrate the show's 30th anniversary, Kathy made a surprise return to the serial - despite being presumed dead. It was confirmed that Kathy would be making a permanent return, and - after a guest appearance on 19 May 2015 - Kathy returned permanently on 17 August 2015. Taylforth was initially hesitant about her reintroduction storyline, which was inspired by the John Darwin disappearance case. Taylforth appeared in her 2,000th episode on 22 May 2023.
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.
Julie Cooper is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Louise Plowright from 1989 to 1990. The character was one of Mike Gibbon's introductions, but she was axed in 1990 at the start of Michael Ferguson's reign as executive producer. Julie is portrayed as a bubbly, big haired Salford girl, who has a hungry appetite for men.
Roxanne Lizette "Roxy" Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, portrayed by Rita Simons. Roxy arrived in Walford with her sister Ronnie on 24 July 2007 and decides to move permanently to Walford from Ibiza where they ran a bar together. Roxy is the younger of the two sisters. She is described as the "fire", as opposed to Ronnie's "ice". Simons took a temporary hiatus in 2016, with Roxy off screen from 1 January until 4 May 2016. Following the announcement that Womack would be leaving the series, Simons' departure was also announced. Roxy departed the series in scenes broadcast on 1 January 2017, when she drowned in a hotel swimming pool along with Ronnie. Simons returned in 2019 to record a voiceover as Roxy, which was broadcast on 3 May 2019. A younger version of Roxy, played by Elodie de Rohan Willner, appeared in a flashback episode broadcast on 5 September 2022, which focuses on the Mitchell family in the 1970s. Simons reprised her role on 27 April 2023 for a one-off appearance as a hallucination to her daughter, Amy Mitchell.
Jack Branning is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Scott Maslen. He made his first appearance on 29 October 2007. He is the youngest child of Jim and Reenie Branning and the brother of April Branning, Carol Jackson, Derek Branning, Suzy Branning and Max Branning. The character was introduced to the show during a period when EastEnders was being routinely criticised in the media for its reliance on resurrecting old characters. The casting of Maslen provoked some controversy, being the first time an actor had been poached from one mainstream soap to another. It was quickly established that Jack is a morally ambiguous character with a murky past in the police force resulting in the paralysis of his young daughter, Penny. Tabloid media have praised the character for his role as resident Romeo, commenting frequently on his good looks and attractiveness, although broadsheet press have been more critical of Maslen's acting. On 1 July 2019, Maslen filmed his 1,000th episode as Jack.
The Mitchell family is a fictional family in the UK soap opera EastEnders. They were first introduced in February 1990, when brothers Phil and Grant Mitchell bought the local garage, the Arches. Their sister Sam was introduced later in 1990, and their mother Peggy shortly after in 1991, before being reintroduced as a regular character in 1994, with the role recast to Barbara Windsor. Since then, the family has been significantly expanded to include both the immediate and extended families. Phil has been the longest running Mitchell on the show, and the family has expanded significantly in the years since, remaining a large presence on the square.
Glenda Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Glynis Barber. The character first appeared in the programme on 7 January 2010. She was axed in February 2011, departing on 8 March 2011. She later returned for two episodes in January 2016 and three in May 2016. She made an unannounced return on the 30 December 2016 episode for the departures of her two daughters. She made her second departure from the show on 10 February 2017. Glenda has been described as "complex", "vulnerable"," "demure, dynamic and assured". She is the former wife of Archie Mitchell ; and mother of both her son Danny and Archie's two daughters Ronnie and Roxy.
James Willmott-Brown is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by William Boyde. The character originally appeared in Albert Square from 1986 to 1989, where he established the square's second pub – "The Dagmar" – and instigated a feud with his business rival Den Watts. Willmott-Brown then developed a romantic obsession with his employee Kathy Beale, which sparked the events of the character raping her in 1988.
"Who Killed Lucy Beale?" is a storyline from the BBC soap opera EastEnders. It was announced on 21 February 2014, and began on 18 April 2014, when Lucy Beale was discovered dead on Walford Common from a deliberately inflicted head injury. The storyline reached a peak during EastEnders Live Week on 19 February 2015, the show's 30th anniversary episode, during which Lucy's 10-year-old half-brother, Bobby, is revealed to have killed her following a confrontation at home. Bobby's adoptive mother, Jane Beale, had covered for him, moving Lucy's body to Walford Common and convincing Bobby that he was not responsible for his sister's death.