DENISE Fox’s serial killer ex Lucas Johnson will be shaking things up this Christmas as he arrives in the Square and tries to play happy families.
Here’s who has come and gone out of the BBC One soap cast in 2020…
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1. Kush Kazemi (Davood Ghadami) – leaving
EastEnders has confirmed that Davood Ghadami will be leaving his role as Kush as part of an explosive storyline set to play out into 2021.
Things haven’t been looking great for Kush recently after he ruined the car heist and decided to hand himself into the police to avoid a life on the run.
It’s not yet clear whether this is the end of the line for Kush or whether there’ll be more developments ahead of his exit, and viewers will have to wait and see.
2. Tina Carter (Luisa Bradshaw-White) – leaving
Tina Carter is set to leave EastEnders in the coming weeks after finding herself in the frame for Ian Beale’s brutal attack.
Tina, who was shown breaking into Ian’s house and emerging covered in blood ahead of the mystery attack in the Queen Vic, will be hauled to the police station for questioning this festive season.
One Walford resident will be arrested on Christmas Day, but will it be Tina?
Actress Luisa Bradshaw-White announced the news that she’s leaving EastEnders to try her hand at other projects back in October.
3. Lucas Johnson (Don Gilet) – returning
EastEnders has confirmed that serial killer Lucas Johnson will be making a return this festive season.
Lucas will shock the life out of his ex Denise, who hasn’t seen him since he was sent to prison in 2016 following a gruesome killing spree.
Lucas will get wind of Raymond’s arrival and decide to try and play happy families.
But Phil Mitchell will be having none of it – and location filming pictures show Lucas being beaten by one of Phil’s associates for contacting Denise.
4. Chelsea Fox (Zaraah Abraham) – returning
Denise will get another shock this Christmas when she realises that her daughter Chelsea Fox is also in Walford, 10 years after she departed from the Square.
Chelsea will be played by former Corrie star Zaraah Abraham.
It’s not yet clear why Chelsea is returning to Walford and whether her comeback is in some way linked to her dad Lucas’ return, so viewers will have to tune in to find out.
5. Kim Fox (Tameka Empson) – returning
EastEnders legend Kim has been off screens for a few months while actress Tameka Empson took a temporary break.
The character returned on Christmas Day 2019 via a video call and revealed she’d been working as a tour guide in Scotland.
Tameka is expected to appear in person at some point this year.
6. Chantelle Atkins (Jessica Plummer) – left
Chantelle was brutally murdered back in September 2020 as the abuse she was enduring at the hands of Gray reached a gruesome climax.
After finally building up the courage to tell Gray she was leaving him, Chantelle was pushed by the brute onto an upturned knife in the dishwasher.
Gray then cruelly watched her as she bled out onto the floor and slowly died, before covering up the scene and making it look like she had slipped on one of the children’s toys.
Talking about the tragic end to the harrowing storyline, Toby Alexander-Smith – who plays Gray – said: “I think that it is important that it concludes in such a tragic way.
“So we’re encouraging women to speak out before that does happen because sadly it is happening. And it’s happening more and more frequently.”
“As shocking as it is to watch hopefully it will give the survivors out there the courage to reach out and get help.”
7. Dot Cotton (June Brown) – left
Walford legend June Brown shocked fans on February 21, 2020, when she announced she had quit her role as chain-smoking hypochondriac Dot Cotton.
Fans were left fearing she’d quit in January 2020 after Dot left a voicemail for Sonia Fowler saying she’d moved to Ireland – and it seems they were right.
Speaking in an interview, June – who has played Dot for 35 years – said: “I don’t want a retainer. I’ve left. I’ve left for good.”
She added: “I’ve sent myself to Ireland and that’s where she’ll stay. I’ve left EastEnders.”
8. Dennis Rickman (Bleu Landau) – left
The long-awaited death of a major character during the 35th anniversary week turned out to be Dennis – Sharon’s tearaway son.
Denny defied Sharon’s orders and made his way on to the doomed vessel ahead of its deadly crash.
Ian Beale then sealed Dennis’ tragic fate by locking him below deck to teach him a lesson for bullying his son Bobby.
When the boat crashed, Ian did come back to rescue Denny by breaking the door down with a fire extinguisher.
But unfortunately for young Denny, the damage was already done.
9. Bex Fowler (Jasmine Armfield) – left
EastEnders actress Jasmine Armfield quit the BBC One soap after five years as Bex Fowler.
The Celeb Report Online revealed in January that Jasmine had filmed her final scenes already, and she departed in March 2020 to go travelling.
The troubled teen has been embroiled in some hard-hitting storylines which culminated in an attempt to take her own life last summer.
10. Keanu Taylor (Danny Walters) – left
Danny Walters made a dramatic comeback to EastEnders ahead of the show’s 35th anniversary.
The former mechanic continued his feud with Phil and Ben aboard the doomed party boat, which in turn, led to its devastating crash.
But Keanu left again with his tail between his legs after being rejected by Sharon and refused a chance at parenting baby Kayden.
11. Leo King (Tom Wells) – left
EastEnders fans were left stunned when Leo ended up falling on his knife – and dying a grisly death – as he tried to attack Whitney Dean after spying on her from her attic.
His exit was the beginning of a huge storyline for Whitney Dean, who handed herself into the police and is now in the middle of a doomed-looking murder trial and probable life behind bars.
12. Daniel Cook (Ade Edmondson) – left
Daniel lost his battle against cancer in February 2020 and passed away peacefully with the love of his life, Jean Slater, right by his side.
We knew his exit had been coming for a while, after Daniel returned in the new year and declared he’d faked his death last year to put Jean out of her misery.
But his return meant that Jean had to grieve for him twice…
13. Ellie Nixon (Mica Paris) – left
British singer Mica Paris joined the cast of EastEnders as Raymond’s grandmother Ellie in September after a fatal crash orphaned the poor toddler.
Ellie quickly locked horns with Raymond’s biological mother Denise Fox, and ruffled a few feathers when she offered to hand him over to Phil for £150k.
But Phil eventually drove her out of Walford by pretending that drugs had been planted in one of her properties and threatening to call the police.
A defeated Ellie left Walford in October after handing Raymond over to Denise.
14. Honey Mitchell (Emma Barton) – returned
EastEnders character Honey, played by Emma Barton, returned in September 2020 with a new lease of life.
The shop assistant had been taking a temporary break from the Square to overcome her eating disorder brought on by her ex Adam’s affair with Habiba.
Fans were thrilled when Honey humiliated him in a Queen Vic-style showdown before hitting him over the head with a bin and sending him on his way.
Following Adam’s departure, Honey’s ex Billy discovered the extent of her eating disorder and encouraged her to seek help for her problem.
Honey then departed from the Square to stay with a relative.
Unfortunately for Honey, spoilers have revealed her bad luck won’t end there as her date is set to take a disastrous turn in upcoming scenes when a man spikes her drink.
15. Stacey Fowler (Lacey Turner) – returned
Fan favourite Stacey Slater left the Square in 2018 to accommodate Lacey Turner’s maternity leave.
The character made a brief appearance in the autumn of 2019 but ran for the hills when she got a frosty welcome from Martin Fowler.
Martin pretended to have been unfaithful – in order to protect her from Ben Mitchell’s threats
Stacey then made another brief appearance in May 2020 when she was heard in a phone call to Kush Kazemi who was trying to lure her back to the Square to look after her mum Jean.
Stacey returned with a bang in September 2020 to the shocking news that Ruby and Martin had shacked up in her absence.
Stacey then received another blow when the lovebirds came back from holiday married.
And official spoilers have revealed things are only going to get worse for Stacey as a mix-up with her present on Christmas day leads to her getting the wrong end of the stick and trying to kiss Martin.
16. Peter Beale (Dayle Hudson) – returned
Peter Beale returned to EastEnders during the week of 35th anniversary episodes following a four year absence.
The role has been reprised by rising star Dayle Hudson, who took over the reins from former actor Ben Hardy following his exit in 2015.
Fans are now hoping his ex-girlfriend Lauren Branning will return next after Jaqueline Jossa hinted that the door will always be open for her character’s comeback.
17. Suki Panesar (Balvinder Sopal) – joined
Suki Panesar, played by Balvinder Sopal, made a dramatic entrance in the New Year, fainting in her daughter Ash’s arms.
The newcomer had been worming her way into her children’s lives on the Square by lying about having cancer, but was exposed as a liar in public by Jean Slater.
The manipulative mother eventually managed to convince her sons that it was their fault she’d lied about the cancer and gained another chance at playing happy families.
The landlord is continuing her reign of terror on the Square, however, and has threatened to evict the Slaters if they can’t pay the increased rent.
18. Frankie Lewis (Rose Ayling Ellis) – joined
EastEnders newcomer Frankie Lewis, played by Rose Ayling Ellis, arrived in the Square back in May.
Callum quickly took her under his wing after realising she was deaf in the hope that she’d help Ben manage to overcome his hearing loss following the boat disaster.
The newcomer quickly unsettled Mick Carter by showing a bit too much of an interest in his family, and shocked him out of his skin when she revealed she was his estranged daughter.
Frankie’s arrival has kicked off a childhood abuse storyline after it was revealed that Mick fathered Frankie when he was only 12.
Soap bosses have confirmed that Mick will slowly come to terms with the fact that he was abused by Frankie’s mother Katy Lewis when he was in care as a child.
19. Katy Lewis (Simone Lahbib) – joined
Simone Lahbib has been cast as a mystery character in EastEnders
Mick Carter’s childhood abuser Katy rocked up in the Square in November after her daughter Frankie dropped the bombshell on Mick that she was his daughter.
Katy was quick to manipulate Mick into thinking that she’d never abused him – and that Frankie isn’t his daughter after all.
In the wake of Katy’s arrival, Mick is struggling to cope with his traumatic memories.
Christmas spoilers have revealed he’s set to crumble over the festive period and push Linda into the arms of Max as he turns to Katy for help…
Speaking about Katy’s arrival, the soap’s executive producer said: “We’re delighted to welcome Simone to Walford.
“Her character’s links to the Carter family will form part of an important new storyline for Mick in particular.
“It’s a story that we look forward to sharing with the audience – with its impact on the Carters set to be everlasting.”
