STUART Highway has been failing to cope as a father while he battles postnatal depression.
This leads to his wife Rainie making a difficult decision about baby Roland next week in EastEnders.
Bernie Taylor (played by Clair Norris) has given birth to a baby boy, hoping married couple Rainie and Stuart Highway (portrayed by Tanya Franks and Ricky Champ) would be the perfect parents for him.
Sadly, nothing went according to their surrogacy plan as the undertaker began to struggle with postnatal depression, following a male breast cancer diagnosis.
This has led him to continuously reject baby Roland, forcing Bernie to make a decision about the future she wants for her biological son.
Next week, after talking to Dotty Cotton, Bernie tells Rainie that she can have Roland – on the one condition she leaves Stuart.
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Rainie finds support in the form of Mitch Baker (Roger Griffiths) but is unaware that Stuart is listening.
The latter makes the move himself, telling a heartbroken Rainie that he’s ending their romance, firmly convinced she deserves to be a mother for Roland.
Stuart proceeds to pack his things and leaves just as Rainie realises their relationship has really come to an end.
Later on, Stuart is at The Vic when he’s confronted by Karen Taylor (Lorraine Stanley) about abandoning Roland before Patrick makes her realise there might be more to the situation that first meets the eye.
With Roland by her side and her heart to mend, Rainie soon tells Jack she’s made a big choice – she plans to leave Albert Square and visits the Taylors.
Meanwhile, Karen finds Stuart and boldly questions if he could have postnatal depression.
Perhaps knowing she’s hitting the nail on the head, Stuart snaps at Karen.
