Tuesday 31st March 2020

Good Evening everyone! Hope you've all enjoyed your Tuesday, are you all reeling from last night's episode? It ended on a pretty big cliffhanger, right? What's going to happen now Phil is back? Who's excited for tonight's episode? Before we start focusing on tonight's episode, I have a big #SPOILER for you! New pictures have been released of Phil in, what appears to be, a prison a cell! Does he hand himself in to the police after being overwhelmed with guilt? He returned last night after vanishing after the boat crash. After seeing how dismayed and heartbroken Sharon is, does he make the life-changing decision and hand himself in? It is still to come to light that Ian locked Dennis in a room below deck during the boat crash, however Phil still did play a huge part by causing the boat to crash while fighting with Keanu. Is Phil going to end up being put behind bars for years, or can his reliable lawyer, fans will know as Ritchie, be able to prevent Phil from being locked up?!

I'm hoping Phil wont be put into prison for long, he's, personally, one of my favourite characters in the soap and he has such a legendary mark on the soap. What do you guys hope for Phil? Anyway, lets focus on tonight ... there was a hell of a lot going on, but of course the main focus tonight was Sharon and Phil, I'll come to them at the end, shall we start with Dotty?! She's getting herself in a bit of a mess I think and getting drunk, is it a coping mechanism of knowing what Ian did? Saying liars should pay and getting a group of random lads to buy her a drink. Of course Bobby and Peter come to aid, you know, i'm actually looking forward to their love triangle story-line, i'm interested to see how it starts and how it all comes together, will both Beale brothers know each one of them are pining for her? Or will Dotty play them both against each other, it can go so many ways, plus mainly, will it lead to Dotty forcing Ian to come clean? This is one story-line i'm really looking forward too! Also what were the keys he was fishing out of her bag while she slept? Obviously one set of keys was for restaurant, but what was the other set? The Arches possibly?

Another main focus during tonight's episode was Linda and Mick. So Shirley was the one who put a mark on the vodka bottle, Mick looked so disappointed with her. I did kinda feel for both of them during that moment, after everything she has been through, Linda felt she could just have "The one drink!" just to get her through, but you could see the look in Mick's face! That's not the way it goes, with her being a recovering alcoholic, it's the last thing she should be doing, it's just more temptation isn't it? It's kinda like torturing herself I guess, there will always be that craving of just having another, and just having one more after that until it gets out of control. Those words Mick spoke to her ""I choose our marriage" you said, "I choose you!"", it was a feeling of disappointment. Later on, during the scene in the bedroom, it was amazing to hear Linda open up about her life with drink, growing up in a Vic and her father giving her the odd sip of his pint, she has been living around alcohol her entire life, I was really engrossed in that section of dialogue. I thought the script-writers were brilliant tonight can I just add! Also can I just say how such a cute child Ollie is? He has a gorgeous little face! When they were lying in bed and talking to him about moving house, it was incredibly cute, using it phrases the little lad would understand. I think they have both made a good decision though, it is time for them to move out of the Vic, the amount of history that is there for them, they need a clean slate. It's where Linda was raped, where Stuart was shot and Mick was framed, where Mick and Whitney's affair started ... only questions are, who will they sell the Vic too and who will be the new owners of The Queen Vic?! Where will Mick and Linda go?

Now, I cannot not mention Ballum tonight! How incredibly cute were they?! Callum walking in on Ben while he was wrapping his birthday present! Can I just saw how bloody adorable Ben was the way he was staring at Callum when he was sat, with his eyes closed, in his underpants, telling him how he'd always be there for him, saying that it didn't matter to him whether he was deaf or not, if Phil wouldn't be there for him, then he would! Did anyone see Ben tearing up as he was being told these words?! It was the most perfect moment for Ben to say "I love you!" ... and what a beautiful moment it was, i'm sure a lot of Ballum fans were rejoicing, I know I was! I can't have imagined it to have happened at a better moment, even when they were lying in bed together, it was just incredibly sweet as they were swapping presents. I'm hoping there will be a lot of happiness for Ballum in the future, do I dare say a wedding possibly in the future? I don't think there's been a gay wedding in EastEnders has there? Someone please correct me if i'm wrong, but I would love to see Ben and Callum get married eventually, of course it's not going to be a smooth road for them, there will be obstacles along the way, but they make a perfect couple and I think EastEnders will miss a great opportunity if they don't make these two characters wed?! What do you guys think?! Let's start a petition ... "WE WANT A BALLUM WEDDING!"

Okay, now the main event. Everyone, please lets have a round of applause for Letitia Dean and Steve McFadden! What an amazing chemistry these two share on screen! I was gripped by their performance tonight! As soon as it started and Sharon went off the scale yelling at him to leave, you could see how devastated Phil was to be told to leave. When Phil followed Sharon back to the house and she was telling him how he killed his biological father, Dennis Rickman to then (accidentally) kill Dennis Rickman Jr, I think it hit a moment of truth for Phil that he, in the end, was responsible for the death of the two people Sharon loved the most. Even when they were at the Mitchell household, talking in the kitchen, it was clearly both of them are grieving for someone they loved dearly. Phil loved Denny like he was his own, he pretty much brought him up and always looked out for him, he is riddled with guilt, mainly for not knowing that Dennis was on the boat at the time of the crash. I found it very emotional and even I got a tear in my eye when they both started getting teary. I never expected Sharon to apologise to Phil thought for having her affair with Keanu, that was a surprise. Part of me was thinking was she faking it or did she genuinely mean it? She'd said many times that Keanu made her feel in a way that Phil couldn't. But then again, she was right, if she hadn't of had her affair with Keanu, Phil wouldn't have been on the boat after Keanu, Denny wouldn't have been on the boat either and everything would've been okay. The two most powerful characters in the soap and they are both battling with grief and guilt, for them to clash right at the beginning to then being able to talk and understand one another near the end, it shows what kind of history they have both shared. I found very fascinating and I can't applaud the script-writers and the stars of tonight's episode Letitia Dean and Steve McFadden loud enough!

I'm kinda sad that Phil has felt his need to turn himself into the police there at the end. I mean, Ben doesn't even know he's back and Phil doesn't even know about Ben losing his hearing. Somehow it's going to be brought to light to both of them surely? Maybe it'll be Kathy to be the one who breaks the news to them both?! What did you make of tonight's episode? What do you think is going to happen to Phil? But also, what is Sharon going to do now, she's buried her son and she's living on the square alone, not really being able to call anywhere home, what's going to be her next focus? Let me know what you guys think, please feel free to share your thoughts and opinions on what's currently happening in the soap, I'd love to hear your theories. Anyway folks, sadly, that's all we have for this week, EastEnders will be back on our screens next Monday! I hope you're all keeping well and getting through this the best you can!

Monday 25th January 2021

Hello everyone! Hope you've all had a good relaxing weekend!  `We're back with a fresh new week of drama and anticipation. After what happened during Friday's episode, I'm really excited to see what will be the aftermath of Sharon's attempt on killing Ian. What will the neighbours and community think about Ian disappearing all of a sudden? I genuinely can't wait to see what happens.

As I predicted, after Ian's disappearance, Kathy appears to be hunting high and low for her son. Concerned that no one has seen him since the previous night, and he's not responding to any of her phone calls, Kathy is getting more and more concerned for her son. I'm sure you'll remember that when Ian decided to flee Walford, he chucked his phone into the bin, and without a word to anyone, disappeared into the night after realising that Sharon was behind the attack and wanting to kill him after learning the truth about Dennis's death. Kathy decides to confront Sharon about her son's disappearance, but of course Sharon can't reveal what's really happened and informs Kathy that Ian has probably gone for a walk to get some fresh air. To be fair, Sharon also has no idea where Ian has gone, before she makes her way back to the Vic, she asks Phil whether anything happened between him and Ian the previous night. Phil admits that Ian was no where to be seen, but makes the valid point that if he had seen him, he wouldn't be walking around right now. But it's not just Kathy who is questioning Ian's absence, Max also confronts Sharon later in the Vic. Max eventually got suspicious of Sharon and voiced his concerns to Ian, I do feel that maybe people are going to point the finger and blame Sharon for Ian going AWOL. But in all fairness, Sharon didn't go through with her plan, the last she saw Ian he was alive, she has no idea when or where he has fled. I do feel though that Kathy isn't going to let it lie, she'll be wanting answers from Sharon that's for sure!

The second thing I want to mention briefly, has anyone got any idea what Chelsea is up to? I'm still unsure as to what is happening with her, what her story is. I feel like it's going to be a long time until we learn what "The job" is that she's supposed to be doing. Since her return we've been made to believe that she has built bridges with her Father and decided to give him a second chance, however front of sticking up for her Dad, completely changed when she started getting phone calls from an unknown person. In this episode we see her getting a call from someone named "Caleb" and eventually a face is given to this person's identity. Chelsea seems really stunned to see him, who is this Caleb and what has he got over Chelsea? Is she working for him maybe? As they sit together in the Vic, Caleb seems to compliment on the clothes that she is working, pointing out that it was with his money that she paid for those items. Chelsea informs him that he will be getting the money back, but as soon as he mentions Lucas, Chelsea informs him to let her deal with him. Is Chelsea using her Dad to perhaps pay this Caleb back? Who knows? Either way, I'm looking forward to finding out more of Chelsea's story. What do you think it could be? Do you understand what's happening more than I do? If so, please enlighten me, as I am finding this a little bit confusing and quite difficult to follow. I'm hoping as time goes on, more will be revealed and everything will make sense.

Thirdly, I have to mention Ben and Callum, don't I? I have to! After hearing news that Lexi isn't feeling too well at school and with Ben being busy and Lola being stuck at the salon, Callum appears to be the only person available to help and pick the young girl up. However, as soon as he gets there, Isaac refuses to let Lexi go with him, as his name isn't on the Parental and/or Guardian list for who the school should contact when their child is ill. As far as Isaac is concerned, the only people who are on that list are Lola and Ben, even though Callum fights his corner, informing him that he's not a stranger and Lexi will be safe in his hands if she was to go with him. But, to be fair, Isaac is only doing his job - if he was to let Lexi go with an unknown member of the public (which is how the school will see him) - he could be in huge trouble. This specific event seems to surprise everyone, Ben even pleads to Lola to allow Callum onto the list, but Lola admits that just because Callum is another one of Ben's boyfriends, she can't allow him on the list and strictly informs him that the list is just for family members only! Clearly, this seems to play on Ben's mind. Later, whilst Ben and Callum are discussing the situation together in the Mitchell household ... and in the most unaffectionate, non-romantic way possible, Ben proposes to Callum saying that he can sort the whole thing out if they sign a few papers at the registrars office! As the way proposals go, I have to say that has to be the worst one I have ever seen! Callum is completely and utterly stunned by his boyfriends words, and not in the most happiest way. I mean, fair enough Ben has never really been good with words, but come on!!! Later on, Ben is looking after his daughter as Lola approaches and they once again begin chatting about the day's events. It's then that Ben reveals that he had a way of sorting it and revealing to them both that he proposed to Callum, but when they realise there was no romantic gesture and it literally happened in the Mitchell's kitchen - both Lola and Lexi aren't surprised that Callum walked off. They inform him that if he's truly wanting to get married to Callum, then it needs to be for the right reasons - not just so his name can be put on a list! Plus he needs to show more feeling and romance towards his proposal! Let's hope that the next time Ben proposes to Callum, that he actually does it right!!

The final thing I need to talk about is Frankie and the Carters! The Carter's seemed to have welcomed Frankie into their family after the learning the truth about her identity. In this episode, Frankie is waiting very patiently for Mick and Linda outside of their apartment, as the couple approach her she informs them that today is the anniversary of her little brother's death, (Harry). Before mentioning that she'll be going to the cemetery with her Mum, she also uses this time to once again plead to them to not report her Mum to the police. Mick takes it upon himself to reassure his daughter that they won't mention anything to the police. Interestingly later on, Shirley confronts Linda, informing her that she's been told everything about Mick's past and how he doesn't want to involve the police, however she feels that they need to do something so Katy could never do the things she did to Mick to anyone else. Linda seems to completely understand Shirley's concern, but she also states that they need to stay strong for Mick and go with what he says, as they need to stick by him and do what's best for him. A little bit later, Linda meets Frankie in the Cafe, after a brief discussion Frankie introduces a man named Jed to Linda, informing her that she think he's a type of step-brother to her. (Harry's brother, on their Dad's side!) As Linda looks up this man, she asks Frankie whether she could also attend going to the cemetery, regardless of Katy being there she also wants to pay her respects to the young boy who died so young, Frankie is really touched by her gesture and agrees for her come along. However, later on after they've all returned from the cemetery they decide to go for a drink at Ruby's club. As Linda buys a round of drinks, Stuart is sat as the bar and they begin to discuss Frankie. Stuart is surprised to hear that Frankie is the daughter of Katy Lewis, suddenly Linda begins to question his experience of being in care with Katy, it's then that Stuart reveals that other than Mick, she did have a few favourites that she used to look after. These words seem to really shake Linda to the core, as Frankie dismisses herself to use the lavatory, Linda takes it upon herself to approach Jed. Trying to be as subtle as possible, she begins to dig and find out more information from him, asking about his Dad not being involved with Harry, even though he was, even informing Jed about her and Mick's connection to Frankie. It's the she takes the big step in asking him questions regarding whether Katy kept things secret from him, it looks as if Jed suddenly clicks on to what she's talking about and becomes really uncomfortable. Frankie returns to see Jed leaving the club, Linda being completely apologetic thinking she may have got the wrong end of the stick. But as they venture out in the cold evening, Jed confronts Frankie saying that he's never said anything to anyone about his relationship with Harry, but poor Frankie has no idea what's talking about. Suddenly everything becomes crystal clear to Linda - Jed was Harry's Father! Jed is another victim of Katy's sexual abuse! But he happens to mention "Any of us!" - it looks as if he's claiming that there are other victims of Katy, other young men she's preyed upon!

At this moment I feel so so sorry for Frankie, learning that her Dad was abused by her Mum, and now who she's always believed to be her step-brother, revealed to be her younger brother's Dad! Putting into perspective that her Mother is a sexual predator, a paedophile! Poor Frankie's world has been turned upside down. Surely Linda sees now that Katy needs to be reported to the police, will she reveal to Mick that there are other victims of hers out there? Will she and Shirley maybe bring it upon themselves to search for other victims and begin to build evidence or a case for the police to investigate?! Katy needs to get her comeuppance! As dark as this story is, I think it's one of the best I've seen in a long time. I'm really excited and intrigued to see where this story is going to go!