(Monday 24th – Friday 28th February 2020)
In the fallout from the dramatic events on the boat, Whitney is held in custody, desperately trying to explain that she isn’t a murderer. The family persuade reluctant Gray to act as her solicitor but it’s only when Mick finally admits his role in the situation that he gets his act together and helps her. They spin a story that Whitney was all over the place and without realising what had happened, Mick dragged her upstairs and forced her to get ready before dragging her out of the house so they weren’t late for the party. She was in a state of shock and didn’t know what to do. Unfortunately, this backfires and the police believe that Whitney merely has the ability to make men obey her, for example, Kush pushing Leo off a balcony.

In a bid to cheer Tiffany up (and in an Eastenders bid to have Zack Morris wet and naked), Keegan buys her a wedding ring and hides it in a cupcake. Not realising what he’s done, she throws the cupcake into the outside bins (on bin day) and rejects him. Jumping out of the shower, Keegan races outside in a panic, desperately trying to get the correct bin back and of course drops his towel in front of a cheering crowd. Tiffany is won over and accepts the ‘proposal’ and happiness (and the towel) is restored.
Sharon is utterly broken over the death of Denny. She struggles to take care of her new son and is keen to palm him off on eager Gran, Karen, even letting her name him – Kayden, because she can’t think of anything herself. Ian does everything he can to support his best friend, rescuing her from nearly taking an overdose when she is so overwhelmed with grief. Even Shirley takes care of her and they’re not exactly friends. However, eagle-eyed Peter is quick to spot Ian looking shifty. I suppose he’s familiar with his Dad telling lies! He asks Bex and Dotty questions about Ian and Denny on the night of the boat crash. Then he confronts Ian about his suspicions.
Ben continues to struggle without his hearing. Jay does his best to support him, as does Lola and they take him to a hospital appointment where he is told he will need a cochlea implant to restore sound. They see an absolutely atrocious Doctor, in my humble opinion; he doesn’t even bother to speak to Ben. He hands him a few written notes but otherwise ignores him and just speaks about him to Jay and Lola. Hideous.

Ben’s mind is still on Callum and his desperation to find him even though Shirley was literally sent to the exact warehouse he is located in. I mean, they could have searched it a bit better ages ago! But finally, Ben, Jay and Stuart search the place again and Ben finally finds the poor bloke, half dead in the basement. He is rushed to hospital where Stuart explains that Ben has lost his hearing. And despite being so injured and left there for days, he is up on his feet again in no time, as if nothing has happened! When Ben breaks down over his hearing loss, lovely Callum is right there to support him.
Jean receives the news that her cancer treatment has worked! Hooray! She greets the news with mixed feelings. On the one hand, she is thrilled to be clear of cancer. On the other, she knows that Daniel has been hanging on until he knows she is well. She even tries to lie to him about her news at first but of course, he finds out very quickly. And it’s not very long until he slips away, knowing that Jean is safe and well to move on with her life. I am genuinely sad. I have loved watching Jean so happy with Daniel these past few weeks. It’s such a shame to have to say goodbye.
Eastenders is on BBC1 on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays (7:30pm/8:00pm)


