EastEnders is enjoying a Kathy Beale-style resurrection. Earlier this year, tabloids declared a “ratings crisis” with viewing figures dipping below 3 million as dear old ‘Enders was shunted around the schedule in favour of the women’s world cup. But now the 34-year-old soap is on the up with juicy storylines, strong character development and gutsy women at the heart of the action.
The soap has had its lean times for female characters in the past few years. The two-headed storyline machine Ronnie and Roxy Mitchell were drowned in a swimming pool in 2017, which was both a massive anticlimax and extremely short-sighted. These two could have been the Peggy Mitchells of the future, standing proud behind the Queen Vic bar well into their 80s. Original EastEnders teenager Michelle Fowler made a lukewarm return and one of the finest matriarchs of recent years, Linda Carter, disappeared when Kellie Bright went on maternity leave.
It is no coincidence that since Kate Oates (as well as executive producer Jon Sen) took over this year, EastEnders has returned to form. Oates is one of the most impressive figures in soap, having already brought credible and controversial plots to Emmerdale and Coronation Street. She wiped out EastEnders’ bin-day storylines and added high drama with a juicy affair for Sharon and Keanu, plus a gripping siege, as well as a slow-burning abuse plot involving Chantelle and Gray. Now there are plenty of hard-hitting roles that make the most of the women.
Flawed matriarchs and mistresses are always the backbone of EastEnders when it is thriving. The women who will fight for their sons, tell you to “Get outta my pub” and, when times are tough, put their lipstick on, hoik up their cleavage and get on with life.
Now, it has them by the bucketload. Mel (Tamzin Outhwaite) has played out her anguish over wayward son Hunter’s death with a mother’s love to rival that of Dot Cotton. The way she dropped to her knees outside the funeral parlour was vintage EastEnders. And her brave decision to go full feud against Phil Mitchell and the rest of the faaaamily when they cut off her cash supply, leaving her unable to fund his funeral, follows a long tradition of women who would rather hit the man who wronged them with the Queen Vic bust than break down.
Then there is Whitney, a character who will never get a happy ending but plays each tragedy so well. From confronting Callum about his affair with Ben to the moment she turned around in her frothy pink dress and jilted him at the altar, she keeps on delivering. As does the “Ballum” storyline, because it is entirely possible to root for all three people in the love triangle.
Patsy Palmer has been lured back into those iconic hoop earrings for Bianca’s return and it has certainly paid off. The scenes where she and Kat Slater woke up cackling drunk in the cells after a “cheeky night out” gave a comedy moment of true female friendship in an otherwise tense episode. “Was we in a strip club last night? Have I got your bra on?” was quickly followed by quiet reflection from Bianca, who confessed she did not want to go back to prison.
A special mention must go to Rainie Cross (Pulling/Broadchurch’s Tanya Franks). Although she often popped up as a staggering car crash of a woman, she is now established as a complicated addition to Albert Square. She can just as easily shout: “I am not justifying my parenting, nor the fact that I’m the only one who’s getting any in this house” to a crowded living room as open up to Bobby Beale about her drug dependency.
With Christmas and EastEnders’ 35th anniversary coming up, Sharon is in pole position to lead the festive misery. Wife of Phil, wild-eyed affair-merchant and surprise recipient of a late-40s pregnancy, this woman cannot be broken. Back in the 90s she did the double with Phil and Grant, hooking in 25 million viewers with the big “Sharongate” reveal. It is a number today’s shows could only dream of, but with Phil still oblivious that the bun in Sharon’s oven is not his, this year’s big episode won’t be a turkey. Phil has already uttered the words of doom: “Can’t wait for a family Christmas,” which, in EastEnders speak, means it is all going to kick off. There is no stopping the ‘Enders revival, and with tough but tainted women driving today’s storylines, fans can look forward to festivities of Den and Angie proportions.
