Charli XCX has praised BBC soap EastEnders after two of the show’s characters named their child after her in a recent episode.
Fans of the long-running soap watched as Lily Slater (Lillia Turner) welcomed her first child with Ricky Mitchell (Frankie Day) during Monday’s episode (September 4).
Following the birth, Ricky arrived to the hospital along with his dad Jack Branning (Scott Maslen) and his partner Denise Fox (Diane Parish), who asked if Lily had come up with a name yet.
Lily’s mum Stacey Slater (Lacey Turner) explained: “She has, but she ain’t said. She was waiting for Ricky to get here.”
shout out my gays in the writers room! https://t.co/ghOer7fI9K
— Charli (@charli_xcx) September 5, 2023
As Stacey handed him the baby, she questioned what the new arrival’s name was, to which Ricky replied, “Her name’s Charli” and Stacey responded: “Oh, after Uncle Charlie?”
Ricky then hilariously clarified: “No, after Charli XCX.”
“Oh,” Stacey said stunned while Ricky’s father Jack Branning asked: “Who?”
“Oh, get with it Jack. It’s a singer, innit?” Jack’s partner Denise said.
After the episode aired, the scene went viral on social media after it was first shared by popular British Instagram account @loveofhuns.
Alongside the video, they wrote: “Not Stacey Slater’s granddaughter being named after Charli XCX” followed by the skull emoji.
In response, the British artist, who has a large following among the LGBT+ community, took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to celebrate the scene.
Resharing the video, the Speed Drive hitmaker wrote: “Shout out my gays in the writers room!”
Lily naming her baby Charli after @charli_xcx is iconic ✨ #EastEnders
— Kimberley ᱬ ◊ 💚🤍💜 (@GlitterAndGold7) September 5, 2023
Since the episode aired, fans of the songstress have taken to social media to brand the soap-pop music crossover as “iconic”.
One fan tweeted: “This is the most British crossover ever.”
“Lily naming her baby Charli after @charli_xcx is iconic ” another penned online, while a third joked: “We got the statement I have been waiting for all day!”
A fourth added: “Charli acknowledging this is so goddamn iconic”.
“This is literally the funniest thing ever,” a fan remarked. “I cannot believe we live in a world where Charli XCX has an #EastEnders character named after her.”
Lily and Ricky’s pregnancy storyline has been controversial among EastEnders fans, as they were both just 12 when the baby was conceived.
While his parents convinced Lily to get an abortion, Stacey said she should keep the baby and decided to go through with the pregnancy.
