An EastEnders fan favourite has made a surprise return to Walford, as another veteran of the soap bowed out off screen.
Ricky Butcher, played by Sid Owen, turned up in advance of his sister Janine's wedding to Mick Carter. And the residents of Albert Square learned that Dot Branning had died in Ireland, where she moved to live with her grandson.
Ricky’s arrival came after viewers saw Sonia Fowler (Natalie Cassidy) ring a mystery person earlier this week after she became worried that Janine (Charlie Brooks) was becoming paranoid about Mick (Danny Dyer) and his feelings for his ex-wife Linda. In a double episode on Thursday (December 1), the person on the other end of the phone was revealed as Ricky, who surprised his sister in the kitchen at the Queen Vic.
It had been announced earlier this year that Owen would be returning to the show as part of Janine's exit story line. But fans had been given no idea when exactly the comeback would be.
Janine was stunned at her brother turning up at the pub, and the two began to catch up on their lives. There was also a reunion for Ricky with Sam Mitchell (Kim Medcalf), one of his ex-wives, who appeared pleasantly surprised to see him.
Owen, 50, played mechanic Ricky as a regular from 1988 until 2000 and then made occasional returns until 2012. As he appeared for the first time in 10 years, fans on Twitter appeared delighted by his return.
Fan page View From The Queen Vic (@ViewfromtheVic1) tweeted: "The last episode tonight was perfection. The carols in the Vic, Ricky and Sam, Patrick’s speech, the tree lighting, and Sonia’s “Good night, Dot.” Beautiful."
@sukistraken wrote "There was so much good stuff in that episode I can’t process it. Janine is Janineing. All the performances were incredible. RICKY BUTCHER IS BACK??" And @MarvelM31948178 added: "Beautiful EastEnders tonight, nice to have Ricky back and lovely Christmas scenes with the tree."
@heidos777 tweeted: "The second episode is one of the best in years. Felt like classic EE. Ricky is back. Everyone gathering in the middle of the square for a Christmas tree lighting. A beautiful tribute to Dot."
@RyanJL was one of several Twitter users to pick up on Ricky saying to Sam that he hardly recognised her, writing: "Ricky meeting Kim Medcalf's Sam was the perfect opportunity for this cheeky little line." When Ricky was last in Walford, Sam was played by a different actress.
The residents of Walford also learned that Dot had passed away during the double episode. The character, never seen without a cigarette in her hand, first appeared as Dot Cotton, mother of the evil Nick, in 1985 before departing in 2020 to live with her grandson Charlie in Ireland. June Brown, the actress who played launderette worker Dot, died in April at the age of 95.
During Thursday’s episodes, Sonia missed a number of calls before finding out Dot, who was her step-grandmother, had died. She then headed to the Queen Vic, where residents had gathered for a party to turn on the Christmas lights, to announce the death.
She told the drinkers: “I just had a phone call from Ireland. It’s Dot, she’s died. She had dinner with Charlie and her great-grandkids, had her final ciggy and went up to bed with a paracetamol. Last thing she said was ‘I’ve got one of my heads coming on’.
“She didn’t suffer, she fell asleep peacefully. Charlie found her this morning, rollers in, packet of fags and her Bible next to her.”
Sharon Watts, played by Letitia Dean, said: “Known her all my life… She always gave the best advice”, while Kathy Beale played by Gillian Taylforth said of Dot: “She had the strongest shoulders out of all of us.”
Meanwhile, Patrick Trueman, played by Rudolph Walker, made a touching speech: “Losing your friends at my age doesn’t get any easier. Not easier at all.
“But you know something, Dot is not a sentimental woman and if she was here now she would be judging each and every one of us and enjoying every second of it. What can we do to remember her? Let us give her something that she will disapprove of – to Dot,” he said, raising his glass.
The end of the episode saw Sonia pick up a photograph of Dot in her living room, where the pair had shared many emotional moments over the years. Walking towards the door in tears, Sonia looked around for a final time before saying: “Goodnight Dot.”
The EastEnders theme tune did not play at the end of the episode, instead the credits rolled to the sound of a ticking clock before ending in silence and fading to a black screen. Dot’s funeral will be shown later this winter.
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