Cindy Beale has been revealed as Rose Knight on EastEnders in a shock twist – but there's so much more we need to know.
In huge scenes this evening, it was confirmed by soap bosses that Rose Knight is in fact Cindy Beale, as Michelle Collins made her much-anticipated return to the BBC soap after a quarter of a century off our screens.
We now know she is very much alive but there is so much more to find out about what happened to her in the 20-odd years we presumed she was dead. As Michelle makes her return as Cindy, we look back at what happened to lead up to this moment and what's coming up in the future for Cindy Beale and her new 'family', the Knights.
When did we last see Cindy?
Cindy arrived in Albert Square in 1988, where she started by working on her mum's market stall helping to sell a few hats. A few romances later, she ended up marrying Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt).
However the pair have a huge chequered history, with Cindy organising for someone to kill Ian. She got arrested for attempted murder, when they managed to persuade the police about her involvement in what happened.
Pregnant with Nick's baby, she made her last appearance on the BBC soap in person in April 1998. On the 5th November in 1998, Ian is given the news that Cindy has died in childbirth but her daughter survived, with Cindy's sister Gina getting custody of the little one.
What happened to Cindy?
As far as we all knew, Cindy had passed away in childbirth as she welcomed her daughter into the world.
However, we now know that was a complete lie – and she is actually alive and well. Tonight, we found out that Cindy has been living under a new name, Rose, which she had when she had met George.
She was put into witness protection to ensure her safety after something happened in prison and during that time, she met George, fell in love and was married to him for 15 long years. She 'disappeared' from his life nine years ago, before since reconnecting with her ex-husband Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt) and the pair living a happy life in France together.
What's Cindy doing now?
As the big reveal aired last night, Cindy was seen living a wonderful lifestyle in the French countryside, sipping a glass of wine by the pool, but there is much more to be found out about what she's doing, why she's there and who else is involved too!
She was obviously married to George Knight, and had two kids with him, in the 20 years since she 'died'. Her back story was revealed in a huge episode this evening, which confirmed she had been put into witness protection under the name 'Rose' for her own safety.
How does Ian Beale fit into the Cindy storyline?
Soap bosses have confirmed Ian is back too – and that the pair have reunited despite Cindy going to prison for trying to kill Ian.
"What will become much clearer is how they got back together, just over a year ago, and how she really relied on Ian. At the end of the day, he’s hopelessly in love, isn’t he?," executive producer Chris Clenshaw shared before the big reveal tonight.
"Yes, she tried to kill him but he’s had six marriages and I think love is blind when it comes to Ian."
