The Year Was… 2022

Politics became a game of musical chairs as the Tories played at Prime Minister of the Week. The cost of living crisis rose sharply and, just after celebrating the longest reign of any monarch in British history in her Platinum Jubilee, Queen Elizabeth II passed away. On television, millions watched her be laid to rest. EastEnders itself has a royal visit from Prince Charles and Duchess Camilla and shot a special pre-credit scene commemorating Her Majesty.

The rest of TV upped the game now that we were coming out of COVID-territory. Peaky Blinders aired a corker of a final season, David Tennant returned to the TARDIS and Heartstopper made grown ups cry with joy.

In Albert Square, things were never quiet. Gray Atkins had now murdered three people on the Square and had, so far, evaded attempts to bring him down. Rainie found all her dreams coming true and Ranveer pushed Suki too far. Ben suffered yet more trauma, as would the Carters, who would be obliterated by year’s end. We would even get a fan-favourite episode as we went back to discover what the Mitchell’s were up to in 1979.

Finally, towards the end of the year, Sonia received a call from Charlie Cotton with some very sad news indeed…

Terrorist Attack!
The year began with Aaron Monroe’s involvement in a far-right terrorist plot coming to a head. He was part of a group planning to bomb a mosque in Walford. The tension reached its peak when Aaron’s father, Harvey Monroe, discovered his son’s involvement and, in a tense moment, called the police on him. While the bomb failed to explode as planned, Aaron was arrested, marking the beginning of his downfall.

The fallout from Aaron’s arrest was felt across Walford. His sister, Dana Monroe, struggled to come to terms with her brother’s actions and Harvey faced backlash from the community and his own guilt for turning his son in. Aaron, meanwhile, was held in custody, awaiting trial for his involvement in the plot.

The trial was a tense affair, with Aaron’s far-right affiliations and violent actions laid bare. His defense tried to paint him as a misguided young man, but the evidence against him was overwhelming. The trial’s emotional toll was evident on his family, particularly Dana, who eventually left Walford, feeling torn between her love for her brother and her horror at his actions. The trial concluded with Aaron being found guilty of terrorism charges. He was sentenced to a lengthy prison term and faced immediately hostility from other inmates due to his far-right affiliations. Aaron’s time in prison was marked by violence and, when he was stabbed, Harvey, despite his earlier resolve, began visiting Aaron, trying to maintain some semblance of a relationship with his son.

Gray Atkins: The Truth is Out!
The year began with Gray’s secrets starting to catch up with him. Whitney Dean and Kheerat Panesar were hot on his trail, determined to expose him for the murder of Chantelle Atkins. Gray, feeling the pressure, tried to maintain his façade of innocence while becoming increasingly paranoid. And he was right to be, as Chelsea was searching for more evidence, now Mrs. Atkins and increasingly in risk of suffering the same fate as Chantelle.

When she discovered that Gray had been lying about their finances and his involvement in criminal activities, Chelsea’s growing suspicions led her to secretly contact the police, setting the stage for Gray’s downfall. Further evidence came to light when Phil, trying to solve Tommy Moon’s bullying problem, came across Tina’s body in the wreckage of the old Arghee Bhajhee restaurant. Obviously, this panicked Gray and the Carters, Shirley especially, were out for blood in their devastation as Gray had convinced them that Tina was still alive.

After a dramatic confrontation with Chelsea, where he confessed to the whole murderous spree, she revealed she had called the police. Gray attempted to flee with their son, Jordan and his own children, but was no match for Karen, now seething with anger.

Gray headed for the sanctuary of the Queen Vic. Of course, he was safer with his former mother-in-law as Shirley was waiting for him and promptly strangled him upon his approach. Mick stopped his mother, allowing Gray to gain the upper hand, but Mick gave him a chance to flee into the night.

Badly beaten, Gray tried to blend in with a crowd of people to hide from the sight of the police, but was spotted by Whitney, who chased him onto the Train Track Bridge. Whitney refused to let him take the easy way out and saved him from jumping, but when he told her how he had killed Kush, she hesitated. In the end, Mitch saved them both, and Gray was apprehended by police. Karen, releasing the darkness which her family had suffered, screamed with relief.

Ben’s Dark Year
Ben Mitchell was not in the best place. His marriage with Callum was not ideal, with minor disagreements about jobs and criminal activities causing frequent bouts. When Ben decided that getting drunk was preferable to talking, he confessed his ongoing problems to Albert bartender Lewis Butler, who took advantage of Ben in his stupor and raped him.

Ben was reluctant to mention anything to anyone, preferring to drink himself to death just like his father. He talked to mum Kathy about his ordeal, and Kathy tried to help him without revealing the truth to Phil. But Ben couldn’t be helped: Phil reacted with his fists first and Sam’s return to the Square didn’t add any relief, especially when she asked Ben to peddle drugs in the club, now in Mitchell hands and rechristened ‘Peggy’s’.

Ben ended up suffering a heart attack, scaring Phil into emotion and Sam, determined to prove herself to her brother, had Lewis bundled into the boot of car when he was let out of custody due to lack of evidence. Ben had the opportunity to get his revenge, but was much more willing to allow justice take it’s course.

By the end of the year however, the Mitchells were left with more trauma, as Lola was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour, which meant a new battle was about be fought…

Phil Mitchell: Moving Forward & Looking Back
Of all the couples to ever grace Albert Square, this was the one absolutely no one saw coming, not even the pair involved! But over the course of the year, Phil Mitchell and Kat Slater, the least-likeliest pair ever, surprised the world by not only getting together, but staying together and preparing to marry!

It started as a fling, but progressed to something more serious when Phil was arrested for his criminal activities. During Lockdown he had discovered Vincent Hubbard’s death at the hands of Aidan Maguire, and the Fox sisters took him to town, reporting him to the police and he was promptly looking at a lengthy stretch inside. Old nemesis DCI Sam Keeble, now back on the force, took great delight in winding Phil up while he was in custody, letting him face the riff raff inside by himself. (Why? See below – she had her reasons…) Kat was so impressed by this, she proposed, proving she had taken leave of her senses, and she promised to wait. All she had to do was run the businesses and keep Sam out of trouble while working with Sharon to run the Mitchell Empire. Easy right?

Phil, on the outs and on the wrong end of 50 for a prison stretch, agreed to become a police informant in order to secure release. It looked like he may have snuffed it in prison, but fellow prisoner Ravi had his back. With Phil released, Kat and Phil could go ahead with their big day, if not for two things: Sharon and Alfie Moon.

Alfie had returned to win Kat back. He dragged her on a side quest of the day of the wedding, leaving Phil in Sharon’s ‘ready to receive’ hands. But the pair managed to fight their would-be suitors and ended up rebooking. Of course, by Christmas it was on the rocks again, what with Phil not being honest with her about being an informant and Alfie receiving a cancer diagnosis that kept Kat distracted. By the end of the year, it looked like this relationship was heading down…

The Panesars Strike Back!
The Panesars were at the centre of dramatic story after dramatic story as they became firmly embedded in Albert Square this year. First to matters of the heart, as Kheerat fell hard for Stacey Slater, who helped him grieve Jag’s death. Suki kissed Honey, but once it was clear she had read the situation wrong, back tracked and denied it even happened, blackmailing Honey and causing her to lose her job (and their friendship) in the process. Ash was having better luck, working hard in her quest to become a doctor. But when she was offered a job abroad, Suki sabotaged it. She had lost one child. She would not lose another.

She opened a new medical centre on the Square, run by family friend Dr. Nina Gupta and her controlling older husband Ranveer Gulati, a sleezeball whose wandering hands had already headed Suki’s way. She was distracted however, by a growing interest in Stacey’s ‘wife’ Eve Unwin.

Eve was a former lawyer who had found herself Stacey’s cellmate in prison. She had struggled inside and the pair had helped each other through, even getting married in a prison service. The girls had moved into together upon release and become firm friends and Eve had eyes on Suki and was determined to get her girl. Clandestine meetings became passionate clinches and it was on!

However, Ranveer was still clingy and when he finally went too far, Suki said no and hit her attempted rapist out. She had aid in the form of Ravi, Phil’s former prison mate and Ranveer’s errant son, who had come to the Square to claim his son Davinder and reunite with his father. While Suki got rid of evidence, Ranveer awoke. There had never been love lost between Ranveer and his son (Ravi was actually sleeping with his step mother and was aware he was not even Ranveer’s son to begin with!) and Ravi silenced him for good, dumping the body in a holdall and throwing his ‘father’ away like bad rubbish. He also let Suki believe she had killed Ranveer, which of course left her completely shaken. Unfortunately for all involved, Suki had deliberately tried to entrap Ranveer and set CCTV up in the flat, which had captured everything.

When Ranveer’s body was found, the police swarmed Walford. Eve helped Suki keep her mouth shut. The affair continued, but was seriously curtailed when her ex-husband Nish Panesar arrived. He had been an abusive and jealous man, but he had been serving time in prison for manslaughter – he had killed a former neighbour thinking Suki and him had been seeing each other and burned the place to the ground – not realising, of course, that it was actually the man’s wife Suki was interested in.

He manipulated his way into the family, which now added Ravi, who turned out to be Nish’s son and part-Panesar. This did not engender him to anyone, including Kheerat who was already fuming with the family after learning about Suki letting Jags go to prison. He moved in with Stacey and Suki left for Mumbai, leaving Eve heartbroken. For now. The police closed in on the family with alarming speed and rather then let his mother suffer anymore, Kheerat took the fall and ended up in prison for murder.

Farewell to Dot
Sonia received a phone call from Charlie Cotton in December that changed everything forever. Dot had suddenly passed away and, according to her wishes, her funeral had already been arranged, a place ready for her next to best friend Ethel Skinner.

The whole Square stopped for the service, while old faces returned: Lauren Branning popped home to see her grandmother off and promised to return when she left for France. Disa O’Brien, Colin Russell and Mary Smith all turned up to pay their respects, with Lofty turning up slightly late. Ian, on the phone to a mysterious someone, watched from a distance. The service was lovely with many a tale of Dot told. In the end, Colin raised his glass and went home, picked up by partner Barry Clark, and Sonia greeted newcomer Reiss Colwell to the Square.

He was Dot’s nephew or something from the other side of the family, and had never even met Dot, but felt a connection. He came in with his strict morals and his endless facts and theories and Sonia fell in love with him when he saved her home from being lost. He seemed too nice to be true, but that would have to wait… Dotty, elsewhere, threw an epic tantrum when the house didn’t come straight to her and left, cursing the inhabitants and ruing the day she ever stepped onto the Square. Only Vinny Panesar was sorry to see her go.

The End of the Carters!
So, Mick Carter, fresh from his split with Linda, who was battling her demons with the bottle, found solace in the arms of Janine Butcher. Little did he know, Janine was the puppet master behind his marital woes. She schemed and meddled, making sure Linda’s alcoholism was front and centre, pushing Mick further away from his beloved L.

Janine, ever the schemer, didn’t stop there. She orchestrated a car accident, framing Linda for drink-driving. Poor Linda, already struggling, now had to deal with the fallout of nearly killing her baby girl, Annie. Janine’s plan was working perfectly, and she had Mick right where she wanted him.

Janine watched with glee as first Linda and Jada Lennox fell for her every trap and looked liked fools for accusing her of planting bottles on Linda in Sharon’s house, leading social services to take Annie for a while! Fast forward a few months, and Mick, blissfully unaware of Janine’s machinations, proposed to her. Yes, you read that right. Mick Carter, the man who once had eyes only for Linda, was now set to marry Janine Butcher. The wedding was a spectacle, full of the usual flair. But, as always, drama was lurking around the corner. Two days later in fact.

As the year drew to a close, on Christmas Day, the tension between Janine and Linda reached boiling point. Janine, pregnant with Mick’s child, was determined to get rid of Linda once and for all. But Linda, ever the fighter, wasn’t going down without a fight, having discovered the truth about the car accident. The showdown was inevitable, and it all came to a head in the most tragic way possible.

Linda and Janine were arguing: Janine was driving, which was a sure-fire way to know this wouldn’t end well. They careened off a cliff, falling into the water below. Mick, following, dived straight in after his L, but managed to find Janine first. While Linda searched the beach and Janine came ashore, Mick had gone back under for Linda and had not resurfaced.

Janine was arrested and driven away pregnant and alone, Linda was left heartbroken and Shirley, unable to cope with the brutal losses of both her sister Tina and son Mick, left the Square, maybe forever. Mick’s body was never recovered.

The Other Stuff
Keegan has anger issues after learning the truth about Gray. He reconciles with Tiffany and joins her in Germany… Stuart suffers from breast cancer, but receives treatment, marries Rainie and they leave the Square – in a stolen hearse! Mitch’s brother Avery arrives with his sons, Felix and Finlay. He dies shortly afterwards of terminal cancer. Kathy gets together with Rocky Cotton. Peter disappears with Kathy’s savings, leaving the Beale family (now just Kathy and Bobby) in dire straits! Freddie Slater returns, believing Billy to be his dad… Jay proposes to Lola!

On the 5th of September 2022, EastEnders gave fans a flashback episode that we didn’t know we needed! We dove headfirst into the origins of DCI Samantha Keeble’s grudge against the Mitchell family. Set against the Winter of Discontent in January 1979, it was a wild ride of emotions and revelations, mixing nostalgia with drama like a perfect cocktail.

The episode kicked off with a tense present-day scene where Keeble cornered Phil Mitchell, demanding he snitch on his cousin Billy. Phil, being the stubborn Mitchell he is, refused, setting us up for a time-travel adventure. We were whisked away to gritty 1979 London, where the Mitchell family was scraping by. Eric Mitchell, the big boss, was a real piece of work, and his relationship with his wife Peggy was as smooth as a gravel road. Peggy, played brilliantly by Jaime Winstone, was holding the fort while dealing with Eric’s temper tantrums.

Eric wasn’t thrilled about Phil’s new gig as a garage mechanic or Grant’s dreams of joining the British Armed Forces. So, naturally, he dragged his sons into a dodgy “work experience” – an armed robbery at a warehouse. This heist, featuring Eric’s cousin Stephen and his sons Charlie and Billy, went south faster than you can say “bad idea.” They got busted by a security guard, and a shot rang out, leaving the guard dead.

Meanwhile, back at the Mitchell household, Peggy got a visit from Eric’s brother Archie and his clan. The interactions between Peggy and Glenda, Archie’s wife, were as frosty as a winter morning, ending in a blazing row. The episode also hinted at some sparks between Peggy and Archie, adding another layer of drama to the Mitchell family saga, with a cheeky wink to the audience.

The flashback scenes were sprinkled with moments that highlighted the tough times, like the economic chaos and social unrest. These elements added depth to the story, making viewers feel for the characters’ struggles.

As the episode unfolded, it became crystal clear why Keeble had it in for the Mitchells. The guard who was killed? Her dad. Eric’s actions and the fallout painted a vivid picture of a turbulent past that left deep scars. The episode expertly tied these past events to the present-day storyline, making it a must-watch for fans, who were left eagerly awaiting the next twist in the Mitchell saga.