Johnny Allen

Name: Johnny Allen
First Appeared: 4th January 2004
Last Appeared: 20th October 2006
Played by: Billy Murray

Johnny Allen, the notorious Walford crime boss, was a character who brought drama and tension to Albert Square like no other. Born in 1943, Johnny started life in a deprived family and was famously recalled by Dot Branning as the “ugliest baby” she’d ever seen. Growing up, Johnny mingled with the likes of the Beale family and the Watts, causing plenty of trouble along the way, resulting in many a good hiding from his dad. But the mischievous young Johnny had bigger plans than just getting into scrapes.

Johnny began his career as a boxer, but it wasn’t long before he found his true calling in the criminal underworld. By the late 1950s, he was already a rising star among gangsters, employing local prostitute Pat Harris and orchestrating backstreet abortions. His first kill came around 1965, sealing his reputation. Moving to Essex in the early 1970s to expand his criminal empire, Johnny became a feared figure in the East End. Despite his ruthless nature, tragedy struck when his wife Stephanie and daughter Scarlett were killed in an arson attack by a rival, deepening his dark persona.

In 2005, Johnny made a dramatic return to Walford, backing up Jake and Danny Moon against crime boss Andy Hunter. He swiftly bought Angie’s Den (renaming it Scarlet) and moved into Albert Square with his daughter Ruby. Johnny’s rivalry with Andy peaked when he threw Andy off a motorway bridge, a death everyone believed to be suicide. His reign continued with more conflicts, including a dramatic showdown with Jake and Danny, resulting in Johnny holding them at gunpoint in the woods. A last-minute change of heart saw Johnny letting the brothers go, but ordering them never to return.

Johnny’s personal life was just as chaotic. He cheated on his long-time mistress Tina with barmaid Amy, leading to Tina’s departure. His feud with the Mitchells intensified when Chrissie Watts’s murder confession was caught on CCTV, leading to a showdown with Phil and Grant. Despite an armed standoff, the Mitchells left with the tape. The feud deepened with Phil’s scheme to use Juley Smith against Johnny, sparking further conflict. But the climax of Johnny’s storyline was his chilling threat to Sharon Rickman that Dennis would die if they didn’t leave by New Year’s Eve. Phil, of course, ignored Sharon’s pleas and told Dennis, leading to a brutal beating of Johnny and ultimately Dennis’s tragic death orchestrated by a vengeful Johnny.

Johnny’s final moments were fittingly dramatic. Recovering from Dennis’s beating, he was haunted by guilt and determined to make the Mitchells pay. A scheme involving Phil and Grant backfired, resulting in Johnny ordering the Mitchell brothers’ deaths. However, a twist of fate saw Johnny’s own demise after being outmanoeuvred by his enemies and suffering a heart attack in prison.