EastEnders stars Michelle Ryan and Jessie Wallace have opened up about what to expect during this year’s Christmas Day episode.
Kat Slater’s life changed forever a few months ago, when daughter Zoe Slater walked back into her life.
Flashback scenes confirmed that Zoe went through a lot shortly after leaving Walford in the early 2000s.
She gave birth to twins, and believes at the moment that her son has been adopted, while her daughter died shortly after being born.
Earlier this year, Zoe also met Max Branning (Jake Wood) at a bar. The two characters began a relationship, with Max also trying to help Zoe find her son.
We learnt this week that Zoe’s daughter was resuscitated in hospital and went on to get adopted. The identity of the long-lost Slater was confirmed as Jasmine Fisher (Indeyarna Donaldson-Holness).
In recent months, Zoe has convinced herself that she is being stalked. She has fallen victim to some creepy and disturbing events, but is yet to find the culprit.
As Christmas fast approaches, and reunited with her family, Zoe’s stalking ordeal shows no signs of ending, and Kat and Alfie Moon (Shane Richie) make efforts to lift her spirits, putting aside their recent animosity to celebrate the festive season together as a family.
When Zoe’s frenemy and freshly returned, Sam Mitchell (Kim Medcalf) seeks her out, Kat is quick to act as a human barrier, though upon learning that Sam is suffering with breast cancer, she softens, convinced that she’s not behind Zoe’s torment.
Later, Kat and Alfie head to the carol service alone, and Zoe finds something that rocks her to the core.
On Christmas Day, Zoe is still reeling from her discovery as the community dinner being held in the Vic goes quickly south, when the Slaters en masse clash with another Walford clan as another secret is blown.
Sharing her reaction to the scripts for the Christmas Day episode, Michelle Ryan said: ‘These are the best scripts I’ve ever read and been part of in EastEnders. The two hander we [her and Jessie] did was special and these for me are alongside that’.
Jessie added: ‘It’s one thing after another. Just when you think you’re getting over that, it’s something else! It’s chaotic. As an actor, when there’s so much going on, it’s an explosion of stuff, I’ve never known a Christmas episode like it.’
Back in Albert Square…while Kat empties the Vic in a bid to protect a vulnerable Zoe, it’s all for naught, as a further situation arises which proves to be absolutely catastrophic for the entire family in a good, old-fashioned Walford Christmas!
Michelle reflected: ‘I was going through them and I was like wow, this is amazing stuff. And the director Chris was like, oh I need to speak to you! And it’s a privilege to be part of them. They’re brilliant scripts.’
‘Zoe is still very much in a spiral’, she explained, revealing where we find Zoe soon.
‘She feels someone is out to get her. Kat is very worried. You see Zoe appearing okay, and then she struggles, and it causes tension. The family are trying to peace back together. Kat always defends Zoe’.
