The BBC One soap aired Zoe Slater (Michelle Ryan) returning to Walford last week and revealed multiple secrets about her – including a shocking connection to fellow soap icon Max Branning (Jake Wood)!

Speaking at an EastEnders press event on Wednesday (3rd September 2025), executive producer Ben Wadey noted: “Well, this week kicks off a really big autumn for us. There’s lots of drama ahead for lots of different families.”

 

 

One storyline that has certainly got fans talking is the ongoing storyline surrounding teen Joel Marshall (played by Max Murray), who has been radicalised into extreme misogyny and has committed multiple sex crimes.

Wedding bells are on the cards for childhood sweethearts Lauren Branning (Jacqueline Jossa) and Peter Beale (Thomas Law).

The pair have struggled with grappling with their baby son Jimmy, dealing with severe sight impairment, all while coping with other various dramas involving the Beale and Branning families.

 

 

Of course, nothing has ever been plain sailing for this couple – especially now Lauren’s wild younger brother Oscar Branning (Pierre Moullier) lives with them.

Wadey noted: “We’ve got Lauren, Peter and Oscar. There’s plenty of drama to unfold there…”

Meanwhile, actress Jacqueline Jossa commented: “You can expect wedding bells, okay, but it’s a Walford wedding, so maybe don’t fork out [for a nice hat]. It’s never gonna be plain sailing, exactly.”

So, Zoe Slater is finally back in Walford – now recovering from a gunshot wound, hiding an affair with Max Branning, potentially having killed a man, and obsessed with tracking down the baby son she abandoned as an infant – all while keeping the father a secret.

Well, only a few things to deal with!

Wadey said of the story: Of course, Zoe is now back in the square, and Zoe and Kat’s relationship is complicated. There are 20 years there for them to try and recover and get to know each other. I think Kat’s been expecting one thing when Zoe would come back, and actually meeting your adult daughter is more complicated than perhaps Kat thinks. There’s a lot for them to get to understand about each other.

“Zoe has a lot of secrets that she’s going to bring into the Square with her, so the Slaters are in for a whole ride this autumn.”

Another thing many fans have been crying out for – Hurricane Sharon is returning to Walford.

A recent trailer confirmed actress Letitia Dean is back filming as Sharon Watts, and executive producer Ben Wadey previously teased that there would be tension between Sharon and her old love rival Zoe.

Wadey noted: “And just wait until Sharon sees that Zoe is back…”

As if that wasn’t enough, Sharon has to deal with half-sister Vicki’s troubles and the romantic tension she has with ex-husband Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden).

Life is never simple for Walford’s original ‘princess’.