If you’re anything like us, you’re already missing undisputed EastEnders legend, Stacey Slater. Actress Lacey Turner, over her 21 years on the Square, has been nothing short of phenomenal, winning numerous accolades alongside the hearts of the nation.

Said hearts broke (if not, were seriously bruised) when it was announced by ‘Enders bosses that Lacey would be embarking on an indefinite hiatus and would be bowing out of the show.

 

 

Fans worried about never seeing our Stace’ again needn’t fear, however, as a behind-the-scenes video featuring Lacey Turner comes complete with a promise that she ‘won’t be long’.

Arriving back in the halcyon days of 2004 with her enormous hoop earrings and chunky French manicure, Stacey was initially presented as a gobby, malicious little mare, though we soon learned her spikey demeanour was as a result of caring for her mum, Jean Slater (Gillian Wright).

 

 

Jean’s bipolar disorder resulted in erratic behaviour and number of suicide attempts, and upon finding her mum living in squalor and deeply unwell, Stacey admitting Jean. into a mental health facility.

An unlikely romance developed between shy, sweet Bradley Branning (Charlie Clements) and brash Stace’, and the two quickly fell in love, before she caught the eye of Bradley’s dad, Max (Jake Wood).

 

 

Their affair became one of the biggest ever ‘Enders storylines ever and its subsequent Christmas day reveal was the most watched television episode of 2007.

One of Stacey’s most heralded storylines involved her being diagnosed with bipolar disorder, like her mother, with the plot being praised for its sensitive handling in a time when mental health conditions were sorely misunderstood and stigmatised.

Stacey was later revealed as the culprit behind Archie Mitchell’s (Larry Lamb) murder, after a prolonged ‘whodunnit?’ storyline, leading to a bitter feud with the arch-bitch of Walford, Janine Butcher (Charlie Brooks) and a temporary departure.

 

 

Stacey later found true love in Martin Fowler (James Bye) and experienced another mental-health setback when she struggled with post-partum psychosis.

A feud with former best friend Ruby Allen (Louisa Lytton) later developed as the two women fought over Martin, leading to a prison stint for Stacey, which in turn lead to a marriage-of-convenience with her cellmate, Eve Unwin (Heather Peace).

Stacey later dealt with stalking as a result of her adult-content creation, which she turned to following the families financial troubles, her daughter Lily (Lillia Turner) pre-teen pregnancy, being a sixth of the now-infamous ‘six’ involved in the murder of Keanu Taylor (Danny Walters), an affair with Jack Branning (Scott Maslen) and, finally, the traumatic death of her true love, Martin.