Iconic EastEnders character’s return ‘rumbled’ after reuniting with former co-star as fans insist ‘they’re rehearsing’
EASTENDERS viewers are convinced they’ve ‘rumbled’ the return of a beloved character.
Christian Clarke – played by John Partridge – appeared as a regular in the BBC soap between 2008 and 2012.
Viewers think he could be on his way back to Albert Square following a reunion between John and an old co-star.
Taking to Instagram, the actor shared a snap of himself with Laurie Brett, who played his on-screen sister Jane.
John captioned: “There is no skool like the #oldskool”, adding the further hashtag #clarkesassemble, a reference to their fictitious family.
Excited by the possibility of Christian returning, one fan wrote on a forum: “How we love these two to return, even for a guest appearance!”
One of Christian’s biggest storylines surrounded his romantic relationship with Syed Masood (Marc Elliott).
The popular couple were nicknamed “Chryed”, although their love story began as an affair due to Syed being engaged to Amira Shah (Preeya Kalidas).
Meanwhile, Syed and his family were devout Muslims and Syed feared his parents wouldn’t accept his homosexuality.
Eventually, everything worked out for the lovebirds – with the pair ultimately getting married.
A fan wrote on the same forum: “I really would need Syed and Christian to still be together.”
Another agreed: “Literally no point Christian returning long term without Syed.
Christian and Syed left the show together in 2012, although Christian has returned for guest stints since.
However, he was most recently seen in the soap almost a decade ago, back in 2016.
If Christian were to make a comeback, he’d be joining the likes of David Wicks (Michael French) and Chrissie Watts (Tracy-Ann Oberman) in returning to Walford.
It comes amid Jane recently making her own surprise reappearance in EastEnders.
Actress Laurie Brett returned to the role for tense scenes which saw Jane come face-to-face with Cindy Beale (Michelle Collins).
The two soon found themselves at odds due to Jane’s role in covering up the death of Cindy’s daughter Lucy (Hetti Bywater) in 2014.
However, Jane retaliated by telling Cindy how her son, Steven Beale (Aaron Sidwell) had shot her womb, rendering Jane impossible to have biological children.
Forgotten soap storylines
The nation's soaps have had many gripping storylines play out over the years. However, some plots proved to be far less memorable. Here are some forgotten stories from Weatherfield, Walford and more...
- Ken and Audrey’s romance (2015): After the death of wife Deirdre (Anne Kirkbride), Coronation Street original Ken Barlow (William Roache) started to move on in his life. He started to develop a spark with old friend Audrey (Sue Nicholls), with then-Corrie boss saying it would be like “Ross and Rachel”. In the end, nothing ever came of it and the two remained platonic pals.
- Beth’s bigamy (2016): Despite being happily married to Kirk (Andrew Whyment), a troubling secret came to light about Beth Tinker (Lisa George). It transpired that she had never divorced from her first husband, Darryl (Paul Loughran), father of her son Craig (Colson Smith). Although Craig and Kirk were shocked – and Beth was arrested – the storyline didn’t didn’t go much further.
- Kat Slater’s secret son (2017): Capitalising on the popularity of Kat (Jessie Wallace) and Alfie (Shane Richie), the two received a spin-off back in 2017. Titled ‘Redwater’, it saw the two travel to Ireland where they met long-lost son Luke, now called Dermott Dolan, played by Oisín Stack. Despite the high-tension events during Redwater, Kat seems to have put the experience behind her as Dermott’s not been mentioned since.
- Alfie’s brain tumour (2015): Having learned in 2015 that he had a brain tumour, Alfie kept the news from Kat until their trip to Ireland. At the time, actor Shane Ritchie revealed fans would see a change in Alfie as he battled the illness. It would appear that at some point after leaving the Square, was told the tumour was non-malignant. By the time Alfie returned in 2022, fans were left confused over what had happened to the storyline.
- Kathy and Buster’s affair (2016): In 2016, Walford legend Kathy Beale (Gillian Taylforth) fell into the arms of convict Buster Briggs, played by Karl Howman. Buster was the long-time lover of Shirley Carter (Linda Henry) and fathered both her sons – Mick (Danny Dyer) and Dean (Matt Di Angelo). When Buster left, he begged Kathy to join him, but she refused for the sake of her family. Meanwhile Buster didn’t even stop to say goodbye to Shirley before exiting with a broken heart. Fans expected a showdown between the two women, but this never came to pass.
- Jacob’s OCD (2016): After his dad, David (Matthew Wolfenden), was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 2016, Jacob (Joe-Warren Plant) developed Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). This manifested in the form of cleaning. Jacob’s OCD made a brief return one year on, after David had another scare after finding a lump. Jacob frantically searched the bins for a “lucky coin” that had accidentally been thrown away. Despite stressful situations – such as being groomed by his teacher Maya, losing his fiancee Leanna to a serial killer, dealing with mum Leyla’s drug addiction, and surviving a stabbing – the condition doesn’t appear to have returned.
- Marlon and Charity’s fling (2003): Few fans would likely remember few will remember the one-night stand between Charity (Emma Atkins) and Marlon (Mark Charnock) in 2003. The pair slept together when Charity was staying with Marlon while still under suspicion for husband Chris’s supposed “murder”.
- Alex Browning’s revenge plot (2014): Fans expected a confrontation when Dr Browning’s son Alex (Ojan Genc) mer stepmum Mercedes McQueen (Jennifer Metcalfe). After all, Mercedes, with Cindy Cunningham (Stephanie Waring) and Lindsey Butterfield (Sophie Austin) had murdered Alex’s dad, double-murderer Dr Paul Browning, after he kidnapped and attacked his new wife. In fact, the soap teased Alex would seek revenge for his father’s death upon arriving. However, he instead gave Cindy’s son Hilton (his half-brother) a life-saving transplant, became his godfather, and leaving the village soon after.
Fans were delighted to see Jane’s comeback, as one wrote: “I cannot describe the excitement and euphoria I felt when I heard that voice… ‘Hello Cindy, I’m Jane’.”
Another penned: “It’s happened! It’s finally happened! My name sake has returned and I am OVERJOYED!!!
“In tears currently in a train station, but that’s okay, BECAUSE JANE BEALE IS BACK.”
EastEnders airs on BBC One and is available on BBC iPlayer.
