EastEnders has given fans its latest cliffhanger - with a flashforward to the soap's Christmas 2023 murder-mystery.
Monday's episode ended with "six of Walford's much-loved matriarchs, Denise (Diane Parish), Kathy (Gillian Taylforth), Linda (Kellie Bright), Sharon (Letitia Dean), Stacey (Lacey Turner), and Suki (Balvinder Sopal) as they are faced with a dead body - but who is it and what has happened?"
Christmas came early this year. What. Just. Happened? 😱
— BBC EastEnders (@bbceastenders) February 20, 2023
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"The episode will act as a catalyst for major storylines involving each of the characters that will play out over the year," promised the BBC soap as fans tried to guess the identity of the male victim.
The storyline - EastEnders' first-ever flashforward - has been in the works since executive producer Chris Clenshaw took over at the beginning of 2022.
"There was clearly an appetite for a whodunnit, but I was reluctant to play a whodunnit in the traditional form, largely due to the spectacularly brilliant Who Killed Lucy? storyline (2014-15) that was not just hugely successful but also incredibly gripping throughout," Clenshaw explained.
"I therefore tasked the writing and story team that if we were to do another whodunnit it would have to be different, have to feel different, and have to have a very different mechanic at its core. A couple of our writers and story team took that brief on board and came back with the idea of flashing forward and, in doing so, we're promising a whodunnit is coming in the future.
"We developed the idea and thought it would be even more exciting if we didn't reveal who the victim is - becoming so much more than a whodunnit... it's a 'who-is-it' as well."
Teasing what's in store for the six women, Clenshaw said: "Linda's world has been thrown upside down by seeing a photo of Shirley with Dean, but she's forced to focus on who her new business partner will be or face losing her home. Both Sharon and Nish are hoping to get the keys to the castle, but her knight in shining armour may not be who you think.
"Suki's struggling in her marriage with Nish and is desperately trying to convince herself that she doesn't have feelings for Eve. As the year progresses, Suki will uncover truths, have her relationships tested, but ultimately her biggest secret could push her to the extreme.
"Kathy's planning to tie the knot with Rocky, but we know with Rocky he has a past, so just what will catch up with him?
"Not only has Stacey been dealing with the rising cost of living, but also struggling to keep her pregnant daughter out of harm's way. This year, Stacey finds herself doing something she's never done before in an effort to protect her family and unborn grandchild.
"Denise's marriage to Jack is crumbling and local-villain Ravi has had his eye on her for weeks now - but how long can she resist temptation? Expect explosive action when Jack discovers what's been going on.
"Just as quickly as Sharon and Keanu reunited, she discovered that he and Sam have history too, leaving Sharon newly single. However, as we know, Sharon's wearing a wedding dress at Christmas, so watch out for many twists, turns, and plenty of heartbreak along the way."
"I'm not going to give anything away that the episode hasn't already given, but what I will say is there were clues in there," Clenshaw added.
"Did you look closely? I urge everyone to re-watch the scene and look at every detail. There's also a few treats in the scene if you look hard enough.
"What I'd also say is that a lot can happen in Walford between February and December - circumstances can change, relationships can change, loyalties can change - so what you may suspect now could be somewhat different as we make our way through 2023 and head towards Christmas.
"All I can say is that in a flash everything changes for these six women and they'll experience something that will link them forever."
EastEnders airs on RTÉ One and BBC One Monday to Thursday.
