"EastEnders Live" is an upcoming live episode of the British televisionsoap operaEastEnders, which will broadcast on BBC One in February 2025. The live episode is to celebrate the programme's 40th anniversary on the BBC. This will be the fourth occasion where EastEnders was broadcast live; the first live episode was broadcast in 2010, a second episode broadcast in 2012 containing live inserts and a live week in 2015. It will be produced by Chris Clenshaw and a director and writer is yet to be confirmed. In a first for the programme, it will contain interactivity with viewers, who will vote to decide the outcome of a storyline. The anniversary celebrations will be Clenshaw's last episodes as executive producer.
Production
Origins
"The 40th anniversary is a milestone event for EastEnders, and we have been planning this week for a long time to ensure that it's a week full of drama and surprises."[1]
Clenshaw teasing the 40th anniversary special.
In an interview with Digital Spy in October 2023, EastEnders'executive producerChris Clenshaw confirmed that production for a 40th anniversary celebration for the soap was underway.[2] On 9 September 2024, the BBC announced that the show would broadcast a live episode to celebrate the occasion.[3] The episode would be part of a "special week" of episodes to celebrate the milestone.[4] The fourth occasion of a live broadcast for the soap, and the eighth individual episode to be broadcast live,[4] the episode marked the serial's first one in ten years; with the last incident being a special live week in 2015 for the "Who Killed Lucy Beale?" storyline.[5] The air date was set for February 2025, with the episode to be filmed and broadcast from the BBC Elstree Centre.[3] The upcoming episode was also set to be the first interactive episode in the show's history, as viewers would be able to vote on the outcome of a storyline.[3] Though the storyline itself was not named, it was reported that viewers would be deciding the conclusion of one of the soap's romance plots.[3] The cast and crew were reportedly ready to depict whichever final scenario was selected.[1] Clenshaw said that the 40th anniversary would be a "milestone event" for the soap.[3] To ensure that the episode was "full of drama and surprises", Clenshaw disclosed that the episode had been planned for weeks prior to the announcement.[3] Clenshaw kept details of the episode's plot a tight secret, but promised viewers "an unmissable week full of shocking twists that will change Albert Square, and the lives of those who live in it, forever".[3] He added that the interactive element was incorporated as a reward for viewers.[3] It was later confirmed that the anniversary celebrations would be Clenshaw's final episodes as executive producer.[6]
Cast
Upon the episode's announcement, Clenshaw noted that the show had begun bringing characters back for stints and promised more to build up to the week of the anniversary.[3] Shortly before, it was reported that actress Louisa Lytton would be returning to her role as Ruby Allen after three years absence,[7] with it being rumored that she would be an important character in the anniversary celebration.[8] In December 2024, it was announced that the anniversary would feature a return of Paul Bradley as Nigel Bates after over twenty-six years.[9][10] The trend of returning characters lead to speculations of a popular character's return to the soap during the anniversary week, with characters Grant Mitchell and Mick Carter being the most commonly tipped to return.[4]
On 1 January 2025, it was confirmed that Kemp would be reprising the role for a short stint for the anniversary.[11] Kemp was "delighted" to be returning to soap, saying, "EastEnders has always meant so much to me, so to return as the show is about to celebrate such a special anniversary, is an absolute honour. Grant has never been far from the action and let’s just say, this time is no different as he certainly comes back with a bang".[12] Executive producer Chris Clenshaw was also "absolutely thrilled" to be welcoming Kemp to portray the "legendary" Grant, and teased that whilst he would not reveal what would bring Grant back, he confirmed that the return would "make up many moments of truly unmissable TV" and be a "significant part" of the soap's 40th anniversary.[13]
The cast were kept in the dark about the plot details.[14] At the 29th National Television Awards, cast members Diane Parish and Scott Maslen were asked about the upcoming episode. As both had starred in previous live episodes for the soap, Parish admitted she was "a bit terrified" to do another one while Maslen, having incorrectly delivered a line in the 25th anniversary live episode, expressed stress.[15]Jacqueline Jossa expressed excitement to film another live episode, opining: "there are many things that EastEnders does well and a live episode is definitely one of them".[16]Adam Woodyatt recalled that after the cast read the scripts for the first time, the collective feeling was a bewildered "what the fuck?" as cast members were unsure how the live element would be filmed.[17]
Promotion
It was confirmed that former EastEnders star Ross Kemp would host a special one-off documentary for the celebration, including interviews with both former and current stars.[18]
