EastEnders, one of the nation’s favourite soaps, celebrated its 40th birthday in style last week.
Old faces and favourites returned – including Grant Mitchell (Ross Kemp) and Angie Watts (Anita Dobson).
The anniversary also included an hour long episode and a live episode with a public vote incorporated into it. Sadly, the live also said goodbye to James Bye after his character Martin Fowler tragically died in The Queen Vic whilst trying to save his true love, Stacey Slater.
Well done to all the EastEnders production team, the directors, writers and all the cast for their hard work leading up to the ruby anniversary, and a special shout out to my cousin, Kyri Zindilis, the soap’s Story Producer, who I’m extremely proud of for following his dreams.
I’d like to share what he posted on his socials as a reminder that anything is possible if you really want it…
“In 2000, a 10-year-old me walked into the living room whilst my mum had EastEnders on. In The Queen Vic, Peggy had just discovered Pat and Frank’s affair and slapped them both across the face, and I was instantly hooked. I’d never seen anything like it. From that day, I fell in love with the show, the characters, the world of Walford; and I knew I wanted to be a storyteller. I created my own plots for Albert Square in note pads that my mum used to bring home from work, and the dream was to someday “write stories on EastEnders”. As a child, it seemed truly impossible, so being the Story Producer for the show’s 40th Anniversary, and the years preceding, is quite literally a dream come true. Joining the show when I did in 2016 couldn’t have come at a better time; a time where I felt quite lost and confused in myself. But I found my place, and made the most amazing friends for life along the way. I love our wonderful show, our entire team (especially my Story Department), and most importantly our audience, who we’d be nothing without. Happy 40th Birthday.”
UK Cypriot reflects on EastEnders career as soap celebrates its 40th anniversary
