Inside Soap UK 35 - 2022

Welcome to the last week of summer! I’m not being pessimistic, I’m sure the sun will shine a while longer… I’m talking about the end of ‘TV summer’; those long months when the networks don’t, perhaps, put out their premium material – or storylines! Back-to-school is the official ‘new season’ on traditional telly, at which point soapland always cranks up a gear, as the Inside Soap team sighs with relief. “Do they sense change in the air?” Over on p42 you’ll find the stars of EastEnders celebrating their newly resurgent show, and rightly so. Meanwhile, on telly, there’s a sense of a Walford clear-out coming to a close, as Jada and Dana “consider their futures”. Do they sense change in the air? A whiff, maybe, of Alfie Moon’s second-best leather…

Heartbroken Jenny finds herself sharing a drunken snog with Stephen this week – little realising that he’s just after her cash! Believing that she and Leo are over for good, Jenny drowns her sorrows, and is flattered when Stephen starts flirting with her. But she could end up deeply regretting her drunken liaison when Leo returns to apologise – with an engagement ring in his hand… “Jenny and Leo really do love each other, but Jenny’s in grave danger of wrecking it all!” gasps our cobbles insider. “She thinks Leo is leaving her for a new life in Canada, and she’s absolutely devastated. Stephen’s nothing more than a drunken fumble to make her feel better about herself. But sadly, this one mistake could end up costing her everything!” “Jenny thinks…

There’s more bad news coming Stephen’s way this week, as his mum Audrey declares that she’s changed her will! With Audrey having previously decided to put all her money in a trust fund, which would be managed by Stephen until she passed away, he’s desperate to get the deal signed and sealed. So imagine his anger when he finds out that his dear old mum has had a change of heart, and in fact is leaving him nothing at all… “It’s shocking to think that Audrey has been through so much recently, yet all Stephen seems to care about is getting his grubby mitts on his inheritance!” points out our Corrie spy. “Audrey truly believes that it’s her grandkids who want her cash, and that Stephen’s the only one with…

Nicola discovers the identity of one of her attackers this week – and it turns out it’s vicar’s daughter Naomi! It’s after Naomi applies for a job at the café that she and Nicola come into contact, and Nicola’s left shaken when she recognises Naomi’s voice and trainers from the night of the brutal assault. But as it dawns on Nicola that she’s sitting face to face with one of the girls who attacked her, what will she do next? “This is the first time the two of them have seen each other, so for Nicola it’s obviously a big shock,” reveals Karene Peter, who plays Naomi. “And for Naomi, when she realises who Nicola is, it’s definitely a blast from the past, too! That night was something horrific for…

Did you know from the start that this was the twist in Naomi’s story? I didn’t, until I had a meeting with Laura [Shaw, one of the show’s producers] and she let me know that’s how I might be brought into the show. It was a very interesting and exciting thing, but also a little bit scary, because it was quite a brutal storyline. Will we find out more about Naomi? We’ll definitely understand more about her. The story with Nicola will unfold more, there’s more layers to it – not just the fallout from Nicola recognising her, but the decisions Naomi has to make off the back of being found out. It’s going to be an interesting ride! How might this affect her relationships with Charles, Ethan and Nate?…

Prepare to be shocked this week, as jealous Janine stoops to a new low to get rid of Linda. Despite doing her best to get Linda sent down, Janine can see that Mick is being drawn back to his troubled former wife. It’s becoming nightmarishly clear that Janine will lose the battle for Mick’s heart if Linda remains in his life, so she schemes to break their bond once and for all. But what does she have in store? “Janine has proved time and again that she’ll stop at nothing to get what she wants,” warns our Albert Square insider. “She thought she’d buried Linda when she framed her for the car crash, but Mick’s now saying he’ll visit her in prison if she goes down. Janine needs to come…