Inside Soap UK 19 - 2018

“A Liz McDonald spillage on aisle six” There’s so much packed into our issues these days, I often wonder how we squeeze it all in without the magazine bursting wide open in the shop – showering the floor with pictures of Mick Carter, while shock soap secrets and silly captions all roll under the tinned soup display and the tannoy rings out: “Could we have a cleaner to a Liz McDonald spillage on aisle six, please?”. Take this week for example – there’s huge news from EastEnders and the Dales, some great fun chats with James Bye – aka Walford’s Martin Fowler – and Tristan Gemmill (Corrie’s Robert) on their characters’ latest troubles, and then we have all the big plots. There are betrayals, disasters, proposals, revelations, plus a 30-foot-high…

Hayley Slater returns to Albert Square this week, and the locals are less than pleased to see her – as she causes a scandal at every turn! Fearing her cousin is intending to get her claws into Martin again, seething Stacey is the first to have her feathers ruffled by Hayley’s reappearance. But it soon transpires that Hayley has bigger fish to fry, when she ends up spending the night in Mick’s bed – and the pair are awoken by a furious tirade from his wife Linda! As Linda wastes no time in hurling Hayley out on her ear, will the shameless menace have the nerve to stick around? “The front of this woman – just what the hell does she think she’s playing at?” splutters our EastEnders spy. “Nobody…

Mick couldn’t be more chuffed to be reunited with his old mucker Stuart this week, but he’s unaware that his mate is trying to cause trouble for him. Is Stu just having a laugh, or are his intentions more sinister? So far, all we know about Stuart – played by Ricky Champ – is that he and Mick were born and raised together in the East End. His appearance in Walford ties in with Halfway’s return from military duty, and the trio waste no time in catching up. However, Stuart looks set to scupper their happy reunion with his questionable behaviour… Why he wants to be messing with Mick and Linda’s marriage is anyone’s guess. But after Halfway drunkenly confesses to his sibling that he’s been lying to Mick, Stuart…

“Johnny doesn’t know how to live with what’s happened – only Liz can get through to him” Distraught Johnny struggles to cope in the aftermath of Aidan’s suicide, leaving those who love him desperately worried. Unable to make sense of why his beloved son would take his own life, Johnny insists the family goes to Aidan’s flat to search for clues as to his motives. But when they get inside, Johnny is overwhelmed by the horror of the situation and has a panic attack. His wife Jenny tries to support him, but she can’t connect with her heartbroken husband – who instead turns to close friend Liz… “Johnny’s world has been torn apart, and he’s in a very dark place,” says our Corrie insider. “His pain is too much to…

Stunned Michelle finds Aidan’s will this week – and it could change everything! Shocked, she confides in Robert, who can’t believe the contents of the papers. It’s a painful moment when she eventually shows Carla, Kate and Jenny what Aidan planned. Of course, Aidan was the sole owner of Underworld since Carla signed over her share to him as a ‘thank you’. Reason suggests it should pass to family, but did Aidan choose another option? Might he have made a change to his will after realising little Susie was his daughter? And how will the Connors react to the news if he did?…

THE LETTER “There was an episode some time ago where, after discovering that Carla needed a kidney, Aidan went to Johnny’s house and intercepted a note he had sent,” says Kate. “Basically, Aidan was planning on doing it that night, but decided not to, as he felt he had to hang on for Carla’s sake. There was that letter, and we’ll see that again…” THE BREAKDOWN “After the kidney transplant, Aidan sent Kate and Johnny home from the hosptial, and then he broke down,” says Shane. “That was the first time you saw him really cry. People wondered what was wrong, and thought that perhaps something had gone wrong with the operation…” THE UNPACKED BOXES “In Aidan’s flat, we have the unpacked boxes,” says Kate. “Kate saw them and said…