EastEnders will return to BBC One after days of suspended programming in the wake of the Queen’s death. The broadcaster will continue to air rolling news coverage on Monday with a BBC News special filling regular TV slots alongside HM The King: Westminster Tributes and Scotland: A Service For HM The Queen.
However, fan-favourite soap EastEnders will return to BBC One at 8.30pm, having been moved from its usual channel on Friday alongside Homes Under The Hammer and Bargain Hunt which aired on BBC Two. The highly-anticipated episode will see Alfie Moon, played by Shane Richie, return to Walford on the wedding day of Kat Slater and Phil Mitchell, played by Jessie Wallace and Steve McFadden.
The soap famously has royal links. In 2001, the Queen visited soap queen Dame Barbara Windsor, who played Peggy Mitchell, on the EastEnders set as well as June Brown. The monarch stepped behind the bar at the Queen Vic, strolled around Albert Square and through the EastEnders street market, meeting stars of the show.
Similarly, this year, in honour of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, Charles and Camilla made a surprise appearance on the soap. The royal couple filmed the scenes in March when they visited the new Elstree set and met the cast and crew of the long-running BBC soap opera.
On Monday, Antiques Roadshow, Flog It! and Glorious Gardens From Above will air on BBC Two to make room for Queen-related content. HM The King: Westminster Tributes on BBC One will offer an hour of live coverage of King Charles’ visit to the Palace of Westminster while Scotland: A Service For HM The Queen covers Charles’ visit to Scotland, where he attends a service for the Queen.
The channel will also show Scotland: The Vigil offering coverage from St Giles’ Cathedral where the Queen’s children stand vigil in tribute and a special edition of The One Show titled Our Queen Remembered.
