EastEnders aired big news for Dot Cotton in 1993 when she learned she had a secret grandson.
She didn't know what to believe though, when she learned her son Nick Cotton, AKA Nasty Nick, had a child she didn't know about.
Ashley made his debut in 1993 when Dot realised he really was her flesh and blood - and that it wasn't part of a scam.
Nick had conned his mother before trying to get his hands on her money, and this is something he continued to do until his death in 2015.
But what happened to Ashley and what is his link to the latest Cotton in Walford, Dotty?
Who is Ashley Cotton?
Ashley was the son of Nick Cotton and his ex Zoe - making him the grandson of Dot Cotton.
Dot first learned of his existence when Zoe headed to Walford and informed her she had a secret grandchild.
She ended up living with him for a while, and Nick, before returning to the Square.
Ashley didn't head to Walford until he was a teenager in 2000, played by actor Frankie Fitzgerald.
What happened to Ashley?
Ashley was tragically killed in a motorbike accident.
He'd stolen the bike which belonged to father Nick's enemy Mark Fowler.
No one but Nick knew that he'd tampered with the bike's brakes to kill Mark, only to kill his son instead.
Ashley swerved to hit a pedestrian and crashed into the launderette, killing him instantly.
How is he linked to Dotty Cotton?
Ashley is the half-brother of Nick's daughter Dotty Cotton, who headed to Walford with her grandmother last year.
Dotty, real name Kirsty, had been in the Square previously as a child, between 2008 and 2010.
She returned in 2019, having been living in Wales, and moved in with Dot back on the Square.
Dotty and Ashley also have another brother, Charlie Cotton.
EastEnders airs Mondays at 8pm and Tuesdays at 7:30pm on BBC One.
