EASTENDERS cast and crew came together last night for a huge part to celebrate the show’s 35th anniversary.
The soap commemorated the occasion on-screen this week with a dramatic week of episodes culminating in a boat disaster and the death of legacy character Dennis Mitchell.
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Soap bosses put on the bash in Hackney so the hard-working cast and crew could cut loose and relax after a long few months.
Stars of the show Kellie Bright, Max Bowden and Jasmine Armfield were seen leaving the bash last night.
Maisie Smith, Milly Zero and Zack Morris were also pictured as they headed home after a night on the tiles.
Actor Bleu Landau was seen leaving early and posed for photographs with fans who had camped outside hoping to meet their idols.
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He had played Dennis for five years until the teen tearaway drowned in Friday night’s episode after being locked in a room below deck before the boat crash.
The party came just a day after legendary EastEnders actress June Brown announced she had already quit the show – and fans had seen the last of her character Dot Branning.
The 93-year-old soap legend revealed she’d left her role on the Square after 35 years, but sources tell The Sun Online that bosses are keen to have her back onscreen this year.
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“June is an extremely popular cast member, so of course the show wants her to return. As soon as they have a big storyline for her, they’ll be on the phone begging her to come back,” said the source.
“BBC bosses know she’s a legend and viewers will want her back on screen as soon as possible.”
June was last seen on the soap last month when Dot left step-granddaughter Sonia a voicemail saying she was going to Ireland.
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Another soap insider insists Dot will remain off screen “for another few months”, adding that bosses hadn’t spoken to her this week and that “the storylines for the next few months have already been planned out, so we won’t see Dot back in the Square for a while”.
The source added: “When the right story comes up, they’ll pitch it to June and if she wants to do it, then she’ll be back.”
Speaking on a podcast, in what insiders say was a shock to show bosses, June said: “I don’t want a retainer for EastEnders, I’ve left. I’ve left for good.
“I’ve sent her off to Ireland where she’ll stay. I’ve left EastEnders. I did make up a limerick. It’s a bit dirty.
“I went back to do a good story. Alas and alack, when I got back it had gone up in smoke.
“I got a small part, a very small part. And that ended up as a big wet fart. Alas and alack, I will never go back.”
The veteran actress has been a regular in Albert Square since just after the BBC1 soap began in 1985, apart from a break between 1993 and 1997. She also took six months off in 2012 to pen her autobiography.
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