Summary[]
Matthew and Carmel prepare for their imminent wedding. Kathy tells Pauline she has left Pete, but he appears to be in denial. Pat is annoyed when she finds Frank helping Ian.
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The day of Matthew's stag night and Carmel's hen night arrives. Kathy visits Pauline for advice. Pauline tells Kathy she is staying out of her and Pete's business as she gets accused of interfering or sitting on the fence too much. Pat starts to wonder if Frank is still interested in her. Pete struggles to come to terms with the end of his and Kathy's marriage. He leaves Ian to cover his stall. Ian asks Frank to look after the stall so he can spend time with Cindy. Pat tries to get Frank's attention but is unsuccessful. Kathy tries to talk to Donna about her problems but Donna is not interested. Pete talks to David about his break-up with Kathy. Matthew spends his stag night at the Vic. Pete gets drunk and announces his and Kathy's split. Cindy and Ian spend time together alone at Number 45. Colin loosely talks to Guido about marriage. Pete sees Kathy as he leaves the Vic. Matthew returns to Carmel's flat after his stag night. Carmel tells him he should not be seeing her the night before their wedding as they are tempting fate - something they have done enough of already. |
Credits[]
Main cast[]
- Carmel Roberts - Judith Jacob
- Matthew Jackson - Steven Hartley
- Pete Beale - Peter Dean
- Pauline Fowler - Wendy Richard
- Pat Wicks - Pam St. Clement
- Frank Butcher - Mike Reid
- Kathy Beale - Gillian Taylforth
- Michelle Fowler - Susan Tully
- Ian Beale - Adam Woodyatt
- Cindy Williams - Michelle Collins
- Colin Russell - Michael Cashman
- Guido Smith - Nicholas Donovan
- Doctor David Samuels - Christopher Reich
- Doctor Harold Legg - Leonard Fenton
- Den Watts - Leslie Grantham
- Nick Cotton - John Altman
- Simon 'Wicksy' Wicks - Nick Berry
- Donna Ludlow - Matilda Ziegler
- Rod Norman - Christopher McHallem
Recurring cast[]
- Maude - Doreen Taylor (uncredited)
Guest cast[]
- Barnsey - John Hallam
- Queenie Price - John Labanowski
- Trevor Kellow - Peter Doran
Locations[]
- Albert Square
- The Queen Victoria - Public and upstairs flat
- 3B Albert Square - Kitchen
- 3C Albert Square - Living room
- 45 Albert Square - Kitchen and backroom
- Bridge Street Market
- Café Osman
- Turpin Road
- Dickens Hill Prison - Cell block, Den's cell and Nick's cell
Notes[]
- Radio Times synopsis: 'I can't imagine the world without you now... I can't.'
- Viewing Figures: UK broadcast - 17,600,000 viewers (chart placing unknown).
- Colin Russell and Guido Smith had the first mouth-to-mouth kiss between two gay men on British television. Furious MPs demanded a ban on the show, who claimed it was 'disgraceful' to air something like this pre-watershed! The Sun newspaper branded it a "love scene between yuppie poofs." Mary Whitehouse, a conservative artist, told the National Viewers and Listeners Association that the show had a 'dangerous', 'propagandist message', encouraging children to 'believe' gay is 'normal'. Michael Cashman, who played Colin and was an outspoken advocate for gay rights, hit back at Whitehouse of pursuing a 'narrow, biased, minority stance, using children as an emotional shield'.
- This episode was broadcast on BBC Four on Monday 23rd August 2021 at 8.30pm as part of Pride season. It transported viewers back to the first mouth-to-mouth kiss between two homosexual men on British television, which created outrage at the time.
- For its 2025 upload to BBC iPlayer as "Classic EastEnders", this episode was entitled Colin and Guido Kiss.
Gallery[]
.jpg "The Sun (26 January 1989).jpg (564 KB)")
.PNG "Kathy and Donna (24 January 1989).PNG (2.78 MB)")