Summary[]
As the residents of Walford prepare to welcome in the new year, things are not well in the Carter household. Consumed with emotions about his past, Mick finds himself struggling to cope with the enormity of the situation. As he battles with past demons, he begins to crumble.
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Mick phones Samaritans. Joe answers and patiently waits until Mick is ready to talk. Mick tells Joe that he and Linda have split up. Upon looking the old photo of him and Katy from Tina, Mick begins hearing voices and has a flashback to when he was young and in care. He blames sleep for his behaviour, so Joe asks him if he has spoken to Linda. A flashback to Joanna's café shows Mick and Linda with Lee. They tell him they have split up. Lee is upset. Linda claims their "special thing" has gone and she is heading to New Zealand for time out. Lee asks Linda if she is going alone and learns Max will be joining her. He is distressed upon discovering Linda has been having an affair and defends his silent father. Mick insists he gave Linda permission to cheat as there were things Max could give her that he could not. Lee asks Mick if he will just let her take Ollie from him. Mick is heartbroken when Linda claims she was going to tell him. Joe gently reminds Mick he cannot blame himself. Linda apologises to Mick for not telling him about New Zealand. Mick is broken to learn she is leaving tomorrow for four weeks. She then asks him if he is depressed, as Lee thinks he is. She tries to get him to open up but he does not. Mick tells Joe he is weak and insecure because someone told him he was. When Joe asks who told him that, he begins explaining his complex situation regarding Frankie and then has further flashbacks to a young Katy Lewis. Stating he needs air, Mick leaves his flat and spots Kush, who has put Arthur in his van and is preparing to flee. He eyes up the Vic's roof and wanders across the road, through the bar, and up the stairs. Kat and Stacey dance in the Vic, unaware of what Kush is up to. On the roof, Mick plans to hang up on Joe. Joe asks him to stay a little longer so they can talk a bit more. Joe asks Mick about Frankie and care. Mick fights tears as he talks about them some more. Joe reassures him he is doing well. Mick stands on the edge of the roof and prepares to end it all. Joe asks for a few more minutes so they can understand the cause of his problems. Mick thinks back to a conversation he and Lee had earlier in the day - Lee encourages Mick to talk to someone. Mick states he reconnected with Katy and it has not helped him. She encourages him to deal with his problems by himself. Joe asks him why Katy makes him feel like this - a flashback shows a 12-year-old Mick heading to Katy's house and into her bedroom. As the young Katy closes the bedroom door, present day Mick confirms to Joe that he was abused by her, and that she has been covering it up ever since. |
Credits[]
Main cast[]
- Mick Carter - Danny Dyer
- Linda Carter - Kellie Bright
- Lee Carter - Danny Hatchard
- Kush Kazemi - Davood Ghadami
- Kat Slater - Jessie Wallace
- Stacey Slater - Lacey Turner
- Whitney Dean - Shona McGarty
- Tiffany Butcher-Baker - Maisie Smith
- Keegan Butcher-Baker - Zack Morris
- Sharon Beale - Letitia Dean
- Arthur Fowler - Hunter Bell
Guest cast[]
- Joe - Jeffrey Harmer (voice only)
- Young Mick Carter - James Roberts
- Young Katy Lewis - Holly Maguire
Locations[]
- Albert Square
- The Queen Victoria - Public, hallway, upstairs flat and roof
- 29A Albert Square - Living room/kitchen, Ollie's bedroom and hallway
- Victoria Road
- Joanna's Café
- Dover Court
- Young Katy Lewis' house - Downstairs rooms and bedroom
Notes[]
- Return of Lee Carter, last seen on 3 January 2020. He is next seen on 16 December 2024.
- In the opening scene of this episode, Mick Carter can be seen stood on the roof of The Queen Victoria, on the phone and contemplating suicide. At the end of this very scene, the screen fades to black and viewers are taken back in time to understand just how he ended up there. Towards the end of the episode, scenes mirror those of the first scene, to signify that Mick is back in real time.
- This episode incorporated flashback scenes throughout the episode to help viewers understand Mick's childhood in a care home and the events which led to Katy Lewis sexually abusing him as a 12-year-old.
- Ode to Joy was played in Joanna's Café at 3 minutes 37 seconds as the United Kingdom left in the European Union.
- Matt Da Silva is the credited stunt co-ordinator for this episode.
- Andy Pilgrim is the credited stunt performer for this episode.
- Mick tells Joe, the Samaritans call-handler, that he was branded "weak and insecure", referring to comments made by Frankie Lewis on 10 November 2020. In a later scene, he refers to how Lee considered suicide himself, referring to the events of 29 December 2016 and 30 December 2016.
- This episode was filmed with social distancing rules being observed by both cast and production crew, even when the actors were playing family members or characters of a shared residence. The episode was also shortened to twenty-four minutes to facilitate new filming techniques.
Dialogue[]
MICK CARTER (to Lee Carter, about Max Branning): Because there's some things I couldn't give her and he could.
LEE CARTER: Oh, yeah? Like what? A couple of STDs?