Not to be confused with Charlie Cotton, the 1986 EastEnders character. Charlie Cotton is the son of Nick and Yvonne Cotton and the grandson Dot and Charlie Cotton Sr.. He is also the father of Matthew Cotton, as well as the ex-husband of Ronnie Branning.
Charlie was thought to be a Policeman when he first arrived on March 2014. Eventually it was revealed to be the son of Nick Cotton. Charlie had a very unlikely relationship with Ronnie Mitchell whom he had a child with, Matthew Mitchell-Cotton. However by September 2015, Charlie's relationship with Ronnie became stale threatening to tell the Police about the murder of Carl White. Charlie's fate was left to the viewers wondering after Ronnie enlists the help of Vincent Hubbard to get rid of Charlie.
In 2017 it was revealed that Charlie was still alive and started working with Max Branning who was on a revenge mission to help get full custody of his son who was being looked after by Max's brother, Jack Branning. After the death of Ronnie. Charlie wins back Matthew but returns in December that year revealing to Jack about Max's plan.
Storylines[]
2014-2019: Arrival, marriage to Ronnie Branning and departure[]
He first appeared without introducing himself when he accompanied a policewoman in March 2014, informing Dot of Nick's "death". The assumption was that he was a policeman. He returned later and explained to Dot that he is Nick's son; the result of a brief marriage in the late 1980s. He said that a friend down at the station mentioned a dead Cotton. Dot struggles to accept Charlie, while he helps with the arrangements for Nick's funeral. Dot insists that the coffin will be in the house on the day before the funeral. When Dot's friends visit to pay their respects to Nick, Charlie gets into an argument with Ian Beale and the coffin falls open and an arm falls out. Charlie is quick to react, and tells the funeral director Les Coker to nail the coffin closed so nothing like it happens again. After Nick's funeral, Charlie takes Dot to the crematorium to see Nick's body before cremation, but they are too late, leaving Dot devastated. Charlie later has sex with Ronnie Mitchell after she accidentally runs over Lola Pearce in her car. Charlie and Dot continue to grow close and she introduces her husband Jim to him off-screen. Les begins to blackmail Charlie by threatening to reveal secrets about Nick's death and funeral. Dot discovers that nobody called Charlie Cotton works in the police force, and questions whether he is really her grandson at all. She refuses to listen to Charlie's excuses, instead opting to contact his mother Yvonne for answers. Yvonne backs up Charlie's story that his case requires him to use a false name, but after the meeting Charlie warns Yvonne to make sure that she keeps their secret, as otherwise a member of Dot's family will hurt her again. Ronnie ignores his messages for a while before it is revealed she is pregnant. She ends their relationship and leaves Walford without telling Charlie she is pregnant with his child. She later tells him and Charlie proposes they get married on New Years Day and Ronnie's waters break as they are on their way to the hospital they end up in a car accident that resulted in the birth of their son, Matthew Ronnie being left in a coma. As he grieves his wife being in a coma, he has an affair with Ronnie's sister, Roxy. Later him and Ronnie broke up. Charlie's last episode was broadcast in September 2015, where the viewers were left wondering if Charlie had been killed by Ronnie and Vincent Hubbard It was later revealed that he was still alive.
After the death of Ronnie it was revealed Charlie was in fact alive and working with Max Branning in order to help get his son back from Max's brother Jack Branning. Charlie and Jack don't see eye to eye when meeting and when Charlie bad mouths Ronnie, Jack punches him but Max sees that the mark on Charlie's face isn't enough to make Jack lose Matthew. Max beats up Charlie off-screen. Charlie wins Matthew back but later returns again to tell Jack of Max's plan and makes peace with Jack telling him he can see Matthew whenever he likes before departing again for the final time.
2020-2022: Life in Ireland with Dot Branning[]
Dot went to live with Charlie in January 2020. She passed away in December 2022, with Charlie informing Sonia Fowler over the phone. He was unable to attend the funeral after contracting Covid-19.
Resident history[]
| Address | Years |
|---|---|
| 25 Albert Square | 2014- 2015 |
| 27 Albert Square | 2015 |
| Galway, Ireland | 2017 to present |
See also[]
Gallery[]
.jpg "Charlie and Ronnie Wedding Picture (2015).jpg (138 KB)")
