George Knight (born Kwame Asare) is the father of Junior, Gina and Anna Knight, the son of Henry and Margaret Asare, and the adoptive son of Eddie and Gloria Knight. He is also the estranged husband of Elaine Knight and the ex-husband of Cindy Beale and Sabrina Knight. He made his first appearance on 1 June 2023. He is portrayed by Colin Salmon.
Backstory
Born 18th March 1967, George was adopted at age two, and he believed he was Jamaican. His first fight was at Canning Town and Eddie trainer. His first knock out was in the 6th round. When George was 14 people in the community started treating him different and his former dinner lady who gave him extra portions avoided him when he approached her, after this George started to see it happen all the time. One time, he brought a Jamaican cd and played it, and his dad came in and told him to turn it off. When George said it was the music of his people, Eddie said he wasn't Jamaican. George believes he said this because of how he was brought up. George's first wife was called Sabrina. George was a boxer and is known by Phil Mitchell and Jack Branning, it is revealed George was a British heavyweight champion and defended his title four times and Jack once witnessed George beat someone within an inch of their life. It was revealed on 21 November 2023 that George was arrested for grevious bodily harm after he attacked a man while in Marbella. George married Rose Knight, and had his two daughters with her, however she walked out in April 2014 and never made contact. After Rose left, George would often get drunk, leaving Gina to put Anna to bed. The two also had to make George eat, making him live off cheese sandwiches. In 2021, George's daughters adopted Tyson. At some point in 2022 he met and began a relationship with Elaine Peacock while working in a bar in Marbella.
George Knight is a charming rogue and an old-school gent who dotes on his two daughters, Gina and Anna Knight. George took residence in The Queen Vic when he joined his beloved Elaine, a powerhouse of a land-lady who knows just how to have fun. The couple are joined by feisty, determined and demanding Gina, who is as sharp and cool as cut diamonds but with a temper that blazes like fire, whereas younger sister, Anna is fun, loveable, and big-hearted, but don't underestimate her. George, Gina and Anna have been bound together for years and arriving in Walford is the fresh-start the Knights are looking for.
Storylines
2023-: Arrival, reunion with Cindy and truth about parents
George arrives in Walford alongside his two daughters Gina and Anna, George approaches The Queen Victoria and introduces himself to Linda Carter. George tells Linda he is Elaine's boyfriend and is here to run the Vic with her and Elaine. Linda is furious as she didn't even know Elaine had a boyfriend and also believed that her Elaine were going to run the Vic together as mother and daughter, George attempts to reason with Linda by telling her that four hundred pubs have been shut down in the past year and that based on the Vic's accounts it will be four hundred and one. George later meets Nish Panesar and offers Nish a fight after learning that Nish had previously threatened Elaine, George tells Nish that he's joking but if he ever threatens Elaine again then it won't be a laughing matter. George then tells Linda he isn't here to cause any trouble or hurt Elaine, he later sees Ben Mitchell in Kathy's Café and discovers Ben's ex Lola Pearce-Brown had died the previous night. George then sees Ben's daughter Lexi Pearce and tells her that she is lucky to have a father that loves her. When George is walking through the Square he is recognised by Phil and Jack as a former championship boxer and soon the whole Square become aware of this.
When Linda discovers that George hasn't actually sold his bar in Marbella yet, she attempts to throw him out, Gina and Anna out and accuses George of being after Elaine's money. George later proposes to Elaine, Elaine initially says no as she wanted him to ask but wanted it to be perfect. George goes to The Boxing Den and begin punching a punch bag, Phil spots him and asks George if he's okay. George tells Phil about what happened and Phil advises him to fight for her, George proposes to Elaine again and this time she says yes. George and Elaine then go back into the Vic and announce their engagement, leaving Linda furious. Gina is upset by the news and storms off but is followed by George, Gina says to George that he never talks about her mother anymore. George tells her Elaine will never replace her mother and she can go back to the bar in Spain if she's not happy in Walford, Gina says that she's not going back to the bar just to leave when George sells it. George then tells Gina that he is not selling the bar any time soon, Linda overhears the whole conversation and begins doing research. Linda finds out George's bar is only worth £255,000. Linda once again confronts George and accuses him of having no intention of selling his bar, George then threatens Linda telling her to mind her own business as he is sticking around.
George later arouses Linda's suspicion when he brings a safe into the pub, Linda attempts to break into the safe but George catches her. During a row George shows Linda what's in the safe. Letters from his ex wife, George says he didn't want Elaine to see them in case she found it weird, Linda finally decides to give George a chance. However, George is later seen acting dodgy possessing a ring with his wife's name on it. Linda becomes eager to find out exactly what happened to Rose, Linda enlists Phil to help her find out what happened to Rose. Phil is hesitant to help due to him and George being friends, however Linda reminds Phil that he's going into business with George and that Phil should want to know what kind of man George is. Phil later gets policeman Callum Highway to help him find out about George's past. When Linda pressures Phil to find out what happened to Rose Phil decides to ask George personally, Phil asks George if they can talk in private and they go to the Boxing Den to spar. Phil asks George to his face what happened to Rose, annoying George. George tells Phil that he's a brave man asking him about Rose while their in the ring, Phil says to George that he has a right to know who he is going into business with. George tells Phil that Rose just left him out of nowhere, Phil believes George and their business deal is back on. However, Phil sees Callum in the Vic and Callum tells him that George has a clean criminal record, however Callum tells Phil that all access is denied to Rose's profile and that when he tried searching her name his boss threatened to fire him. Phil then believes George has just lied to him and vows to find out what happened to Rose. Phil hires Ritchie Scott to find out what happened to Rose. Ritchie reaches out to the Spanish police and they track Rose down, however it's claimed by Phil that Rose doesn't want anything to do with George or the girls when Phil reveals to George that he had continued looking into Rose. Linda apologises to George and tells him she got it wrong, when George sees Phil he is annoyed at Phil and hints that he is not going to go into business with him. Phil then reveals that he kept one thing from Linda, he tells George that whoever this Rose is wasn't called Rose as no one by the name of Rose Knight existed. George phones Rose and it's revealed that Rose is Cindy Beale, the former Walford resident who was married to Ian Beale. Cindy ignores George's call.
Upon Phil's revelation curiosity gets the better of George and he plans to find out who Rose really was, George books a holiday to Marbella but tells Elaine that he's going there because he's received an offer for the bar and he is going to meet his son George Jr while he is out there. However later on Gina and Anna reveal that George Jr is in Dubai, Elaine confronts George and demands answers. Elaine knows George is going to find Rose, when George refuses to talk Elaine tells him she's no ones second best and threatens to cancel the wedding. George then tells Elaine and Linda that Rose never existed and reveals everything that Phil told him. However, Anna overhears some of the conversation, George also tells Anna about Rose but tells her not to tell Gina. Anna tells Gina that she needs to know something about their mother but Gina doesn't want to know, Gina later decides she does want to know and asks Elaine what the secret about her mother is. Elaine tells Gina and Gina takes the news badly, Gina steals money from the Vic and goes to Peggy's and gets drunk. Gina later buys cocaine and it's revealed that Gina used to take it, George and Anna find Gina and bring her back to the Vic. George reveals that it's his fault Rose left as on the day she left he had caught her packing a suitcase and they had a row, in which George told her if she leaves to never come back. The girls are furious with George and storm off. The girls prepare to move out because of George's lie but in the end are convinced by Elaine to stay.
On 31 July 2023 the Knights realise £200 has gone missing with Anna secretly confessing to Gina that she stole the money to hire a private investigator to find their mother. Gina is furious and tells Elaine and George that Anna took the money, however Anna lies to them and tells them she simply lost it. Anna later texts Gina and tells her she is still going through with the investigation, Gina sees a drug dealer outside Walford East and goes to buy drugs off him. However Ravi Gulati tell him to go away and threatens to put him in hospital, Ravi then gives Gina drugs himself.
Anna is given her mother's number by Gabriel and she informs her family, George reveals that the number she has been given is the number that Cindy has had all along and reveals he has called her himself many times but she doesn't care. Anna then leaves the room and begins crying, after a heart-to-heart between George, Gina and Elaine they decide to give Anna their blessing and Anna calls Cindy leaving a voicemail. Cindy's son and Gina and Anna's half-brother Peter Beale hears this voicemail and discovers that he has two sisters that Cindy kept a secret, Peter then returns to Walford against Ian's wishes to meet his sisters. The next day Bobby finds Peter on the sofa and Peter apologises to Bobby for stealing from the family and his general antics before he left, Peter goes to the Vic and begins talking to Gina and Anna with both of them unaware than he is their brother. Ben later sees Peter and attempts to square up to him but is ordered to leave the pub by George, Peter is then concerned when he finds out that Bobby and Anna have been getting close and attempts to put a stop to it, however despite Peter's best efforts Anna and Bobby later kiss leaving Peter horrified. Peter is left horrified again when Gina flirts with him and attempts to kiss him and he backs away knocking over a glass, George turns around and assumes Peter was harassing Gina and throws Peter out of the Vic and tells him to stay away from Gina.
George organises a twenty first birthday party for Anna along with Elaine and they invite multiple residents to the Vic for the party, Anna and Gina then go out for drinks at The Prince Albert for drinks before arriving back at the Vic and Anna is touched by the birthday party. Cindy returns to Walford to find Peter and Ian also turns up to try and get Cindy to come back to France however Cindy runs in to George and the two are shocked to see each other again. George and Cindy talk in the Barrell Store, where we are shown a flashback from 2014, revealing that the reason she walked out on the Knights was because of Lucy's death. She had gone back to Albert Square where she was found by Mary. Mary tells her that she can't go back to Marbella because Jackie Ford's people might find her, so Cindy goes to France. Back in the present, the talk is interrupted by Linda, coming to get some prosecco for the party. George had lied and said that Gina and Anna were still in Spain, however Linda gives away that they are in the Vic. Cindy tries to go to see them but George stops her. However, she eventually pushes past him, making her way into the Vic and seeing Gina and Anna for the first time in nine years, as well as Sharon Watts, Phil Mitchell and Sonia Fowler for the first time in twenty five. Cindy asks to speak with the girls upstairs and meets George's fiancée Elaine, the girls agree to hear Cindy out and she tells them everything. Just as it looks like Cindy is winning them around George tells then that Cindy never came back to find them but that she in fact came back to find Peter and didn't know they were their, the girls then reject their mother and go for drinks at the Albert. Later on Anna has a one-night-stand with Freddie Slater and Gina takes drugs and subsequently overdoses before Cindy and George find her and call her an ambulance.
Gina is taken into hospital and George and Cindy come to visit her. George forbids Cindy from seeing Gina and when Anna arrives, Cindy makes up with her. Cindy is later furious with Ian when she finds out that Ian knew George and the girls were in Walford, Cindy tells Ian that if he wants to make it up to her then they need to stay in Walford and not go back to France. Ian agrees and later tells Kathy that he will be taking his businesses back from her and that he will be moving back into his house with Cindy and that if Kathy doesn't like it then she needs to move out. When George gets back to the Square, Cindy and George have an argument and George calls her Rose. She tells him that 'it's not Rose, it's Cindy'.
Cindy later finds out from Anna that George is selling their bar in Marbella, Cindy tells Ian that she plans to demand half of the money from the sale from George. When Cindy tells George that she wants half the money he reluctantly agrees, Cindy later kisses George but he pulls away but both are seen by Gina who believes they both kissed. Gina later tells Elaine about George and Cindy's kiss but George tells Elaine that Cindy kissed him, Elaine forgives him but tells him to prove that he doesn't still love Cindy, George later tells Cindy that he will not be giving her half of the Marbella bar. Cindy declares war on the Knights and they tell her to bring it on, although when George, Elaine and Cindy begin talking and agree to be civil George secretly transfers Cindy half of the money for the Marbella bar.
On 30 October 2023 Elaine about George giving Cindy her half of the money from the Marbella bar and falls out with George, accusing him of constantly lying. Elaine later makes up with George after Linda convinces her to hear him out when she tells Elaine that she would still be drinking if Ollie and Annie weren't so young as she still misses Mick. Later that day Dean returns and corners Linda in the same Kitchen that he raped her in in 2014. Dean orders Linda not to scream.
When Peter is hospitalised after a fire at the cafe George speaks to Cindy, she is angry at Kathy as she knew the café had faulty electricity, George tells Cindy to forget about Kathy and support Peter.
When Dean continues to harass Linda she and Alfie begin to put fliers around the square, Dean threatens to sue Linda if she doesn't take them down. Elaine later convinces Linda to take them down to avoid being sued however Gina later spray paints 'rapist' on the pie and mash shop (now named Beale's Eels). When Dean, Cindy and Ian later confronts Linda she denies being behind the spray painting. Gina then admits that she was behind the spray painting, Linda thanks Gina for having her back. Dean later tries to talk to Linda however George and Cindy see him, when Dean tells George to mind his own business and accuses Linda and George of sleeping with each other George hits Dean, causing Dean to fall down the stairs knocking him out. Cindy initially agrees not to say anything to the police but is later persuaded by Ian not to lie to the police, Linda visits Dean in hospital and begs him not to tell the police what George did. Dean agrees not to speak to the police as long as Linda tells everyone that he didn't rape her. Linda agrees but only tells Dean, however Dean records her saying that he didn't rape her.
On Christmas day 2023 George and Elaine go to the Beale's to see Anna and Gina when they decide to spend Christmas with Cindy, Elaine and George decide to go to a hotel for the night unaware that over at the Vic Dean had broken in to the Vic and Linda had killed Keanu Taylor to defend Sharon Watts after Keanu had attacked her.
On New Year's Day, George's adoptive parents Eddie and Gloria Knight arrive in Watford and Cindy flees when she sees Eddie, George later discovers that Gloria and Eddie were paid to adopt him by his birth parents. George is devastated and this leads to an argument with Elaine when he refuses to open up to her, George seeks out Cindy to talk and Cindy helps George do some research into his background, Cindy discovers articles of white British families in the 1960's that would buy African children. George then realises that he is likely African and not Jamaican as he had always thought, George later tells Elaine about his problems and him and Elaine make up. George asks Eddie if he is African and Eddie tells him that he didn't organise the adoption and that Gloria did, Gloria admits that George's family were African. Gloria says that she only met George's father and they paid them for six months before disappearing, Gloria later asks Eddie if they should tell George the rest of what happened but Eddie says no. Dean enters the Vic with flowers and kisses Gina in front of Elaine, George and Linda. Dean reveals he and Gina are in a relationship leaving the three furious.
Eddie invites George and his family to a party with his friends, during the party one of Eddie's friend's tells George that Eddie murdered a black man and needs George to be his character witness. George begins to do his research and discovers Eddie's murder victim was called Henry Asare and he was beaten to death by Eddie and his mates in 1984 and put in a suitcase but his body was found in a canal by a dog walker. George confronts Eddie and tells Eddie that he witnessed Eddie killing Henry, George accuses Eddie of killing Henry because he's a racist but Gloria tells George the truth. Henry was George's dad and wanted to take George back, Gloria reveals she begged Eddie to do what ever it took and this resulted in Henry's murder. The next day George over aggressively boxes young Denzel Danes and Elaine tells him to stop, Gloria begs George for forgiveness but George refuses, George then breaks down and weeps in Elaine's arms.
(STORYLINE INFORMATION NEEDED 2024-2025)
On 20 October 2025, with his suspicious still raised, George has his heart set on going round to Kojo and Harry's flat to check up on them, however he is coaxed out of it by Tobias Okyere, who is running the illegal drugs operation happening there. When Kojo later shows up and tells George, Junior and Teddy Mitchell about Harry Mitchell, George ends up calling the police after Harry is no longer in Kojo's flat, and is being moved by Okie.
Fight count
Punches
- Unknown person (8 April 2024) (x3) (during a bare knuckle fight)
- Unknown person (15 April 2024) (x6) (during a bare knuckle fight)
- Rufus' henchmen (14 May 2024) (off-screen)
- Ravi Gulati (11 November 2025) (x2)
Total: 4
Individual characters punched: 4
Total punches: 12
Slaps
- Dean Wicks (20 November 2023) (knocked out)
- Ian Beale (21 January 2025)
Total: 2
Individual characters slapped: 2
Total slaps: 2
Employment history
| Occupation | Years active |
|---|---|
| Professional heavyweight boxer | Prior to 2022 |
| Owner of Marbella Knights Marbella, Spain | Prior to 2022-2023 |
| Barman at The Queen Victoria | 2023-2025 |
Residence
| Address | Years |
|---|---|
| Jasmine Allen Estate | Prior to 2014 |
| London | Prior to 2022 |
| Marbella, Spain | Prior to 2014-2023 |
| 46 Albert Square | 2023-2024, 2025 |
| 55 Victoria Road | 2024, 2025, 2025- |
| 25 Albert Square | 2025 |
| 89C George Street | 2025 |
Background information
- On 27 August 2024, George's boxing record was confirmed as being 28 wins, 1 draw and 8 losses.