Owen Turner is a character from EastEnders, played by Lee Ross. He originally appeared in the show in 2006, and then returned in 2009. His character left in 2009 after being murdered by Lucas Johnson.
Storylines
Owen is the ex-husband of Denise Fox and father of her daughter, Libby. He arrives in Walford looking for Libby, whom he has not seen since Denise divorced and left him, due to his alcohol problem. Denise sleeps with Owen, and a couple of days later, he hits her, witnessed by Denise's daughters, Chelsea and Libby. Denise ends their relationship so, drunk, Owen holds her hostage in her flat. He drags her up the stairs by her hair and she stabs him with a fork. After Denise's boyfriend Kevin Wicks and Libby notice Denise's absence, they call the police and Owen is arrested. His mother Liz visits him in prison. Owen goes on trial and receives a six-month sentence, suspended for two years.
Owen kidnaps Libby and takes her to Epping Forest in a car stolen from Kevin's car lot. He drugs her and phones Denise, telling her that she will not have to worry about them now. He tries to kill himself and Libby by filling the car with exhaust fumes but Libby escapes. When Denise arrives at the forest and calls Libby's name, she calls back, but Owen grabs her and tries to drown her in a stream. She falls unconscious and Owen jumps into the stream himself. Denise arrives to see Libby, unconscious, on the bank of the stream. Owen is revived by paramedics and arrested. He received a five-year prison sentence.
Owen sends Libby a card from prison on her 18th birthday, and Libby's grandmother, Liz, also contacts her, telling her that after three years in prison, he is sober and would like to see her. Libby visits Owen, who apologises for his behaviour and tells her that he will be released soon and wants to be her father again. She agrees but when Denise finds out, she is livid. Libby forces her to visit Owen in an attempt to prove that he has changed. However, despite taking responsibility for his actions, she does not trust him and insists he will not change. When she gets home, she tells Libby that Owen will not be part of their lives. Liz is about to leave for Spain but Owen persuades her to stay, telling her that he will keep going until Libby and Denise forgive him. He is released from prison on 12 October 2009 and returns to Walford, despite a restraining order, and works for Jim Branning, decorating his house. Patrick Trueman discovers he is there and threatens to call the police and tell Denise but Jim reminds him of his son Paul Trueman, and instead Patrick calls Libby, who visits from Oxford, where she is at university. Owen is then invited for lunch with the family, and starts getting on with Denise and Libby. Denise's fiancé, Lucas immediately takes a dislike to him, and punches him in an alleyway. Owen fights back, telling Lucas that he knows Lucas is not who Denise really thinks he is. Liz finds out about the attack, and urges Owen to tell Denise. Owen reveals his bruises and Denise forces Lucas to apologise. Lucas sees Denise walking away from Owen's home and visits Owen, armed with a knife in his pocket. He tells Owen to leave Walford, and when they shake hands, Lucas has blood on his hands. As Lucas's jealousy about Owen and Denise's relationship grows, he calls the police and Owen is arrested but released on appeal.
Owen has a brief relationship with Ronnie Mitchell after they bond one night, talking about their daughters. They agree the next morning that it should remain a one-off and Ronnie is warned off Owen by Denise. Owen is sure Lucas was involved in his estranged wife Trina's death and Chelsea tells him that she found Lucas with Trina's bracelet. Lucas explains that Denise was hiding it. Convinced that Lucas killed her, he tells him that he knows and threatens to tell the police. Lucas strangles him in Phil Mitchell's car and puts him in the boot, later burying him under Trina's memorial tree. Both Liz and Libby feel guilty about what they said to Owen; though Liz most of all as she senses something bad has happened to him, and so she phones him, but gets no answer.
After a brief departure, Ronnie inquires on Owen's location, only to learn he has apparently run away. The police are also looking for him as his absence had breached his license and they intend to send him back to prison. Ronnie reveals to her sister, Roxy, that she is pregnant and the baby is Owen's. Ronnie admits while she feels something for Owen, her feelings are almost entirely for the baby. However, she later suffers a miscarriage when her father Archie pushes her on the bar of the Vic. After Liz thinks Owen has disowned her after not returning any of her calls, she decides to give up and returns to Spain. However, she returns again as her suspicions about Owen are aroused even further. She reveals that since Owen was 16, he would always give her daffodils on her birthday. Lucas overhears this and sends lillies from Owen, leaving Liz more suspicious as they are her least favorite flowers. In June 2010, the tree is broken and Owen's body is discovered by Leon Small as he attempts to replace it, and Lucas confesses to Denise that he killed Owen, claiming self-defence. However, Lucas kidnaps Denise, faking her death and blaming her for the murder. Eventually, she escapes and Lucas is arrested for his crimes. Owen's funeral happened 2 days after Lucas arrest, but the funeral was never shown on screen.