BBC announces EastEnders anniversary iPlayer series
David Farnor | On 15, Dec 2014
EastEnders will take to the web next year to celebrate the show’s anniversary on BBC iPlayer.
The show, which first aired on BBC One on 19th February 1985, will celebrate 30 years on air in 2015. The occasion will see Barbara Windsor return to Albert Square as everyone’s favourite landlady, Peggy Mitchell, as well as a live episode, which will unveil the identity of Lucy Beale’s killer.
While live episodes are all well and good, though, they are nothing new in the world of soap anniversaries. And so, to celebrate the big 3-0, the Beeb are trying something a little different: a spin-off series, called Back To Ours, which will see the stars of the BBC soap revisit their most famous scenes.
The show, which follows a similar format to Channel 4’s Gogglebox, will see the actors watch clips on their characters’ sofas, while offering commentary on the old episodes.
It will be shown exclusively on BBC iPlayer in January and February, as part of the build-up to the big day itself.
Taking part will be Shane Ritchie and Jessie Wallace, best known for their much-loved roles of Alfie Moon and his on-screen wife, Kat, as well as Diane Parish, Tameka Empson and Rudolph Walker.
“What a wonderful time I had sitting on the sofa with Jessie watching 12 years of Kat and Alfie,” Moon told BBC News. “We laughed, we cried and we giggled as we remembered the past 12 years.”