#they’ve really offered me some good kush

[mmmleckerlecker]

Lecker, you will make me the happiest prey alive if you marry me. ✨💍💖🥺🙏🏼

I confess, I cannot reach high shelves, but you can throw me at them and I can reach them from the air. I can also steal 200 goats for you, (all ethically sourced too).

A prey huh? Intriguing. Guess you’re not making it through that Praeduella, huh?

However the rest of this is quite enticing. Is you being unable to reach high shelves an inconvenience to me? Of course, but I’ve been surviving like this my whole life. Now THROWING you at the shelves sounds FAR MORE entertaining however. Also damn, a whole (ethically sourced) goat army?? Climbing up my trees and walls… I love goats. This is all very tempting…. Idk y’all 👀👀

[doof-doofblog]

"So Are You!"

Tuesday 5th January 2021

Hello again everyone! Well, we're back in lockdown, I hope you're all keeping safe and looking after yourselves. This has got to come to end at some point right? Considering that the UK has been put into another lockdown, for those of you who are wondering, EastEnders have confirmed that they will still be carry on filming with plenty more social distancing policies in place. I'm very pleased to hear this news, I felt it was hard when EastEnders had to go off air, I was so thrilled when it returned to our screens. Also it doesn't even phase me that the episodes only last 20 minutes, I know it might be annoying some of you guys, but it doesn't matter how long an episode lasts, we're still getting our daily Easties fix!

Now about last night's episode, there's quite a bit to cover, there were quite a few moments I got completely confused, but by the end it all made sense! I'll explain more of that a little later, but first lets focus on Kush and the Slater family. Poor Stacey is completely beside herself, fearing the worst that Kush has kidnapped her son and taken him to Dubai! Kush is still in hope that Whitney will help with the funds he needs to get away, only when she turns up empty handed and refusing to help with his plan, he can see his chances to get away have slumped! Whitney tells him some pretty hard hitting truths, regardless whether he thinks he's doing the right thing for Arthur, Whitney tells him that his actions could force Arthur to hate him, taking him away from his Mum and family, this fact seems to really play on Kush's mind. Back on the Square Stacey and Martin are contemplating calling the police, stating the fact that Kush hasn't left them any choice, only just before they're able to dial, a taxi pulls up and little Arthur is seen getting out. Stacey is overcome with relief as she rushes to her little boy and scoops him up in her arms. Kat really isn't best impressed as she approaches her boyfriend and gives him a huge slap around the face! Regardless of emotions being so high, Ruby is there with a really smug looking face watching everything unfold in front of her! Once inside, Kat lays into Kush about his actions, it's quite hard really because I feel for them both, even though Kush did have it coming! I feel, if Kush hadn't started his gambling addiction, he wouldn't be in this awful mess. Kat mentions how she felt safe with him after being lied to so many times by Alfie. It's clear to see she is in deep distress after being lied to again and again, after being betrayed by someone she truly loved and trusted. Even though Kush is apologetic and trying to persuade her that he'll change, she can't seem to find a way back from this announces their relationship is over. What do you think? Will they be able to work it out? Do you like Kat and Kush together?! Later on, when Ruby is at home, Kush knocks on her door and bursts his way in, blaming her for putting the idea in his head an even more so of giving him the money to flee, in an attempt to blackmail her, he announces that he'll be moving in with her and Martin, seeing as he has no where to go, and if Ruby declines, he'll inform Martin about her giving him the money to take Arthur away, from the look of Ruby's face - she simply has no choice but to let him stay!

--

The second thing I want to focus on, is Sharon! It looks as if she is still wanting to carry on with her plan and poison Ian. After Phil eventually agreed on helping her take down Ian, she visits him hoping to receive more pills to poison him with, but when he gives her such a small amount, she's not impressed. She informs him that it's not enough and that she needs more, but Phil warns her they need to take it slowly, make it look real, and not give him too many in one go. She seems disappointed but leaves with with pills nonetheless. Back at the Vic, she's prepping the pills and adding them to Ian's coffee, only Linda seems to interrupt her and takes her by surprise. Linda appears with little Ollie as she comes to visit her friend and comes to seek some advice after getting things back on track with Mick, as they begin their catch up, Linda encourages Ollie to go and play with Albie. Later on and Sharon seems to forget what she was previously doing, and enjoys her chat with Linda, little Ollie comes walks in - I'm assuming he's wanting a drink - as he walks straight up to counter and goes to grab the mug left on the side, the mug which contains Ian's poisoned coffee! Luckily, Sharon notices the little boy's actions before any harm can be done, but because she shouted at him so loudly, she scares the poor boy. Linda seems surprised by actions but she thinks quick and explains that she didn't want Ollie having so much caffeine. Linda seems to shake her friends behaviour off, but it looks as if Sharon can't afford to lose her focus, otherwise an innocent party could be badly hurt.

--

Lastly, the main focus of this episode was Callum and Jack! Previously, Jack had agreed to help Callum out, regarding DI Thompson. Callum feared that if Thompson was going to reveal everything, he'd lose Ben and his place in the Mitchell family for good. The only person he could turn to and actually trust to help him, was Jack. In this episode, Callum informs Jack that a meeting has been arranged with DI Thompson at Ruby's club, at first it all looks like they have a plan in motion to maybe blackmail Thompson, bullying Callum into doing things he shouldn't be doing etc etc. Callum waits nervously, DI Thompson enters and Callum begins to mention that he has something solid on Phil that he'll be interested in - of course it's just an excuse to keep him there until Jack shows up, however Callum begins to panic and struggles under pressure as Jack fails to turn up. My first thought was - where the hell was Jack? Unfortunately, I don't think that question gets answered. Thompson is clearly getting fed up of Callum and his excuses and makes his exit, leaving Callum in a panic. As he attempts to follow, Jack finally turns up, much to Callum's relief. Jack informs Callum to leave as he'll take it from here - it's then that Jack confronts Thompson with what he's been up to the past couple of months and forcing a junior police officer to do things he shouldn't be doing. To save him getting in any trouble, he urges DI Thompson to take early retirement and leave Phil to him. At this moment, I slightly panicked - it had me questioning as to who's side Jack was actually on?! I was so confused - one minute he was helping Callum, the next, helping Thompson! - WHAT?!

But then Jack found Callum and informed him that everything had been sorted, there was no more reason for him to worry and he could tell the Mitchell's everything. Being the supportive colleague, Jack accompanies Callum to the Mitchell's as they reveal everything about DI Thompson's plan. At first both Ben and Phil are furious to hear that Callum was involved, but they both make them see that everything he did was to protect the Mitchell's, putting his career on the line for them! Ben seems to realise how much Callum has gone through to protect him and proposes going to the pub for a drink. However, as Ben and Callum leave, Phil can't seem to understand why Jack would get involved, he senses that something isn't right and he's after something - it's then that Jack reveals to Phil that Thompson has given him a memory stick containing everything that Phil has done in the past up till present day of his dodgy and petty crimes. Phil sees that Jack will want something from him in return if he wants all this to disappear, but what?!

Meanwhile at the pub, Callum is confessing everything to Ben. Informing him that he just wants to be honest with his boyfriend and most importantly, he'd do anything to protect him - even if it means putting his career on the line! Ben is completely overwhelmed by his boyfriend's actions. It's then that Jay walks in and Callum offers to buy the next round of drinks. As he steps up to the bar, Ben looks lovingly at his boyfriend, to which Jay notices, asking what the look was for, Ben innocently smiles and states clear as day "I'm going to marry that man, Jay!" ......... Oooooh I'm sure you Ballum fans will be going crazy after that line!!! Is this a slight hint that there could be a Ballum wedding on the cards? Here's an interesting question - who would you like to see pop the question? Ben to Callum? or Callum to Ben? - Personally I think if Ben was to pop the question to Callum, it would fit so perfectly!!

--

The final clip we see is Denise walking through the Square, however unbeknown to her, Lucas is following her from a distance! Can I just say how bloody creepy that was? Clearly Lucas is still has it in for his ex, but why?! Denise really needs to keep on her guard! As she reaches her house, suddenly Jack appears with a huge bouquet of flowers, and admits to Denise that he wants to give them both another try. Even though Denise is touched by his romantic gesture, she questions whether he's accepting of having Phil in her life, literally because of Raymond - it's then that things are made clear. Jack informs her that she doesn't have to worry about Phil as he has sorted it - which basically means that they've made some kind of deal, Jack won't dob him into the police as long as Phil stays away from Denise and Raymond ... That's got to be it, right? Even though Phil may have agreed to this arrangement, I do fear he may find it hard, knowing full well that his son is just on the other side of the Square. Then again, I suppose he could take comfort in knowing that his son is close to home. Who knows? As Jack and Denise close in for a kiss and rekindle their romance, Lucas watches with dark eyes from a distance!! He is so creepy, I am so glad that EastEnders have brought him back, it's going to be so interesting to see what brings Lucas back, Denise had best watch her back!

Overall a great episode, enjoyable and again so much drama! Thank you again for reading, I truly appreciate your time. Please feel free to leave me any messages or comments, I'll always find the time to reply! Thanks again folks! Love you all xXx

[pussypoppinhippo]

Show me How you Burlesque|| Ballum

Summary: When a burst pipe threatens the Friday night Drag show at the Prince Albert the Vic offer to host instead. The show stars Walford’s own Diana Dee Izzuez but just which one of the residents of the square is behind the glamorous performer? 

A/N: I haven’t written anything like this in maybe ten years but this struck me tonight, beware of spelling mistakes and saucy dancing below.

Spotify Playlist for this fic: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7jVrM8LP1qwd0OvO3vqcgo?si=DtdQVAY4RkKo2ZBmbv6r4A

It was a little past seven at night on a semi busy Friday in the Vic when Tina, somewhat dripping wet despite the wonderful summer weather, came bursting through the pub doors. No one really batted an eyelid at the sight, Linda who was stationed behind the bar wasn’t all that taken aback when the soaking wet woman accosted her talking a mile a minute about drag queens, burst water pipes and a plea to move some sort of theme night into the local pub.

At a table just by the door Jay, Lola and Whitney were chatting waiting for Calum to bring the next round of drinks over from the bar, Whitney and Calum had broken up a year prior just before their wedding day after a blow up argument about the lads clear disinterest in their impending marriage. They’d only really started speaking properly again after Easter and tonight was the first real night in the pub they’d embarked on as friends.

“Apparently some sort of pipe disasters driven everyone out of the Prince Albert” Calum nodded his head over to Tina who was now drying off with a towel Mick had fetched her “ they’re moving their drag show here, starts at eight and apparently they’ve got this local performing as the main act”. Placing the drinks down on the table he took his seat next to Jay “Tina says we can stay for free if we fancy it” he added.

“A local act?” questioned Lola “I wonder if it’s that ...deedee? Ben was talking about the other week there you remember that?” she nudged Jay with an eyebrow raised.

The ginger rolled his eyes affectionately at the mention of his brothers latest nightlife obsession “ Di I think he said, apparently she’s from Walford and if I remember quite rightly he said she was pretty enough to make him consider the other side”.

Calum swallowed at the mention of the handsome mechanic, they’d started dating in secret in November and while Ben wasn’t best pleased with being kept a secret he’d understood that halfway’s father moving to Walford had made his impending coming out much more difficult.

“I say we stay! it sounds like a good laugh doesn’t it?” Whitney piped up with a grin, “ What do you think Cal?”. Nodding he gave her a smile as he reached down to send his boyfriend a cheeky text about missing out on the fun. “Speaking of Ben where is he tonight?” she asked taking a sip of her drink.

“He said Something about some hot totty” Jay snorted with a head shake “ same old Ben ain’t it? though I’m sure he’ll be sad to have missed out on all this” he motioned to the filling pub and the makeshift stage that Mick and Tina were creating toward one end of it.

They fell back into relatively normal conversation about life as they enjoyed their drink, managing to grab another round just before Kathy announced the show would be starting in five minutes time. Checking his phone Calum noted the text from his lover with a smile

‘ Sounds like I’m missing out don’t get stolen away by Walford's blue eyed temptress now ;) x’

He didn’t have time to reply to it as Kathy Introduced the nights entertainment.

“ Please give a warm Walford welcome to the Incomparable Walford vixen Miss Diana Dee Izzuez” she grinned as the first few notes of ‘Welcome to Burlesque” filled the air.

The figure that stepped onto the makeshift stage was like a vision from a Hollywood film, while the person was not particularly tall the glittery red high heels made the fishnet stocking encased legs that peeked from the slit in an equally sparkling floor length gown look long and the dress with its corseted top hugged the figure of the person it encased in all the right places. Long flowing wavy black hair framed a perfectly painted face with lips that could have been painted in blood and as they parted Calum thought he quite possibly could have died as the voice of an angel fell from them.

“Show a little more, show a little less

Add a little smoke, welcome to Burlesque”

It was seductive every move graceful and every word of the song perfectly sung as the queen on staged greeted her audience with an at ease smirk. Everyone in the pub was captivated, the Prince Albert faithful watched on with an admiration for someone they loved and the Vic’s usual punters looked on in an almost awe at the masterful mystery before them. It was only as the second verse began that a vague sort of recognition rang in Calum’s head, he’d heard that voice before he was almost certain but he couldn’t quite place where.

The seductress on stage waved an elbow length black glove encased hand at someone in the crowd as her eyes scanned the rest of them passing over the table at the back of the room with a disgruntled Phil, an interested Sharon, a captivated Louise and a fed up looking Keanu in mild interest before landing on the friends sat near the door with a smirk.

“If you wanna a little extra, well, you know where I am

Something better in the dark, just playing with your mind

There's nothing in the days, that's just for the bump and grind

Show a little more

Show a little less

Add a little smoke

Welcome to …….Burlesque.”

The song finished up and Diana took her applause with a graceful smile and leant down to accept a drink from someone.

“Y’know she does look sort of familiar” Lola popped up eyes narrowing as she studied the figure on stage “y’reckon we know her?” she asked the group who were also studying the drag queen with interest.

“Maybe it’s kush?” added whitney “ I can’t really tell the lighting here is awful”.

The ginger snorted “ can’t be we all know after New Years karaoke Kush’s tone deaf, what do you think mate?” he nudged Calum unaware that the penny had just dropped for the former army officer, Diana Dee Izzuez was sporting a rather prominent hickey just above a classic pearl necklace, a hickey that the man knew matched perfectly with one he’d given Ben mere hours before in the Arches and that singing voice one that reminded him so much of Ben singing in a hotel shower after a sneaked weekend away a month or so back.

“Uh I…no idea mate” he stumbled out trying to hide his surprise with a sip of his drink as he tried to make sense of the fact that the beautiful performer on stage could in fact be his rough around the edges boyfriend.

“Welcome Ladies, Gentlemen and those who are somewhere in between, my name is Diana Dee Izzuez but you my friends can call me Di” the queen purred voice husky with a musical lilt that had Calum second guessing if his suspicions about this being Ben were right.

“I’m going to sing a few songs and do a touch of dancing for you tonight, if you enjoy my performance there are tip jars on the bar we’re collecting money in aid of AKT who help support LGBT+ homeless youth” Di smiled before taking a sip of her red wine and setting it down on the side of the stage. Clicking her fingers above her head the next songs started up the plucky piano recognisable to anyone who enjoyed a Broadway show almost immediately.

"The name on everybody's lips

Is gonna be Roxie

The lady raking in the chips

Is gonna be Roxie”

Highways mouth went dry as he watched Di swing her hips seductively on stage, every word was sung with that same devilish smirk that he could pinpoint as the one Ben used along side witty one liners, that was most definitely his boyfriend. Her hips swayed as she clicked her fingers to the beat teasingly kicking her leg out from the slit in the dress so the audience could catch a peak of the lacey black garter and matching suspenders underneath.

“From just some dumb mechanics son

I'm gonna be Roxie

Who says that murder's not an art?”

While the change in lyrics may have went over almost everyone in the pubs head it had Sharon and Louises eyes widening in recognition although Ben hadn’t made it that subtle he’d coupled the line with a little kiss blown toward the table.

His boyfriend certainly caught it and it had confirmed what he’d been thinking, Walford’s blue eyed vixen was none other than Ben Mitchell. On stage the performance went on Di was shimming along to the beat, the little break in the music was filled with a slow seductive turn and a pretty impressive high kick showing off more of the lace hidden underneath the eye catching dress. Taking a step off the stage the crowd practically parted  as Di didn’t miss a beat heels clicking in time with the music as she purred the lyrics.

Think of those autographs

I'll sign,

'Good luck to ya, '

Roxie!

She leaned over signing a piece of paper that was offered toward her with a flourish, she made her way toward the back of the crowd interacting with people as she went. Di never wavered once while singing leaning over to kiss a miserable looking Keanu’s cheek as she breezed past the Mitchell table and worked back toward the stage leaving the woman at it stifling giggles. Reaching the group of friends at the front she shot Calum a wink.

“the audience loves me!

And I love them

And they love me for loving them

And I love them for loving me

And we love each other

And that's because none of us

Got enough love in our childhoods

And that's showbiz

Kid”

Di had leant toward them as she’d sung the lines and the last few  had definitely been aimed toward Calum who was trying his best not to turn beet red. He was definitely going to have to have a long talk with Ben after this and perhaps he’d suggest those heels make an appearance at their next weekend away. She climbed back onto the stage finishing the song with a flourish and a smile before smoothing her hands over her curves then bending down to pick up her wine.

“Y’know those pearls…. they looks a bit like the ones you showed me with the one pink pearl in the centre” Jay arched an eyebrow at Calum who hadn’t quite managed to get his blush under control.

“No…no don’t think so mate” the taller man spluttered trying to avoid eye contact, he’d noticed it as well that  the pearl necklace Di was wearing was identical to the one he’d bought Whit for their wedding day but had never given her, the one he was sure was supposed to be nestled in his bedside drawer back at the flat.

“Wait ...do you know who she is Cal?” Whit questioned as everyone at the table turned toward him, looking at him expectantly she leaned in a little more “have you figured it out?”

Shaking his head he was just about to blurt out an excuse when a voice from the stage interrupted.

“ For this next song I’m going to need a handsome volunteer” Diana pretended to scan the audience her eyes almost immediately landing on Calum who was trying to lean away from his ex almost wife who had leant in to try and get information out of him, the little flash of jealousy in Di’s eyes was gone almost as soon as it appeared.

“hmmmm you” she purred pointing to Highway “ give that tall glass of water a round of applause as he makes his way up here oh and barkeep?”. She waved a hand toward Mick with a dazzling smile “ two of your finest whisky please for me and my friend here”.

While she’d been speaking Kathy had slipped a chair onto the stage, of course she knew exactly who Di was, Ben had approached her about the drag nights after he’d done a few gigs at other clubs but she wasn’t quite sure why exactly instead of the usual anonymous handsome punter he’d picked Calum for this bit.

Making his way onto the stage after some pushing from the others Cal allowed himself to be pushed down into the chair eyes taking in just how gorgeous the other was up close in drag.

“ be good for me lover boy” Di purred in his ear as the music for the next song started up leaving Calum blushing to stand behind the chair.

“The demon queen of high school has decreed it

She says Monday, 8am I will be deleted

They'll hunt me down in study hall

Stuff and mount me on the wall

Thirty hours to live, how shall I spend them?”

Up close like this the taller man could smell the perfume Diana wore, the musky floral scent was definitely expensive and the note of something very strictly Ben peeking through it was definitely making it that much more alluring. Diana's hand slid down Calums chest as she sang undoing the top button of his white button up with gloved hands. Her hips still swinging she danced around the man in the chair using him as a prop to help enhance her performance. Every word of the song was sung with such passion the lanky man was sucked in, so enchanted he wasn’t expecting the lap full of Di that he ended up with.

"Shh…

Sorry but I really had to wake you

See, I decided I must ride you ‘til I break you

'Cause Heather says I gots to go

You're my last meal on death row”

She guided his hands to her hips and faced the audience as she seated herself in his lap the pleased smirk of blood red lips saying it all the watching audience. Calum’s eyes drifted toward his group of friends who were giggling, grinning and wiggling their eyebrows at him as he received what could best be described as a lap dance from the other. He was most definitely past blushing and was now an almost permanent shade of pink that perhaps could only be matched by the shade of red Phil Mitchell had turned when his wife had explained exactly who the tart on stage was really.The Dance continued just as raunchy as Di rolled her hips and halfway hands wandered ever so slightly to run over the curve of waist the corset was giving the beautiful babe in his lap.

Get your ass in gear

Make this whole town disappear

"Okay, okay!"

Slap me, pull my hair

Touch me

There and there and there

And no more talking!

Whoa!

Love this dead girl walking!

A slap to the man's thigh and then hand tugging halfways hair in time with the song sent the crowd cheering and they only got wilder as Diana stood in front of him and ripped the skirt from her dress revealing lace boy short style panties that at that moment only Calum could see had the word ‘saucy’ stoned in red gems on the back and that matching lace suspender set that held up fishnet stockings. Hitting the note at the end of the song the place practically erupted as Di took a bow and then the whisky offered on a tray by Mick handing one to Calum before cheersing him. Downing it the undertaker stood up moving to make his way off stage but not making it very far as he was caught by Miss Diana who spun him around and promptly kissed him on the lips. Despite the moment of panic it brought immediately Calum found he didn’t actually care and pulled the other closer to deepen the kiss ever so slightly appreciating that with Ben in such high heels he didn’t have to bend into the kiss so much.

Parting to wolf whistles from the crowd Halfway slipped off of the stage and back to his table where he was greeted by raised eyebrows.

“SO you don’t her then?” questioned Jay as he crossed his arms.

“ never kissed me like that cal” Whitney added reaching over to wipe a spot of red lipstick that had transferred over to the corner of his mouth.

“ So c’mon spill, who is the mysterious Diana Dee Izzuez” prompted Lola as they all leaned in toward the other so they would be able to hear his answer over the beginnings of Britney's Toxic.

The door near the back of the pub slammed followed by a muffled “Phil!” and Calum could only chuckle his eyes were drawn back to the dancing figure on the stage who had gone from Hollywood glam to sex kitten.

“ Well I’d say he’s a talented man with daddy issues” he grinned, glancing over to the others at the table “but I think you’d know him better as Ben Mitchell and he’s my boyfriend”.

[gothify1]

Back in January of this year, beauty girls and editors lost their collective shit—myself included—when New York City beauty brand Milk Makeup finally launched in the UK. Despite it having only launched stateside in 2016, it had already felt like a lifetime of having to beg U.S.-bound friends to hit up Sephora on my behalf for a Milk Makeup fix. And I clearly wasn't alone—the brand launched to an incredible 17,000-person waiting list on Cult Beauty. Yes, this was one beauty brand that had a serious amount of social media hype, and I was already obsessed. If you haven't heard of Milk Makeup before, then the premise of the brand is all about good ingredients, clean formulas, and payoff that you can actually see. Every product is cruelty-free, paraben-free and 100% vegan and a lot of the products come in twist-up, stick formulations for easy, fuss-free application—even when you're on-the-go. The skincare products are simple and slip effortlessly into your existing routines, and the makeup products offer sheer pops of color that can be built up to customize your look. In short, this is a beauty brand that even women who aren't that into beauty can get on board with. Launching exclusively onto Cult Beauty with a great initial drop, there have been new arrivals landing thick and fast, with 37 products currently on site to shop. (Although, seriously, Milk—will your Sunshine Skin Tint ever be landing on British soil?) With such an array of product categories and names like Glitter Sticks , Tattoo Stamps , and Cannabis Face Masks to decipher, it can be a bit of a beauty minefield to shop if you haven't already dabbled with the brand. Luckily, I've now tried pretty much everything that Milk Makeup has to offer, and while it was lust at first sight for me and everything in the collection, there are a few products that have transitioned into true, long-term beauty loves. Yes, packaging aside, these are the products that I honestly think are worth splashing your cash on. Not only do they genuinely work, but they've also become staples in my beauty routine. The ultimate product for girls who don't really do makeup or just don't have time for it in the mornings. Just twist up the creamy color and swipe it onto your cheeks and lips, then pat in with your fingertips for an effortlessly pretty flush of color. I always have one of these Lip + Cheek sticks in my handbag for when my complexion needs a little livening up during the day. Werk, this dusky rose shade, is my favorite everyday hue but I must mention Quickie as a close second—a lively berry that would look amazing on deeper skin tones too. This is basically a stick of solidified water infused with aloe, but honestly, it's like magic. I recently gave a stick to a colleague who is heading on a humid holiday to China thanks to the way that it cools and refreshes skin like nothing else. I like to use this after cleansing my skin on mornings when I'm feeling particularly puffy and congested as it really helps to calm things down. But you can apply it over makeup to boost glow throughout the day too. I'm a big fan of using face powders to keep my oily skin in check during the day, but it can be difficult to find ones that don't cling to dry patches and end up looking cakey. This one is a revelation thanks to an infusion of moisturizing hyaluronic acid and avocado powder. It might sound counterintuitive, but what it actually means is that this powder blurs over fine lines and unevenness while keeping oil under control. This mascara was the best-selling Milk Makeup product at the brand's UK launch and pretty much everyone that tries it raves about it. It's the first-ever mascara to contain hemp-derived cannabis oil and has a seriously creamy formula infused with fibers that glide onto lashes and impart them with mega volume. Hannah Almassi, our very own editor in chief, has even be converted to its charms. If you're looking for a new mascara in your life then make it this one. This features the same formulation technology as the Kush Mascara (hydrating cannabis oil and volumizing fibers), but for your brows. I'm very loyal to my Benefit Gimme Brow, so I really wasn't expecting to like this product as much as I do. But I have to say that on days when I want to get really bushy, glossy cool-girl brows, this really does the trick. It does a great job of boosting volume and setting hairs in place without leaving them feeling stiff or set either. One of the newer Milk Makeup drops, this primer promises to keep skin hydrated all day. For me, however, the thing that I love most about it is the way that (as the name suggests) it "grips" to the makeup you apply on top to improve longevity. To apply, you smooth a couple of pumps onto clean skin and leave it for a minute to set. I love that my skin always looks glowy and moisturized before I apply my base. Oh, and I'm also here for the all-day hold. At first, these cream eye shadows might look a little intimidating. They are seriously pigmented (as in, you literally just need a tiny dot for full coverage colour on your eye) and come in some pretty out-there shades, including sea greens and electric blues. However, these are now one of my favourite formulas to reach for on a night out. The shade Hotel Lobby, in particular, is a really wearable champagne-gold with a beautiful shimmer. I apply to the eyelids using my fingertips, and then blend out the edges with a fluffy brush. Once they're on, the waterproof formulas stay put for hours without creasing or shifting. If you don't love a really high-shine glow to your skin, then the Milk Makeup Highlighter Stick might be more up your street for a more subtly luminous glow. These Holographic Sticks are for a major sheen. They contain real meteorite powder (seriously) for a holographic finish that I happen to love applied to the tops of cheekbones. The shade Mars is my favorite (a gorgeous golden peach), but there are some more intense color options if lavender or pink highlight is up your alley. Rich in olive and jojoba oils, this lip balm does an amazing job of moisturizing parched lips and boasts a minty taste that is wonderfully refreshing. It comes in a clear formula (which actually looks green in the tube), and if it's purely hydration that you're after, this is a tinted formula that treats and looks good. Toner is often one of those skincare steps that I'll skip entirely, but since discovering this one from Milk Makeup, it's become more of a regular part of my skincare routine. It's the world's first every solid toner, and it's crammed with matcha green tea and witch hazel to decongest and purify oily-combination skin types. I just swipe it over skin after cleansing to calm any inflamed areas and control oily patches before my moisturizer. I was a bit dubious about the idea of a face mask in a stick, but I have to say that this application method is a dream if the thought of applying a face mask always seems like way too much effort. I apply it to clean, damp skin (but you can also apply it to dry skin) and leave it to dry for around 10 minutes before rinsing it off. It's clay-based, so it has detoxifying benefits, but it also contains protective vitamins C and E, hydrating hyaluronic acid and brightening watermelon extract for more luminous skin. As someone who doesn't really use bronzer, it's a big deal to be recommending one in this list. I don't know if it's the blendable texture, the matte colour or the way that it hydrates skin at the same time, but this is possibly one of the best bronzers I've ever tried. I basically just scrawl it over my cheeks, nose and forehead, and then blend it out with my fingers for a really subtle, sunkissed glow. Although it looks deep in the tube, it's surprisingly sheer, so I've never overdone it while applying it. While I wasn't blown away by Milk Makeup's original Blur Stick, this new illuminating version is right up my street. It uses golden blur pigments and blurring microspheres to both brighten skin and absorb excess oil at the same time. On weekends when I'm just pottering about the house, I'll apply just this over moisturiser to brighten and even out my skin tone, but on normal days, I'll apply it under makeup, focusing on my cheeks and forehead (where my pores tend to be most visible). The newest launch from Milk Makeup comes courtesy of these mini multipurpose formulas. The same concept as the brand's original Lip + Cheek sticks (you can use them to add color all over your face), these ones have more of a sheer formula with a beautifully dewy finish. Astro is my favorite—a soft, radiant blackberry hue that I think would work well on all skin tones. These will really come into their own during summer. This post originally appeared on Who What Wear UK.

[howellrichard]

12 Cruelty-Free Makeup Brands to Add to Your Makeup Bag

Hiya Gorgeous!

Do the labels on your go-to makeup products make you do a double-take? What ARE all of those impossible-to-pronounce ingredients, anyway… and are they safe?

If you’re a makeup lover like me, you might wonder if you’ll ever find healthier alternatives that work just as well as your go-to brands. Because when it comes to makeup, terms like eco-friendly and vegan haven’t always gone hand-in-hand with professional quality. But don’t put your brushes away just yet—beautiful cruelty-free makeup DOES exist, and that’s exactly what we’re talking about today!

As a kid, watching my mom do her makeup was one of my favorite activities.

I’d join her in the bathroom every morning—perched on the toilet, transfixed by each and every brushstroke. She was the glamorous teacher and I was the eager student.

My fascination only grew when I got one of those 70s Barbie styling heads, remember those? She came with her very own makeup palette: bright red, baby blue and pea green (gorg!!). I practiced on her all the time—poor Barbie had her fair share of makeup mishaps. Luckily, she was a very patient customer.

It wasn’t long until I started begging my parents for my first lip gloss, which was a big N-O until I was 13. But you probably know by now how I feel about that no word… So I’d sneak my Barbie palette onto the school bus and do my bold makeup when she wasn’t looking. And let’s just say it was bold enough to garner more than my fair share of sideways stares!

As I evolved over the years, so did my taste in makeup.

My career as a professional actress and dancer motivated me to refine my skills, and I learned a thing or two from the incredibly talented makeup artists I worked with along the way! Today, I feel most like myself with a more natural, toned-down look. And when I’m working from home, running my business and leading my unicorn team from my laptop, I prefer to let my skin breathe and just be me—totally makeup free.

But don’t get me wrong, I still love makeup! It can be a wonderful creative outlet and way to express ourselves. I’ve just learned that I don’t NEED it to feel beautiful or confident, and neither do you!

I’m also a lot more conscious about the cosmetics I do and don’t use.

Since going vegan and better educating myself about my carbon footprint, I pay much closer attention to what goes my makeup, as well as how it’s tested and its impact on the environment. To be honest, sometimes I’m still taken aback by the nasty junk hidden in our personal care products. Not to mention the brands that continue to use animal testing… what?!

I have good news, though—cosmetics don’t have to come at the cost of your conscience! The cruelty-free makeup brands I’m about to share are changing the face of the beauty industry by making kinder products without sacrificing quality.

12 Cruelty-Free Makeup Brands to Add to Your Makeup Bag

1. Thrive Causemetics

Every single product from this fabulous brand is vegan and cruelty-free. But that’s not all, Thrive Causemetics also gives back with every purchase. That’s right—every single product sold results in a donation to support domestic abuse survivors, women fighting cancer, women seeking a path out of homelessness or women veterans. You can learn more about Thrive’s mission here.

In my makeup bag: The Brilliant Eye Brightener and Liquid Lash Extensions Mascara make my peepers shine!

2. Milk Makeup

What can I say? I’m a sucker for cruelty-free with a side of cute branding! But Milk Makeup’s products aren’t just beautiful on the outside—they’re also vegan and cruelty-free. They even have a list of ingredients they promise never to use up on their website!

In my makeup bag: The Kush Fiber Brow Gel is super easy to apply and gives my brows a polished yet natural look. And the Flex Concealer provides comfy (not cakey!) coverage all day long.

3. Mineral Fusion

You might have spotted this EWG Verified brand at Whole Foods or your local health food store, which means you don’t have to make a separate trip to restock on your faves! All of Mineral Fusion’s products are cruelty-free and made in the US, and you can check out a list of vegan options on the FAQ page on their site.

In my makeup bag: I love Mineral Fusion’s vegan nail polish in the shade Tiara— it always makes me feel like a queen!

4. Beautycounter

This cruelty-free makeup brand is raising awareness about something we don’t hear much about—issues with the mica industry. Mica is used in a lot of cosmetics, but it’s often not responsibly sourced (learn more in the informative video here). I love seeing brands use their platforms to educate consumers! Check out Beautycounter’s vegan makeup options here.

In my makeup bag: This Velvet Eyeshadow Palette is full of gorgeous statement shades with fantastic color payoff. And the Sheer Lipstick in the shade Petal is one of my all-time faves!

5. Cover FX

I dig Cover FX for a lot of reasons, but the diverse shade range they offer for foundations is at the top of my list! Many makeup brands exclude folks, especially people of color, by having really limited shade ranges. I support brands like CoverFX because they’re committed to inclusion. Their products don’t come cheap, but it’s worth the investment if you can swing it!

In my makeup bag: The Natural Finish Foundation and pretty much everything else for that matter—did I mention they’re 100 percent vegan and cruelty-free?

6. EcoTools

EcoTools proves that sometimes it IS a good idea to put all your vegan eggs in one basket! They’ve got one mission—making vegan makeup brushes that look, feel and work even better than the alternatives made with animal hair. They also use recycled and renewable materials like bamboo. Even their packaging is made of tree-free paper. EcoTools brushes are also affordable, what more could we ask for?!

In my makeup bag: The Ultimate Shade Duo for my eyes and the 360 Ultimate Blend set for my face!

7. Juice Beauty

This brand lives up to its name by using botanical juice concentrates instead of water as the base for their makeup and skincare. That means their products don’t just look great—they’re also packed with antioxidants and other vitamins, as well as good-for-you phytonutrients and hydroxy acids. Turns out juice is more than just a delicious drink!

In my makeup bag: The Phyto-Pigments Last Looks Cream Blush in the shade Flush is a gloriously smooth pop of color for my cheeks!

And more cruelty-free brands for your makeup bag!

I don’t have them all on hand at once (like I said, my makeup routine is pretty minimalist these days!), but here are some more notable cruelty-free brands that deserve shoutouts!

8. e.l.f Cosmetics makes some of the most affordable vegan and cruelty-free makeup out there. I like their 16-Hour Camo Concealer and the Charcoal Hydrogel Under Eye Masks for a soothing treat!

9. W3ll People’s Hypnotist Eye Pencil is a longtime love of mine (if you’ve been following me for a while, you might remember that it was also featured in my What’s in my Makeup Bag post back in 2017!). It creates the perfect cat eye for date night… meow!

10. Axiology makes cruelty-free, vegan lipstick in knockout shades. I haven’t yet, but I can’t wait to try one of their Sheer Balms!

11. Urban Decay is always expanding their vegan options—their Naked Skin Color Correcting Fluids are incredible!

12. Anastasia Beverly Hills has some great vegan highlighters—I’m a big fan of the Sun Dipped Glow Kit.

Conscious Cosmetics 101

I hope you saw something (or a couple of somethings) that you’re excited to try! You might also be wondering how to find and evaluate your own cruelty-free faves. And lucky for you, that’s what this section is all about! These must-have tips will help you navigate the makeup aisle with ease.

Cruelty-free vs. vegan

Many folks assume that if something is labeled as vegan, it must also be cruelty-free (and vice versa). But these terms each have specific implications and are often used independently. Cruelty-free cosmetics have not been tested on animals, whereas vegan cosmetics don’t contain any animal-derived ingredients. I know it can be confusing, but just being aware of the difference will empower you to make buying decisions that align with your values!

Animal testing

We covered what cruelty-free means, but I want to be crystal clear: animal testing is a hard no in my book, end of story. Many cruelty-free makeup brands are doing just fine testing their products on humans, so as far as I’m concerned, there’s no excuse to keep hurting innocent animals. Some countries still require animal testing before products can be sold, but I prefer to stick with brands that prioritize kindness over profit.

Greenwashing

It’s cool to be eco-friendly these days, right? Many brands really do care about the environment, but some just see green… as in money. Trends like these open up opportunities for brands to capitalize without actually changing their practices.

Watch out for products that use generic terms like “natural” or packaging that gives the appearance of sustainability without any legit certifications or proof to back up their claims. Same goes for brands that claim to be organic—the FDA doesn’t regulate that term for personal care products like it does for food, so you might need to do a little digging. Knowledge is power, toots!

Certifications

We know that labels can be misleading, so what’s the best way to find products you can really trust? Certifications, baby! There are many options out there, such as EWG Verified, NSF Certified, Certified Vegan and Leaping Bunny Certified. You’ll come across a variety of logos and stamps of approval in your cruelty-free makeup search, so I encourage you to do your research and seek out the certifications that resonate with you most.

Please keep in mind that certifications can be cost-prohibitive, especially for new or smaller brands. If you don’t see the certification you’re looking for, consider asking the brand for more info about their practices. Any company worth its salt will be happy to fill you in. And you never know, maybe your feedback will motivate them to pursue a certification!

Supply chains

This is an issue that trips up many cruelty-free makeup connoisseurs, so it might come up for you as you learn more. Vetting brands can get really complicated when you take into account where they get their raw materials, because suppliers aren’t always required to adhere to the same standards as the brand itself.

But trying to trace every last ingredient in your cosmetics back to the source can be incredibly frustrating, so I don’t recommend it! The best thing you can do is stick with brands that offer plenty of info about their products. Trust me, companies that go the extra mile to ensure consistent standards across their supply chain want you to know about it. And you don’t have to rule out the rest—tell brands you love that you want more transparency. Your voice is powerful!

Trusted resources

You might be wondering how to keep track of all these details, not to mention how much research you’ll have to do next time you need new mascara! But don’t fret, dear one. This isn’t about knowing every DO and DON’T off the top of your head. Instead, the key is finding a trusted resource to help with some of the heavy lifting.

For me, that’s the Environmental Working Group’s (EWG) Skin Deep Database. It contains hazard ratings for nearly 70,000 products and 9,000 ingredients on the market… Can you say wow? All you have to do is enter a new brand you’re considering or an ingredient you’ve never heard of in the search bar and ta da—the info you need to make conscious choices, at your fingertips!

Enjoy your cosmetics without compromise!

I shared a lot of info today, so give yourself time to process and learn more about the causes you care about most. And as you explore the world of cruelty-free makeup, please remember that your worth is not defined by your appearance. You are kind, smart, sensitive, loving and everything in between—that’s what matters. Have fun with your makeup but more importantly, have fun with your life!

Your turn: What’s your favorite cruelty-free makeup or personal care product? Or if you don’t have one yet, which brand from my list will you try?

Peace & conscious cosmetics,

The post 12 Cruelty-Free Makeup Brands to Add to Your Makeup Bag appeared first on KrisCarr.com.

[doof-doofblog]

"I Want Her Out - Now!"

Monday 5th April 2021

Good Afternoon everyone! Hope you've all had an enjoyable week so far! I apologise for being so late, I've been dealing with a few personal things before I go back to work next week! Anyway before we jump into the episode, I need to mention the gorgeous new promo picture that has been released, I am sure you've all seen it by now! But honestly I think's beautiful and yet really haunting! Both Whitney and Kush look like the brand new happily engaged couple, while in the shadows lurks a jealous Gray! Is Gray going to cause heartbreak for Whitney? Is his jealousy and anger going to get the better of him that he actually ends up murdering Kush?! What do you make of the new promo picture?! I'd love to hear your thoughts!

We also know that the new trailer for next week has dropped! I have to say it looks pretty exciting, finally the return of Nancy and Kush appears in court. Could Gray possibly sabotage Kush's court case in an attempt to get rid of him for longer than expected?! There are all sorts of directions the outcome could go for Kush's exit. I'd love to know what you guys think! 

Anyway, back to Monday's episode, I'm going to begin with Sheree, Lola and Isaac. It looks as if things are going well for the new couple, Lola and Isaac! Lola seems to have accepted and come to terms with Isaac's diagnosis, however Sheree still seems to act as if she thinks Lola is no good for her son. That's the vibe I'm getting anyway. She watches from the wings as Isaac gushes over Lola and offers to rush a grab her a pasty for her breakfast, as he rushes out to get his new girlfriend something delicious, Sheree once again approaches Lola. I think she's almost trying to scare the poor girl, informing her that she doesn't want her son to have a relapse and the only thing that caused it the last time was when he had his heart broken. Lola tries her absolute best to convince Sheree that she's not going to break Isaac's heart, but Sheree informs her that if she can't see herself being with Isaac for the long haul then it's best if she was to leave him sooner rather than later. I did feel sorry for Lola during this moment, it's as if Sheree has something against her, even though the poor girl has never done anything wrong? I get she's a very protective Mother and wants what's best for her son, but scaring his current girlfriend away isn't really going to help the situation. 

After doing a runner to get some time to herself, Isaac finds Lola in the cafe. There she voices her concerns about what Sheree had told her, Isaac is stunned to hear that once again his Mum has been interfering with his love-life! In an attempt to console his new girlfriend, he reassures her that he is in full control of his illness and he states that he will decide what affects him and what doesn't, claiming that Lola would never be at the centre of an issue with his illness. Although I have to say while watching this scene and they're all smiles, why did I get the feeling it's a bad omen and something bad is going to happen regarding Isaac's illness? Doesn't it seem a bit inevitable?! 

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Okay so the next small thing I need to focus on is Iqra and Mila, much to Iqra's shock, Kim informs her that the article revolving around Kim's new business has gone live, but unfortunately the picture of Iqra and Mila that was asked to not be in the article, has made it online. This of course sets Iqra into a panic of course remembering what Mila told her about her family. 

Later on, we can see that Iqra happens to be working and Mila arrives to see her, poor Mila looks as if she has no knowledge about the article and picture going up online. Trying to be as polite as possible, she softly breaks the news to Mila. Understandably, Mila is less than happy with the news she's been given, but Iqra tries her best to reassure her that she's gotten in touch with the publishing company and they've removed the image from the article, however it didn't happen straight away and the image was still online for a couple of hours, the big question is, did the image come down from the article in time before anyone in Mila's family saw it?! Something tells me that perhaps not ...! 

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So the next thing I have to mention is Sharon, she's managed to get her hands on her new business empire. One thing I have to note is the reveal of the old gym! As we saw how old it looked and the abandoned state it was in, I funnily enough recognise it! I can't recall the year but I do recall a very long time ago that Ronnie and Jack owned an underground gym, with a boxing ring?! I vaguely remember seeing that! Please tell me whether anyone else remembers?! Feeling proud of new empire, she calls in both Jean and Mo to clean the place up so she can get to work on getting the gym back in business. Unfortunately for Sharon, Jean lashes out at her - for reasons we can completely understand I'll discuss shortly. But Jean basically lashes out at the business woman, claiming that people like her get everything they want while other people have to suffer and struggle with their every day lives. Jean point black refuses to clean the room, also considering that it smells of sweat men and dirty underpants! (Ew!) 

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I guess this is where I bring Jean into it. Poor Jean is having to deal with the loss of her daughter going to prison for something she hasn't done, her Grandchildren now living across the Square with their Dad and "Evil" Stepmum, plus she's having to deal with her cancer all on her own, I guess it's understandably why Jean lashed out at Sharon in the first place!

But before Jean even felt this feeling of anger and upset boil up inside her, Mo convinced her to take her anger out on the punching back in the old gym before they start the cleaning. Mo throws her a pair of punching gloves and goads her to give it a good bash! I have to admit, this particular moment where Jean is pounding the punching bag, roaring like Tarzan, I found it incredibly cute and quite funny, god bless her, as she seems to get into it she's interrupted by a phone call. 

As the words begin to spread around the family, we begin to learn that Jean and Mo have learned the devastating news that Stacey has been sentenced to a year in prison, and not just the 6 months that they were expecting. Clearly Jean is visibly devastated, she begins to question Mo what could happen in that time, most importantly, "What if I'm not here?" - of course referring to her cancer diagnosis, but it's just unfortunate that no one in the family knows about her cancer, other than Ruby!! 

This news of being away from her daughter for longer than expected is what drives Jean to lash out at Sharon, why is it that people like Sharon get to be successful and yet everything in Jean's life appears to be falling apart?! I just to say though, I've said it before and I'm going to say it again, I can't applaud Gillian Wright loud enough for her fantastic performance as Jean Slater! I have absolutely loved her character from the very beginning, I would be absolutely devastated if EastEnders where to kill her off! ESPECIALLY if they were to kill her off before Stacey's return - that would be just bloody heart-breaking! Will Jean possibly change her mind about having treatment that in the hope of her getting better she could be well by the time Stacey returns? Who knows?! As Jean and Mo walk out of the gym, leaving Sharon to find other people do to the cleaning for her, they both head for home to find a delivery van parked right up against the entrance of their house. Ironically the delivery happens to be for Sharon, happening to be all her new gym equipment. Even though Mo informs the delivery driver about her mistake, Jean is once again overcome with frustration and anger.

Trying to get a point across to the delivery driver that she simply can't get into he house, the delivery driver simply doesn't do anything to help, she simply doesn't care and is just doing her job be delivering goods, regardless of where she parks her van. As things seem to escalate, Jean notices that the van has been left unlocked. Taking matters into her own hands, Jean quickly jumps inside the van and starts the engine, this is where the events taking place seem to grab everyone's attention. Both the delivery driver and Mo instruct Jean to get out of the vehicle, otherwise she'll be joining Stacey in prison! (Even though this appears to be something Jean actually wants!) 

As the locals begin to see what's happening, Sharon also happens to watch from across the Square the shenanigans taking place, but it's only when Mo informs her that Jean is driving away with her goods that she jumps into action. In an attempt to stop Jean from doing something she regrets the begin to chase after the vehicle, but Jean speeds off abruptly, causing all the gym equipment to fall out of the back of the van. I know the next episode has already aired and you guys may have already seen what happens next, but I just hope that Jean will be okay, will she realise her mistake?! 

--

Lastly, after moving in with her Dad and "Evil" stepmum, Lily is doing everything she can to make Ruby's life a living hell, waking up the whole household with karaoke at 7 in the morning! (Also Mamma Mia is an epic tune to do karaoke too!). Although Lily has dragged her young siblings into causing chaos to annoy their Stepmum, Ruby walks in demanding that they stop their rowdy behaviour and switches the music, however as soon as Martin comes in after hearing the commotion, he understands the excitement his children must be feeling for living with him again and ignores his wife's frustration and turns the music back on, much to Lily's delight!  

As the day goes on and the word spreads about Stacey having to spend a whole year in prison, Lily's mood is understandably sunken that it was earlier. As Ruby tries to console her Stepdaughter, she claims she wants to try and cheer her up by taking her into town and spoiling her on a new outfit. At first Lily seems tempted but she soon realises that because of her, her own Mum is going spending a lot longer amount of time away from her and informs Ruby that she will pay for what she's done! 

Meanwhile, as Martin catches up with Kush in the Vic and they both come to terms with the news of Stacey's sentence, Kush begins to question how they're going to look after the kids and questions whether Arthur would like to live with him and Whitney for a while before Kush has to go to trial. Of course at this moment in time, Kush has no idea that the children have moved in with Martin and Ruby, and when Martin fills him in, I think it's fair to say that Kush is less than impressed. Mainly because of Ruby, of course he believes his son Arthur would be safe in Martin's hands, but when he questions whether Ruby is up for it, it's plain to see that he doesn't trust Ruby with his son. Especially when she was the one who manipulated him in leaving the Square with Arthur and bribed him with her money! Oooo the more this story goes on, the more I hope that Martin will soon learn about Ruby's lies! She has to be found out at some point, right?! 

Later, Ruby finds Lily and little Hope causing more mayhem in her house, it looks as if this time Lily has gone into Ruby's wardrobe and decided to play "Dress Up" with her clothes! As Ruby dismisses Hope, she approaches demanding an explanation, but Lily reveals that they were bored, but they had more fun once the scissors came out! To her absolute horror and dismay, Ruby finds that placed across her living room table, a white gown has been ripped and torn into shreds! 

Ruby lashes out and Lily, calling her a "Cow", as Martin returns from his catch up with Kush he walks in to the commotion and asks what's going on, it's then that Ruby informs him that Lily has destroyed her dead's Mum's wedding dress and without a word from Martin, she claims she no longer wants Lily living with them and demands she leave the house immediately! I have to say from Lily's reaction of shock, I think she didn't seem to know it was her Mum's wedding dress perhaps she thought it was something else? Or - big possible twist - is Ruby playing Lily at her own game and it isn't her Mother's wedding dress at all?! 

Again, I know more episodes have been aired an I don't know the outcome, so please no spoilers, but I'm looking forward to seeing what happens next. I apologise once again for this post being so late but I hope I'll be able to catch up very soon, it's most likely that my next post will be a double episode post again! I'm away from my computer this weekend and I'm back in work on Monday, so I'll try and do my next post Monday evening! Thank you all again for your support, it really does mean the world! I'll look forward to hearing any questions you may have for me! Thank you for reading, enjoy your weekend! Love you all xXx

[doof-doofblog]

"Hello, Sis!"

Tuesday 6th April 2021

Hello again everyone! Wow! Feels like it's been a while since I last posted, I had a very busy week last week and again this week being back at work! I'm sure you must all be happy regarding the lockdown easing ever so slowly! I've come to the realisation that now I'm back to the day job, my posts will have to be done in the evenings, so I apologise if some of them seem late from now on. I'm planning on possibly doing another blog post tomorrow and then a double on Thursday in an attempt to catch up! I know the majority of you have already seen last week's episodes, it seems I have a lot of catching up to do!

We know that things are supposed to be kicking off this week (commencing 12th April) due to the return of Nancy Carter and the possible outcome of Kush's trial? I do have a fear Kush may be killed off and become another victim of Gray's but I am hoping that that doesn't happen! But before we can even begin to get excited about it, I need to post about the episodes that you guys have seen, but unfortunately I haven't.

So without further ado, I'm going to begin chatting about Isaac. It seems that Sheree seems to have overstepped the mark regarding both Lola and Patrick. I mean of course she is acting as the concerned Mum and Wife, but she needs to realise that there are some things she can't interfere with. Patrick has been offered the opportunity to go on blood thinners as an experiment for stroke victims - (at least that's the jist I got from it anyway!) - but Sheree is standing her ground claiming she doesn't want her husband to take part in it, purely because she fears for his health. Again, I can understand her concern but she can't stop Patrick from doing something he may want to do, considering he's already suffered two strokes whilst on the Square, he'll want to do his part in helping other victims.

But also where Lola is concerned, Sheree is still interfering in her son's relationship, for a brief moment it looked as if she had scared poor Lola off! Finally Isaac has sat his Mum down and told her straight to stop interfering with everybody's lives, even claiming that some times she can come across as controlling, even though her concern comes from a good place. For the first time in a long time, Isaac is feeling ready to enter another relationship, and he informs her Mum that with Lola, it feels right, he's slowly falling for her and there could be chance that she is feeling the same and the relationship could become serious?!

As Isaac instruct his Mum to kind of back off, Lola appears to have escaped to the Vic. Oh and once again Peter seems it's necessary to poke his nose into business that has nothing to do with him! Urgh, I really don't know about any one else, but for me personally - Peter is one of the worst characters the soap has right now, not in the sense of villainy, but just as a whole - his attitude towards his family, thinking he's the big I AM, urgh I don't like him, I really don't! Something has to change with this Peter I think, what about you guys?! Do you agree or do you think I'm being a little bit harsh? Either way he insults Lola and manages to persuade her to tell him what's on her mind. Believing he's a trusted friend, Lola confides in Peter, informing him about Isaac's diagnosis - something I fear she will possibly live to regret. But after her meeting with Peter, she eventually meets up with Isaac in the club and he informs her to not let his Mother scare her off, Isaac has full control over his illness right now and there would be no way for Lola to trigger any kind of breakdown. Let's hope things remain this way, right? But something is telling me that with all this positivity and reassuring that Isaac is fine and he has everything under control, something is telling me that eventually Isaac will have some form of breakdown and hopefully EastEnders will be able to have an opportunity to portray what having schizophrenia is really like!

--

Oooooo and what is this?! A possible new love interest for Bernie?! It's about bloody time!!! So, I'm sure the majority of you know that the Taylor family have taken in a new dog named Banjo after finding him on the streets and assuming he was a stray. Unfortunately, since the dog has been in their possession, some flyers advertising the lost dog have been spreading around the Square. Mitch was the first one to notice them, but not wanting to break his young daughter's heart, after their new family member has brought her so much happiness, he disposed of the flyer and never said a word about it to his family.

Now after this young girl seems to catch her eye on the Square, denying to Bailey that she's does not have a crush on her, she claims that she was just interested in the girl's flyer's. As Bailey goads her to ask for one, Bernadette comes to realise what the girl is advertising. (Also just zooming through the end credits of the episode now, there happen to be two female names of who this young lady could be - "Clara" or "Molly" - It'll be interesting if she was to show up again!) Taking the flyer back home, Bernie sadly informs her Mum and Mitch that a girl is out there looking for her dog, who they happen to have living with them, and his name isn't Banjo, it's Ziggy!

At first it seems the Taylor's are in a bit of a denial, it's understandable that they've grown to love the dog, but when Karen calls him by the name "Ziggy", the dog automatically responds. Bernie claims that they have to do the right thing and return the dog to it's rightful owner, however Mitch is looking deeply suspicious as Karen realises that he knew about the flyer's a couple of weeks ago and never said anything. He claims he didn't want to break Bailey's heart after all the loss she's had in recent months. It's then that Karen happens to agree with Mitch and states that the dog will be staying with them. They instruct Bernie to call the girl up and give her false story about the dog. Poor Bernadette isn't one for lying, so it's quite funny and yet sweet when she attempts to make up a story about the dog being lashed into a van to the unknown female. But it seems the girl can see right through Bernie and claims that she saw the way she was looking at her in the Square and offers to buy her a drink. Even though Bernie is already hiding the fact that she has her dog, could this be the start of new relationship for her?!

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Ooh yea, so Ruby and Lily are still at loggerheads with each other! After devastatingly realising that Lily has cut her deceased Mum's wedding dress to pieces, Ruby is demanding that Lily leaves the house. Even though Lily isn't Ruby's biggest fan right now, it's clear that she had no idea that the dress belonged to her Mum, but it turns out she might've known that it was a special piece of clothing as Ruby states the dress was kept in a box at the back of her cupboard.

As Martin sends his daughter upstairs to get changed out of Ruby's clothes, he begins to think of some kind of punishment for his daughter, informing his wife that Lily is simply just missing her Mum. However it seems that Ruby's day goes from bad to worse, after discovering the state of her Mother's ripped dress, she informs her husband that she got a call from the clinic. It turns out the Ruby could most likely have endometriosis and that their fears about not having any more children is more likely. Devastatingly, endometriosis is severe and it could mean that she may not be able to have any more children in the future, sadly the one she lost might've been her only chance of being a Mum.

Understandably devastated for his wife, Martin realises he needs to do something to cheer her up. As Lily recovers from changing out of Ruby's clothes, Martin informs Ruby that Lily's punishment is to give her no access to any electronics for a week, and in an attempt to make things up to Ruby, Lily "apparently" has offered to give up her birthday money if it means there could be a way to salvage the ruined wedding dress. Ruby is visibly touched by the kind gesture, claiming that she didn't mean what she said about wanting her to move out, she claims that being her Stepmother - she'll always have a place to stay with them. Lily just simply smiles.

As Martin informs his wife of bubble bath waiting for her upstairs, Ruby thanks her Stepdaughter once again and leaves the room. As Martin follows, giving her the thumbs-up, it seems as if they think Lily will be okay and there'll be no more issues, but from the look on Lily's face, she really doesn't seem happy. Something was telling me that maybe she was being forced to apologise to Ruby? She clearly didn't mean her apology, is she still going to make Ruby's life a living nightmare?!

--

Oh Jean!!! Poor Jean!! I know I mentioned it in the last post, but I'm going to mention it again, I cannot applaud Gillian Wright enough for her performance as Jean! Jean clearly isn't coping with having her daughter back inside again while she's suffering a terminal illness, all she wants really is to be back with her daughter. As everyone gathers and sees the commotion, Sharon comes to realise that the only reason Jean is acting this way and holding herself up in the vehicle is because she wants to be with her daughter.

In an attempt to get Jean out of the van, Sharon pleads to the police to let her talk to her softly. As she approaches the fragile woman in the vehicle, she explains that even though she understands how Jean is feeling, the actions she's currently doing won't help her in any way. Even though Jean wants to be arrested in an attempt to be with her daughter, Sharon informs her that if she was to get arrested and put in prison, there is no guaranteed chance that she'd end up in the same prison as Stacey, in hindsight the only thing she'd get out of it is probably a criminal record and a hefty fine.

Realising her mistake and that possibly her actions may not get her close to her daughter, Jean agrees to switch off the engine and leave the vehicle. Now the next scene between Sharon and Jean I found funny but really touching also, I don't know why but I've loved the friendship that they've begun to build with these two characters. Two women I never thought would have each other's backs, but it seems that they are both struggling with things in their personal life, and I just LOVED how they both fell about laughing about the outcome of things, Sharon realising she's a single Mother with no money and how Jean has almost corrupted her new gym business. I found the scene really heart-warming as both the women agreed that sometimes shouting out to life itself is sometimes the only thing they have left?

I just loved it, it was as if they have a mutual understanding of each other and they found some common ground. Jean opened up to Sharon and Sharon opened up to Jean, even informing her about discovering a long lost brother that she's still unsure of whether to contact or not. But as Jean claims that having family around you is one of the most important things, Sharon seems to see it as another man in her life who she doesn't really need and decides to bin the phone number.

However, later as Sharon unfortunately misses her date with Kheerat and ends up drinking alone, Jean excitedly approaches her new found friend, even though she appears excited she also seems a little nervous and jittery. Admitting she might've overstepped the mark, she repeats the fact that Sharon needs her family around her and considering she hasn't got that many members of her family left ..... ?! Sharon questions what Jean has done and it's only when they get out onto the Square they see a car pulling up and stepping out of it, appears Zack! Jean only contacted her brother! But the interesting thing that gets me, Zack greets Sharon by calling her "Sis!" - last time he saw her, he had no idea who she was, just another person who attended his Dad's funeral, does this mean that Jean informed about Sharon's true identity?!

Either way, I'm super excited to see what happens next, I'll be sure to follow up this post with another one tomorrow. I once again apologise for this being super late, I'm going to try my very best to catch up, regardless at being back to the day job! Thank you all for reading! I hope you enjoy the rest of your evening. Please feel free to leave me any messages or comments about EastEnders and I'll happily reply! Love you all xXx

[doof-doofblog]

"Please Don't Send My Baby To Prison!"

Tuesday 23rd March 2021

Hello again everyone! Hope you're all doing well! Before I start to review this episode I have a little bit of news to share with you. We all know that Stacey will be leaving Walford as Lacey Turner goes on Maternity Leave, however it has been revealed that Stacey's final appearance before she temporarily leaves will be on 1st April. It is looking likely that Stacey will end up going to prison for an alleged assault on Ruby, but I have also read that she will return to our screens in late August.

So with that little bit of news, let's focus on the episode. I'm going to begin with the Panesar family, it looks as if they've become victims of vandalism, Vinny is seen cleaning vulgar graffiti off the shutters of their shop. From what I can gather, since their arrival on the Square, the Panesar's have been living their every day life with the power and determination that they wouldn't become victims like I assume they have been in the past. Suki informs her sons that devastatingly it's going to be at least another week until they can get some new shutters for the shop. They begin to ponder on who could've vandalised their shop, Kheerat questions whether it could've been a bunch of teenagers, but Vinny speaks up and admits he has an idea who could've targeted their shop.

He reveals to his Mum and brother that instead of following their orders, he made his own decision to go to the police and give a statement about the night he was approached by those youths. With this news, both Suki and Kheerat are furious with Vinny and Suki instructs him to go and finish cleaning the shutter of the shop and give it two new coats of paint! Personally, I think Vinny did the right thing in approaching the police, I'm glad he took his own initiative and decided to the do the right thing for a change instead of following his family's rules.  

As Suki and Kheerat are left alone, they begin to have a conversation which really surprises me. Suki seems to let her guard down and open up about their past, she claims that seeing the horrible words on the shutter "Brought it all back!" - brought what back exactly?! Oooo there are so many dark secrets about their past I'm feeling really excited for it all to be revealed. I think it'll definitely give us an insight as to why Suki is the way she is. As their conversation continues and Suki recalls the time Kheerat was being bullied at school, something got me thinking that maybe they were judged simply because of their religion or something? Of course I could be completely wrong and it might've been something else entirely!

It seems that this conversation between Kheerat and Suki gives us a small insight to what they had to suffer with during their past. Kheerat happens to mention that he'd like to see his Father for his 60th birthday, but Suki suggests that it's not a good idea and they should keep their distance. It's then that Kheerat claims that his Father is in prison for something he hasn't done, and it should be someone else in prison instead of him. As far as I can gather, they had been victims of arson. With the mention of the Father, it makes me question whether EastEnders are considering bringing in their Dad into the soap. If they do I think it'll be brilliant to reveal the full family story.

--

The next thing I have to mention is of course Mick! It's a new day of him being back in the Vic where he and Linda belong, at first he seems to be in a completely positive and happy mood to take on a new day as he walks outside into the Square. However, as he looks around the neighbourhood, he can't help but notice the headline on the newspaper that people are reading. Even though the story doesn't officially name him, he can't help but feel scared at the thought of people finding out the truth, taking deep breaths he hurries back inside the pub.

Meanwhile from across the Square, Stuart watches with concern as Mick hurries back into the Vic. Callum has managed to get him a visit with Frankie, but what does he really want with her? As Mick takes himself to his bedroom to get some space, Stuart meets Frankie outside of the Car Lot, acting as if he needs her help with a deaf customer. As he instructed her to go into the building first, I genuinely thought he was going to lock her in, but instead he follows in after her. As Linda tries to console her husband, Mick gets a notification from Stuart on his phone, but it seems to happen more than once. As Mick looks at his phone something completely startles him and he hurries out to find Frankie, has Stuart actually harmed her?!

Luckily Frankie seems to be unharmed, but it's clear to see that something suspicious is going on. I have to admit, this whole section I thought was brilliant! There is an awkward silence between Stuart and Frankie to begin with, but when she questions about the customer they're supposed to be seeing, Stuart seems to get away with himself. Informing her that he has a deep hatred towards the customer, they have a habit of betrayed their trust - obviously, there is no customer and Stuart is dropping huge hints that he's aware about Frankie's Mum. As things seems to escalate, Frankie knows that she could be in danger, with Stuart lashing out at her she pulls out a pepper spray to protect herself.

Luckily Mick arrives in time before anyone can get hurt, instructing Frankie to go back to the Vic and stay with Linda, Stuart is completely stunned to why Mick is being so nice towards her, considering it was her Mum who ruined his life. Mick tries to explain that Frankie is just a victim as much as he is, but Stuart refuses to listen and doesn't believe it. He questions why he cares so much for Frankie, it's then that Mick finally reveals the truth to him and admits that Frankie is in fact his daughter! Again, I have to say this moment was absolutely fantastic, the pure look of shock on Stuart's face was brilliant! It was like a genuine look of disbelief! Realising that his best friend had became a Dad at the age of 12, without even his own knowledge about it, is a huge thing to take in. Realising his mistake, he makes a genuine apology to Mick and promises to leave Frankie alone. Unfortunately when Mick asks him to keep quiet about everything, Stuart informs him that Rainie also knows about his past, but reassures his friend that they will both keep quiet, his secret will be safe with them!  

Returning to the Vic, Mick states that he wants to make sure that Frankie is safe. It's not fair on her that she's having people giving her dirty looks in the street just because of what her Mum has done. She voices her concern about things happening again to what Stuart has just done. It's then that Mick informs his daughter that she should move in with them, even though he was completely overwhelmed by the idea the other day, he feels more certain that ever now that he wants to keep his daughter safe and if anyone gives them any aggravation or dirty looks in the street, then they'll face it together as a family. Linda smiles and offers Frankie Nancy's old room. - Watch this space now! As soon as Frankie makes herself comfortable in the Vic, Nancy will return!!! I'm telling you, now! That's what's going to  happen!!!

Also I just want to mention how happy I am that Frankie seems to be having more of a permanent role in the soap, I truly hope she'll continue to be a major part of the episode for a long time! I'm sure you guys have seen the beautiful new promo pictures of Frankie, it gives me a sense of happiness that even though she initially came in to be a friend to Ben and help with his storyline when he lost his hearing, I love that she's been given a major storyline and major role with the Carter family! She's an asset to the soap, Rose Ayling-Ellis is a brilliant actress! I have a feeling it might take Nancy to warm up to her half-sister, but I think Frankie and Nancy will be the new iconic sisters that the soap needs! What do you guys think?!

--

The final thing I need to mention is Jean. Is anyone else feeling sorry for Jean? Especially more so now after her bombshell at the end of the episode! The first time we see Jean is when she's out on the Square, Kush approaches her informing her that after hearing about her confrontation with Martin and Ruby, he's just being a friend and neighbourly and making sure that she's okay. Poor Jean, she gets herself all worked up at this moment, claiming that even though she is still taking her meds, she feels awful for confronting Martin and Ruby the way she did. Although regardless of her outburst, Jean was just doing what any Mother would have done, all she was doing was trying to stick up for her daughter.

She begins to fret about Martin, stating that he could do with a good friend at the moment. Bless her, she makes Kush promise her that he'll take Martin for a beer as he deeply needs a friend right now. As Kush and Martin later on meet at the club for a pint and being typical men (I have to say, I do love their bromance and I will truly miss it when Kush leaves). They way they were talking about Arthur joining a football team and cheering him on from the side-lines - brilliant! That moment did make me giggle. As the two men enjoy their catch up, we can Jean watching them through the club door window. Satisfied she interestingly makes her way into the office. At first I thought that Ruby was going to be in there and she was going to have another confrontation with her, however the room appears to be empty, while no one is around she sneaks a pair of keys out of a coat pocket makes her leave. What is she up to?! 

Eventually it all becomes clear what Jean's plan was. As Ruby appears from having a shower, she is stunned to see Jean just sitting in her living room waiting patiently for her. Ruby demands her to leave, but Jean informs her that she's not there to have another fight, she's simply calm and collected as she pours them both a cup of tea. Ruby has no idea what Jean is doing there or even how she got in. Jean eventually admits that she stole Martin's keys to get in, as she knew that if she was to ring on the doorbell she would've gotten a door slammed in her face. 

But when Ruby asks what Jean is after, it's this moment that gives the episode the most emotional twist, Jean reveals to Ruby that she's dying - wait, what?! At first Ruby doesn't believe her, but Jean goes into more detail explaining that her cancer has returned, but sadly this time it's terminal. Ruby can't seem to fathom what she's being told, she is in complete and utter shock! She points out the fact that she has beaten cancer once before and questions whether she's taking any treatment. But Jean softly explains that she doesn't see the point. Even though this moment was completely emotional, it really moved me how Jean kept reflecting on Daniel and how he treated his diagnosis and death. Jean also informs Ruby the devastating blow that Stacey has no idea about her illness. 

As we can clearly see, this puts Ruby in a devastating situation. As Jean starts to get a little teary, she explains that she won't be able to see Lily go to University but what's more of a shock is that she's concerned she won't be able to see little Hope be in the nativity this coming Christmas! - I'm sorry, but I have to say if EastEnders are planning on killing Jean off at Christmas, I will be completely heartbroken! I'd hate to see Jean be killed off, Gillian Wright has been absolute gem playing Jean Slater, there is simply no one else like her in the soap world, she is one of kind and I fear EastEnders would be completely lost without her. Explaining to Ruby that this could be her last full year of life, she tearfully pleads to her drop the charges against Stacey, pleading that she's going to need her by her side when she takes her last breath! Even though she sympathises with Ruby after she lost her baby, she begs her not to send her baby to prison! - Oh god, how bloody heart-breaking! 

Such a powerful performance from Gillian Wright, I absolutely love this woman, always has a way of bringing tears to your eyes! A brilliant episode, but again an emotional one! I'm really eager to see if Ruby will do what Jean asks, I hope there'll be some good in Ruby and she'll respect Jean's wishes. What do you think is going to happen? How will you feel if EastEnders decide to kill off Jean?! Please feel free to leave your thoughts and comments, I'll always reply! Thank you so much for reading! I'll be back very soon! Love you all xXx

[doof-doofblog]

"Honey! Can You Hear Me?!"

Thursday 29th October 2020

Good evening everyone! I apologise for this post being so late, unfortunately I was away from the TV and my computer/laptop over the weekend. I know I've missed so much recently but I'm hoping this week I'll be able to make up for it and catch up as much as I can before next week. Please bare with me! Thank you all for your patience and support. Before I jump into the episode, I want to share with you some news that has been announced this evening. It's been confirmed that the week commencing of 16th November, we will see Kim Fox return to the Square! Kim has been off our screens for over a year now due to actress Tameka Empson going on maternity leave, and also the slight delay of her return to the Covid-19 outbreak! I am absolutely thrilled to see Kim return! She is an absolute gold gem in the soap, she lights up the Square and gives the soap the comedy it needs, as well as some drama and a bit of sass! I absolutely love Kim and I am SO excited to see her return! Are you guys looking forward to seeing Kim return to Walford?!

Anyway, let's get to it! This episode begins with Honey responding to a message from her date, Paul, which read that he was looking forward to seeing her. It appears that this will be the second date he's asked her on. While she's smiling down at her phone, Jay and Lola enter the Minute Mart and are eager to know all about the hot date she's starting seeing. Lola is eager to hear all the gossip, Jay on the other hand seems to have the sensitive and sensible approach, informing Honey that she shouldn't be rushed into another relationship if she doesn't feel ready, she can take things slow if she wants to. Of course Lola and Jay are happy for her and want her to be happy, I guess none of us want to see Honey's heart broken again! 

Meanwhile, in the Café, Ruby finds Kush and approaches him about nicking money from the till of the club. To be fair, she didn't approach him in a rude way, just informed him that if he pays the money back, there'll be no more said about the matter. But instead of coming clean and admitting his wrong-doing, he denies all knowledge and acts quick to defend himself, leaving Ruby stunned by his reaction. On the Square, as Shirley and Tina are discussing Mick, Peter is wowed over Sonia's new car. As they continue their conversation, Shirley and Tina begin to ask Sonia questions about her new car, how she got it and how much it may cost, they're surprised to hear when she confesses that a co-worker offered her £2,000 for it! The topic of conversations turns again to the subject of Mick and Tina tries to persuade her sister to talk to her son, she makes the point that she can't be staying with Gray forever. Suddenly, Ian emerges and Peter is less than impressed to see his Dad, making comments about him sleeping on the Chippy floor, Ian admits that he stayed with Sharon after being kicked out, but the most big-headed thing he can say is that he's ready for Peter to apologise when ever he's ready, I almost feel like from Peter's reaction, he wants to go mad at his Dad, what has he got to apologise for? Ian put himself in this position in the first place and it was only a matter of time before Kathy found out about him re-mortgaging in the Café and forging her signature.

At the club, it looks like Ruby have called in the Slater girls in for some kind of meeting. Before she enters the room, Jean is concerned that something has happened whereas Stacey is convinced that Ruby will want to have a go at wrapping her hands around her throat. When Ruby appears, she informs them all and shows them the CCTV footage of Kush nicking £200 from her till. Kat is quick to defend her boyfriend and denies that the figure on the laptop screen is him, accusing Ruby of playing mind games. As much as Ruby has played games in the past, she tells Kat the hard truth that Kush has a gambling problem, Kat cannot believe a word she is hearing and is having none of it, she's calling Ruby all names under the sun, until Jean admits that what Ruby is saying is right. Kat is completely stunned and rushes out of the room. As she does so, Ruby turns to Stacey and sacks her on the spot, but in all honesty, what has Kush's stealing got to do with Stacey? It's fair to say they haven't been the best of buds lately, but what's the reason behind her sacking? - I don't quite understand that one?! 

At the restaurant, Walford East - FINALLY remembered the name of it! Honey is looking gorgeous as she enjoys her date with Paul, things are looking good so far. Honey seems to be enjoying the gentleman's company and she even confides in him about being cheated on in the past. As much as she appears to be enjoying herself, she asks Paul whether he would mind taking things slow, which he is more than happy to do so it seems. Paul even looks like he's enjoying himself, showering Honey with compliments and admitting he was looking forward to seeing her again. But - and this is a BIG BUT - once Honey is out of sight, as she leaves to use the bathroom, everything changes and the whole atmosphere goes dark, eerie music is playing as Paul pulls out a sachet of white powder from his pocket, and while no one is watching, he pours it into Honey's drinking! Spiking her drink! Is Honey's date about to take a terrifying turn? I have a very bad feeling about this Paul! 

Meanwhile, back at home, Kush is once again seen on his laptop gambling, he quickly hides the screen on the laptop as Kat enters the room. She confronts him dead on about him nicking money from Ruby's till, Kush's face drops as he realises he's been grassed up. Kat is completely disappointed in her boyfriend, telling him how he was the one who was supposed to be good, and not turn out like Alfie! As the conversation continues, Kat asks her boyfriend straight out whether he had a gambling problem. Kush shrugs it off and tries to convince her that he hasn't. He explains that he did have a bit of wobble after getting himself in a bit deep but he tries to reassure her that he has it all under control. Kat instructs him to pay Ruby back and she gives him one warning, in a way - she'll trust him and take his word for it, but if he makes her regret it, things will never be the same for them. Back at the club, Martin is devastated by his friend's actions, he wishes he could've helped him with his money issues. But when his wife tells him not worry as she has sorted it, Martin seems a bit confused how she has sorted the situation by outing him to the family and sacking the rest of them, as he points out - how are they going to be able to pay her back? This is an interesting scene, they haven't been married five minutes and things are already going wrong for the couple and it all seems to come down to the Slater's. Martin reminds Ruby that Stacey is the mother of his kids and - he can't just pick a side - he kind of needs to remain civil and see both parties and both points of view, but Ruby is adamant he needs to choose! 

At the Vic, the Slater girls look like they're drowning their sorrows, and coming to terms with what they've learned. Jean comes up with the idea of Kush writing a letter of apology - the next line made me giggle, Kat responds with "He could write it in Stacey's blood and it wouldn't make a difference!" - suddenly Kush rushes into the pub, completely ecstatic and full of excitement shouting for his girlfriend. Of course he first reaction is "What have you done?!" but he then informs his girlfriend that he's won 10 grand online. Kat is shocked by her boyfriend's outburst as she specifically instructed him to cash in and stop gambling, today! As Kush is eager to celebrate his win, Kheerat and Vinny happen to mention that they play poker for real, whereas Kush hides behind a screen. But Kat is quick inform them that Kush is no longer gambling, she tells Kush that he just got lucky this time and informs him if he hasn't got a problem, he needs to prove it to her! 

Back at the restaurant, it's clear to see that the stuff Paul spiked Honey's drink with has started to take affect. Honey is slurring her words and she seems to have no control over her actions and what she saying. As she appears to be enjoying herself, Isaac and Sheree walk in to find her on her date, Honey smiles and giggles as Isaac jokes about not being able to take her out on a date, he wishes both Honey and Paul luck as they go to their table. As the drug seems to take a stronger affect on Honey, she admits she's feeling hot and slowly stumbles her way to the bathroom. Paul watches on without any kind of emotion on his face! 

Back at the pub, Shirley is watching from a distance at Mick as he looks at his phone, he's still longingly waiting to hear from Frankie after messaging her asking if she was okay. I believe that Shirley is still unaware of Frankie being his daughter. She decides to give it another go and tries talking to her boy. She gives him a peace offering with a bottle from the bar, but Mick just doesn't seem interested at all! What he says to her is really harsh and it cuts her right through the heart, "You never were a Mum, and you never will be a Mum!" - as he walks off, you can see in Shirley's face that she has had enough of him speaking to her this way, she shouts for him and tells him to stop playing the victim - this speech I feel is quite an important one, as these words might come back to haunt Shirley, as she is completely unaware about Mick being sexually abused by Frankie's Mum, Katy. We know that that is what's playing on Mick's mind right now and is basically the reason why he's lashing out and pushing his loved ones away. Shirley is telling him that people have had it worse than him and that what she did, she did for him. She tells him that putting him into care would've given him the best life compared to the life he would've had with her - oooooh if only she knew what Mick is having to come to terms with. I feel this will be the big Christmas reveal, what do you guys think? I'm sure I read somewhere that it was going to be a sad Christmas for the Carter family - could Mick's abuse as a teenager be revealed?! 

Returning to the club, Dotty seems happy to have been given the choice of who to hire as the new cleaners of the club. Oh ... as this conversation continues I feel Dotty is putting an awful idea into Ruby's mind. Ruby informs Dotty that she can hire whoever she wants as long as it's not a Slater. Dotty then happens to mention that Suki is wanting the Slater family out of their house as she's wanting to refurbish the building into a HMO (A house in multiple occupation). Ruby smiles and seems very much interested in this information, we see her reach for her phone. What the heck is she planning?! 

Meanwhile, on the Square, Honey appears to be stumbling as she's walking round the corner after finishing her date, it looks as if she wanting to get home. The sound around her becomes completely fuzzy as she tries to call Jay but she can't quite seem to get her words out. Paul is acting all nice and friendly as he's gently offering to take her home. As this is happening, Jay and Lola are looking at properties in an estate agents. Jay seems to realise that he has a voice message from Honey, however as he listens to it, he reveals to Lola that she sounds drunk. Lola tries to persuade him that she's just having a good time, but something doesn't sit right with Jay. He admits that they don't really know anything about the guy she's on a date with. He goes off to find her. Back in the Vic, Shirley is sat alone as she's reeling from her confrontation with her son earlier. Mick is seen sat on the other side of the Vic. Shirley approaches Sonia who is sat alone and offers her £3,500 for her new car. Sonia seems surprised at first by her offer, but suddenly Mick pipes up and once again insults his mother. Saying that she's a disgrace for even asking to buy her car while she's been on the front line during a global pandemic. Or does that also make Sonia a victim to?! Ooo I don't know about you lot, but I really don't like seeing Mick and Shirley falling out. They've been through so much and I feel like this is one of the worst times I've seen them not talking. It's horrible to watch isn't it? As Mick and Sonia leave, Shirley notices that Sonia has left her car keys on the table, she slyly takes them. Can anyone enlighten me as to why Shirley wants the car so badly? What interest would she have in buying a new car?! 

Meanwhile, Ruby has taken upon herself to give Suki a visit. Something tells me that this isn't going to be a good thing. Ruby informs her that they both share a mutual problem - The Slaters! Suki seems intrigued as Ruby informs her about her Dad and what kind of character he was. She explains to Suki that the Slaters have robbed her and that that she's been made aware that they're stopping Suki from expanding her property portfolio. It's then that Ruby gives Suki the most damaging information she could, that Kush has a gambling problem. She proposes that if they work together, they could run the Slaters out of Walford for good! Now - I doubt that EastEnders is going to get rid of the Slater family, but I do fear that things are going to get hard for the Slater family before things can get any better. 

The final scenes we see in this episode is Jay searching for Honey. He pops into the restaurant asking whether she's been seen, it's hear that Isaac and Sheree inform him that she looks like she's had a good time but the date was more of a liquid lunch. Jay is visibly concerned for his friend and goes rushing to find her. As he does so, the next shot is of Honey lying unconscious on the floor in an alleyway as vile Paul is taking photographs of her. Suddenly, it looks as if he's unbuckling the belt of jeans, in all honesty, I was beginning to panic - it was clear he was going to rape her while she vulnerable position, especially while unconscious. Thank God, Jay called her before Paul could act upon his vile actions. Jay chases after him and finds Honey on the floor in the alley. Has Jay managed to save Honey? Or could she have already been attacked?! A brilliant and yet shocking episode this one I found. Thank you guys for being so patient with me, I do appreciate it! There will be another post tomorrow reviewing Friday's episode, if I have time I'll try my very post to do Monday's episode also. But we shall see what the day brings. Enjoy the rest of your evening folks! Love you all! xXx

[doof-doofblog]

"Jean! Soup's Ready!"

Tuesday 5th May 2020

Good evening folks! Hope you've all had a good day! Before we start talking about tonight's episode, I'm sure you've all seen them but there have new spoilers released this morning! Some of them taking place within the next few weeks of the soap! It's pretty exciting to have new pictures to share with you all!

Firstly, it looks as if the slip of the tongue by Jean last night, calling Whitney "Stacey" ... seems to be the start of a new story-line for her, am I right in thinking that she binned her meds a few episodes  back? Which would explain why she starts acting differently in up-coming episodes, both Mo and Kush seem to notice her erratic change of behaviour, but will they find out as to why?! New pictures show Jean confronting Whitney, while she has a meeting with Gray, accusing her of making her look stupid in front of the police. Shirley also seems to realise that Jean is acting out of sorts and both she and Kush turn to each other for answers. Later, Jean is feeling unwell and nobody seems to realise until she unfortunately has a seizure! Will Jean be okay, and could it be the lack of medication causing her seizures?!

Also, new pictures released reveal, the day of Ben's operation, both he and Callum are sat in a hospital room. With Callum having passed his assessment and now joining the police force, Ben can't help but question Callum about what the police might know about his new job with Phil. The more he digs to Callum about it and instead of showing an interest in his partner's new job, Callum comes to realise he wants information from him.  This upsets Callum and the couple argue and Callum ends up walking out before Ben has his operation to (hopefully) improve his hearing. Will Ben's operation go smoothly? Or could it go horribly wrong, making Callum feel completely guilty that he left his boyfriend during his time of need?!

Definitely a lot to look forward to in upcoming episodes, but let's now focus on tonight's episode! Again, I feel there's a lot to talk about, a lot of different story-lines happening all at once right now! I think I'll start with the whole, Bobby, Peter and Dotty situation. So Ian found out what happened to Bobby during the night out. He also found out that it was Dotty that was handing out the gas, which led to Bobby collapsing. I do feel sorry for Bobby, he's trying so hard to impress the girl he fancies and yet she just likes him as a mate, and also kinda stringing him along while also flirting with his brother. Did Peter feel guilty do you think? Even he had a go at Dotty saying the same thing. It's interesting now that Peter has told her to stay away for his family, but I don't think it's going to be as simple as that. Dotty is still hiding the secret that she knows about Ian locking Dennis in a room during the boat crash ... I'm sure there's going to become a point when she breaks and eventually tells Sharon. She's told Vinny for now, but will the secret get out? I'm sure it's making her blood boil watching Ian getting all the praise from the community, showing off that he's bought a bench for Dennis out of his own money, there's only so much she'll take until she cracks! How are Bobby and Peter going to feel once they know the truth, then again, will both of them feel used by Dotty? I think it's a really interesting situation and I can't wait to see how it all unfolds.

While we're on subject of the Beales, focusing on Peter ... uh-oh, he's going to be working with Jay at the funeral parlour?! That's definitely not good news for Lola! She keeps warning Peter to stay away from herself and Jay, after what happened between her and Peter, she's desperate for Jay not to find out. It's going to be hard for her to keep them apart while they're working together. Is she going to confront Peter and tell him not to take the job?! Peter even said to her that they're mates and she basically has to accept that, but it's going to be hard for her, she's going to be completely on edge every time she sees them together! Will it come to the point where she decides to tell Jay herself? I've said it before and I'll say it again, I hope that once Jay does find out, somehow he and Lola will find a way through it and they'll be able to sort things out. They're one of my favourite EastEnders couples, I feel that they belong together, would be a shame to split them up!

Right, so Isaac is still reeling from his recent news, even cancelling on his work session with Tommy! Can I just say, I am so glad that Denise talked some sense into him! He may have had a bit of a shock, but there's no need to take it out on the children, who, as Denise explained, really looked up to him! He may not have someone to look up to, but he can be someone the kids can look up to! When he went back to apologise to Kush, it made me laugh when he offered to do the first few sessions for free and Kush shouted Tommy straight away ... like, yes, of course, that'll work! Thank you! Let's hope that Isaac will do his best to help Tommy with his dyslexia, plus come to terms that Patrick is his father. We shall see once Patrick and Sheree return!

I'm still loving these scenes between Phil and Linda! I'm hoping we'll get to see more of these two coming together to try and help support one another. When Linda was at her meeting and she completely opened up, it looked as if Phil was taking in every single word what she was saying, like he understood! He's agreed to be her sponsor, whatever that may mean, can someone enlighten me? I'm assuming support her during her meetings or something? But they've come to an agreement and I hope it'll work out for them both. Will Sharon agree to taking up living in the Vic, or will it take even Linda to convince her? I hope their plan will come together and it can be a fresh start of Sharon! Also, I've been thinking, Phil has been feeling grief and guilt about Dennis for weeks now and he still blames himself for the child's death! How the hell is going to react once he learns about Ian's part in Dennis's death! He is going to hit the roof, I can see it coming! He'll be out for revenge, don't you think? Perhaps both he and Sharon will?! Oooo I can't wait for this big secret to unravel!

Okay, so the main focus of tonight's episode was Jean! I need to applaud Gillian Wright, she plays the role of Jean so amazingly! In recent weeks, Jean hasn't been taking her medication and last night it came full circle when she called Whitney by the wrong name. Her family are noticing she's not acting herself ... well, Kush and Mo to begin with. She's acting very eccentric, trying to get all the young ones ready for Easter. (I don't know about you guys but it felt very weird seeing them mentioning Easter, considering it was a few weeks ago now, but of course it's due to the decrease in episodes that we're only seeing the episodes leading up to Easter now!) ... Jean has had a lot to deal with in recent months, Kat has left without a word, Stacey has done a runner, and she no longer has contact with Sean, plus she lost Daniel to his illness, so you can understand why she's trying to focus on something. However, it's still not good that she's not taking her medication. Kush is trying to keep everything in order while Kat and Stacey are away, he's having to cope with dealing with Tommy's dyslexia, and now Jean's mental health. Kush found her prescriptions and realised she's not been taking her medication for perhaps weeks/months! It's only right he's beginning to worry. I think going to Shirley was a good idea, if he tells her what's going on, she may be able to help. She could convince Jean to take her meds again, but Kush really needs to tell her before things get any worse! Also, Phil still has no idea it was Stacey who bashed him over the head?! That was months ago!! Does he still believe it was Kat?! No wonder he didn't have a clue what Jean was going on at him about! I do feel sorry for Jean though, when she started throwing the rubbish, it's obvious that she feels he is to blame for Stacey not being around. That's another thing that Phil needs to learn, what's going to happen when he finds out? Will he confront Jean or maybe Kush?! Or has the whole situation been forgotten? I feel that attack happen so long ago, tonight's episode just made me remember about it all. What do you guys think? Is it going to be resurfaced and will Phil find out who was behind the attack?

I feel for Kush aswell at the moment, he's doing all he can to keep the Slater family going! Mo isn't much help, he's having to look after the kids as well as dealing with Tommy's problems and now Jean is another thing that he's having to cope with. I noticed at the end there he crushed some of Jean's meds into her soup. He's only trying to do the right thing isn't he?! The poor man had tears in his eyes, but he knows he was doing it for the best! But is that what it's going to come down to? Him having to hide the fact he's giving her her meds? Slipping some into her food and drink? What's going to happen when she realises, could things go completely the wrong way round and she could accuse him of trying to drug her! You never know, it could all go smoothly or it go completely the other way, this is EastEnders we're talking about! When does anything go smoothly?! I hope Stacey and Kat will be back soon, I don't know how long Kush is going to be able to cope, dealing with all this and trying to keep the family together! I'm looking forward to seeing what happens next!

Unfortunately, we have to wait another week now until we get to see what happens! I hope you are all keeping well. We're all in this together and all of this well be over soon if we just keep doing what we're doing! Stay at home, keep washing your hands and stay safe! Thank you guys for reading, if you have any questions you'd like to ask then feel free to message me! I'll always find the time to respond! Enjoy the rest of your week and I'll be back on Monday! Good evening everyone! xXx  

[doof-doofblog]

"Their Mum Isn't Even Here, Jean!"

Monday 18th May 2020

Good Afternoon folks! I hope you've all had a good week, I'm sure you've all been made aware of the recent EastEnders news! For those of you who haven't heard, the soap writers and the rest of the team have been given the green light to start re-filming again, this is due to take place some time next month. However, it does mean that EastEnders will be taken off air for a few weeks until the time will come for them to start re-filming again. This is fantastic news that we've all been waiting for, we won't have to wait much longer than expected for us to get our usual 4 episodes a week back. How long the soap will be off air still remains unknown. It also has been revealed that script-writers will include characters talking about the current pandemic. I for one, feel it's amazing news to hear that plans are in place for our favourite actors and actresses to walk through the Square again! Crew will still make sure that everyone follows the rules and for them to keep 2 meters apart and the recording/editing team will use techniques to make it look as natural as possible for the viewers.  I also realise this post is a bit late, due to me being in work again, but today I will post 2 blogs covering both last night's episode and tonight's episode.

I also have some other news for you, it has been revealed that EastEnders are planning to film an episode which will focus entirely on Ben and his hearing loss. The soap will feature subtitles and muffled audio for the audience to get the idea and/or experience what Ben is currently going through. I for one, am REALLY looking forward to seeing this episode. It will be something completely different and something that we've never seen before. I love when soaps jump in the deep end and decide to show something completely different, it was the same when Bobby kept seeing Lucy and also when Stacey went through her breakdown a couple of years ago. I just find it fascinating! I'm sure it'll be a momentous moment for EastEnders and it'll get rave feedback! Are you looking forward to seeing this episode air? The episode will be shown on Monday 1st June! I can hardly contain my excitement!

Now, let's make a start on last night's episode, a lot to cover from last night I think. Let's start with Isaac, still moping about finding out about Patrick being his biological father. Denise has done everything she can to keep him from making a mess of himself. She knows he's struggling but skipping work and making up excuses and drinking until he's nearly having a pee in front of children, is definitely not the way to be coping. All I can really say is, thank you to Bailey! What an amazing child she is! Amazing that it's taken a child to actual make a grown-up realise he hasn't really got it all that bad! Yeah, it would be a shock to him, but what Bailey said was absolutely inspirational and it really spoke truth to him. She's absolutely right in the fact that the guy who Isaac thought was his Dad, never left his side till his death. He was with him every single day and treated him like his own, now he's got another Dad to help him with his future, he could really make a go of building a relationship with Patrick if he gave him the chance. When Bailey spoke how lucky she was to have had two Mum's, I just thought it was absolutely moving, really sweet. I'm hoping now Isaac will realise he hasn't got it all that bad and he'll be able to move on, perhaps when Patrick and Sheree come back, he'll be able to ask them any questions he wants answering and maybe then, he'll feel ready to move on and accept Patrick is his Dad.

Oh Keegan! I feel like he's just not dealing with things well at the moment. I mean, did he really need to post up the video to his social media, inevitably putting Jack's job at risk! Jack told him to keep it to himself as their could be consequences, and its as if he didn't care. He was selfish and wanted to uphold his reputation. I mean, I get he wanted to prove he was innocent, but that would have happened in time and the police would've admitted their mistakes, but it's as if he can't let go after the way they treated him. I personally, feel sorry for Tiffany in all of this, she's being stuck right in the middle of it all. She's trying her best to support and understand her husband, but also her uncle put his neck on the line for her husband. What's going to happen now? Could Jack be in deep trouble with this colleagues? Will Keegan get the justice he's so desperate for? Or will he come to regret posting the video in the first place? I know it's awful to say, but I'm kinda getting a bit bored of this story-line now, I have a feeling this will change Keegan's personality completely and it may lead to further story-lines involving him fighting against the police, fighting for equality and stuff like that? I could be completely wrong, but I just have a feeling that might be the direction it'll take, who knows? I am concerned for Jack now though, is he going to lose his job now though due to Keegan's actions? Will he be able to explain himself or will he do as Keegan suggested and keep quiet? What do you think is going to happen? Do you see this story-line dying down eventually or could it take a whole new direction? Let me know what you think guys, I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Ha! She may be a bit gullible, but I do love Habiba! She brings a lot of comedy to the soap, which is what we really need right now. At first I thought she was going to get away with it and be able to get the information for Rainie! I loved the look on Ian's face when he thought she was serious about getting to know more about the business. It was only when she dropped all her papers and Ian saw her paperwork it was all going to go downhill! I just loved the fact she didn't seem to click, not even knowing what "Sweet FA" meant! God bless her! Haha! But now Ian has made Max aware of what is going on, what does it mean for Max? Will he still give Rainie the divorce she wants? Or will he be able to give her the divorce and still be able to keep the majority of his money! Even Ruby mentioned he should be careful with money, considering he wanted to take her out for a meal even though he still has a divorce to pay for. Did anyone else see the flirtation between Ruby and Martin?! Okay, let me just say ... where the heck has Martin been?! With everything happening with Jean, surely he would've been there to help Kush out ... hmm maybe now he'll start helping? Anyway, there was obvious flirtation and sexual attraction there between Martin and Ruby ... Didn't they sleep together once a while back?! And they've not mentioned it to anyone or to each other since? Now Ruby has offered him a job, could there be something on the horizon for them? And will Max start to feel jealous around them and begin to notice what's going on?!

So, due to Ben having a temperature, his operation has had to be postponed. It's a bit of shame as I feel everyone wanted him to get it done there and then, obviously Ben more than anyone! Callum was there to support his partner, after having their argument the episode beforehand, he knew he had to be there for him. It was massive blow for Ben to be told he couldn't have the operation, he just wants everything to be back to normal. But now the question is, when will he have the operation? Will it still be a success? But most importantly, will he have the operation in time before he has to do the dodgy deal with his Dad? Something is telling me, No! Even Phil was eager to know when they'd reschedule his op for, and Kathy noticed it was the exact same way that Ben reacted! Is she going to click on that something is happening between the two of them and will she find out what they're involved in?! I'm really looking forward to seeing what the future holds for Ben, the episode that's going to be completely focused on him is going to be epic! We know that Ben is still meant to come across someone who is completely deaf, a young girl named Frankie will come into the soap, will she be able to help Ben come to terms with his hearing loss? I do hope his op will be successful, but of course, we will all have to wait and see!

Ooooh poor Jean! I just want to give her a big hug and tell her everything is okay. She's found out that both Kush and Shirley were slipping her medication into her food and drink, which actually caused her to have her fit. They'd accidentally given her too much and she'd been poisoned by the vast amount they'd given her. Of course their intentions were caring and loving as they both care very deeply for Jean and can see that she's not being herself recently, they were literally trying to do their best at caring for her. It just turned out so drastically wrong. I hated the fact that Suki had to get involved, she was more bothered about her cardigan!! She is going to be so smug now knowing that Jean also has bipolar and that she was there to help and even stop the hospital from getting both Kush and Shirley in trouble. Jean owes her nothing and I hope Jean knows that! What is Suki getting out of this? I don't understand, why can't she just keep her distance from Jean and leave her alone! I feel sorry for all of them, I feel sorry for Jean, I feel sorry for Kush and Shirley. Everyone is just trying to help and poor Jean can't see that, and now she feels as if she can't trust them and has decided to throw Kush out, as well as the kids. I'm worried that her living on her own is going to cause her more problems, how will she be able to cope? I think now is the time for Stacey and Kat to come back, Jean's mental state is only going to get from bad to worse and without Kush or Shirley being there to look after her, who's going to let them know?! Maybe Kush and Shirley can keep an eye on her from a distance? Will Kush finally inform Martin about is happening? Either way, I just hope Jean will be okay, although I do fear it's only going to get worse for her before it gets better.

I hope you've all enjoyed reading, if you have anything you'd like to talk to me about regarding EastEnders, feel free to send me a message. I'd love to hear your thoughts and opinions on the current story-lines. I'll be back again this evening with a second post following up tonight's episode! Thanks folks! xXx

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"We've Got Nowhere To Live!"

Tuesday 14th April 2020

Hello again folks! As promised here is the blog reviewing last night's episode. Firstly, I just want to say thank you to all for you being so patient with me, I know I've been a bit behind with recent posts. I promise you, I will get back on track next week. Wow! What a powerful episode it was last night, dont you think? There's a lot to follow up on, let's get stuck in!

Let's start with Tommy and Kush, it looks as if our speculations were correct. Poor Tommy is getting bullied. It seems that he's become a little slow in school and some of the children have noticed and started making fun of him and calling him names. When he was telling Kush the names he's been called, it was so sad! The poor lad ... I wonder how long this has been going on? Will that come to light in later episodes? But like I mentioned in yesterday's post, little Tommy has had a lot to deal with in his young life and now he's having to confide in Kush about him being bullied in school. But what is Kush going to do with this information? He's been sworn to secrecy, so he can't tell Jean or Kat ... he could tell Mo, but I do have a feeling that Tommy will ask him not to tell her either. Is this going to be something Kush has to cope with by himself, or could he potentially ask Martin for a bit of help? Martin is a close nit to the family and could very well help as he's had his own experiences with Bex. It's an interesting story-line and it could go in many different directions. Could Tommy even possibly refuse to go to school if the bullying starts to escalate? It's a sad story-line to cover, but bullying is something that happens every single day in all aspects of life. It's an important thing to talk about and every time EastEnders bring up the issue of bullying, it makes me realise how amazing the soap is and how much it provides people with support, if ever something is happening to you that the soap is reflecting, please seek help and talk to someone!

Next, shall we talk about Shirley and Phil? Does anyone else think that Shirley still has a thing for Phil? I think she always has and might always will, they make a brilliant partnership. But ever since they're split, they've always remained very close. I noticed when Phil was telling her he's trying to get back with Sharon, Shirley bowed her head. It's true Sharon and Shirley have never seen eye to eye as they've both fallen for the same man, but after what happened with Dennis, Shirley has shown a softer side towards Sharon and even offered her support to the grieving mother. As soon as the fans were made aware that the Vic was going to be put up for sale, there has been speculation as to who the new owners would be, I for one, always thought it would be Sharon, and it looks as if it very may be looking that way! Shirley mentioned that one of the ways for Phil to make it up to Sharon, would be to buy her the Queen Vic. Sharon does love the Vic, it's always been known! It's one of the places that holds so many memories for her, good and bad. Will Phil take it upon himself to buy the Vic for her? Could it be a chance for them to create a new start? Will Sharon even accept Phil's offer? Who knows? But whatever the outcome, I'm looking forward to seeing what the future holds for the Queen Vic!

Right, am I seeing things or something about to happen between Grey and Whitney?! I could be jumping the gun here, but did anyone else see the look on Whitney's face after Grey stood up to Michaela in her defence? Even though Grey is Whitney's attorney, I'm guessing he probably shouldn't have confronted Michaela in the way he did, a little of his mean streak (That Chantelle only knows well) was slightly exposed. Didn't anyone else feel that way? I mean, Whitney just might've thought he was doing his job in protecting her, but I'm sure, it's not going to help her case. But from the look on her face, she may start having a thing for Grey, which, in the long run, may be a terrible idea. She'd be betraying Chantelle, her best friend, and then also it would mean Grey cheating on his wife. I know it was just rumour to begin with, but after that episode, i'm more convinced now that something is going to happen between the two, we'll just have to wait and see!  

I'm really interested in what dark secrets the Panesar family are hiding. What happened in their past for them to be so violent and yet also so carefree? I'm sure there's something more to them, especially Ash. We saw another side to Ash that hasn't been shown before ... a little bit of controlling and then also she showed no fear when Vinny attacked the fella at the party for being homophobic towards his sister. When Ash kept saying "It's what we do!" to Iqra ... like it's part of their normal life, alarm bells started ringing! They have clearly not led a normal life, they have obviously experienced some dark moments in their past and I, for one, am really looking forward to finding out what they may be. I'm looking forward to seeing their dark past being revealed. Is Iqra going to be in danger for getting involved with Ash? Is Suki maybe the one who's been behind it all from the beginning, could she have been the one who has brought this kind of lifestyle to her kids lives? It's a very interesting family dynamic that's for sure. Who else feels the same? Is Ash going to reveal a dark side to her that we haven't seen before and will it be because of something that happened in her past?

I also have a feeling that Jack is going to find himself in a very difficult position! He's a proud man who takes his job seriously, but also will stand by his family no matter what. Now, with Keegan being mistreated by police and being blamed for something he didn't do. Will Jack be forced to either support the police in their decisions, or to fight and prove Keegan is innocent? It's a tough one he'll have to face, but I hope he'll make the right decision. I feel so sorry for Tiffany and Keegan right now, things just haven't gone right for the young couple since they've got married, it all seems to have gone from bad to worse. I thought the scene where Keegan was getting prepared to be put in a cell was very powerful, the voice over, him taking his jewellery and clothes off and then the mug shot! It's way a very powerful show of events. I do have a thought though, do the police really have it in for Keegan or has it always been a case of him being in the wrong place at the wrong time? As they said, he has history of mild offences since the age of 14, but even so, Keegan has always wanted to better himself and things just haven't been going well for him at all, far from it! As soon as there's a little bit of light ahead, a dark cloud just blows rains on his parade. Will Jack be able to help his Nephew-In-Law and prove he's innocent, or could the evidence the police already have be too much? To make matters worse, without Keegan being out on bail, the young couple now face the fact that they could end up living on the streets after being evicted! Now, I don't think Karen would ever see her children living on the streets and neither would Jack or Sonia ... so, Tiffany and Keegan may have to depend on their family in finding them a place to stay, but if worse comes to the worse and they sadly can't spare any room for them both, Tiffany and Keegan could find themselves being homeless. Now, it may not come to that, but I do think it would be a very interesting path for the soap to take ... a young couple living on the streets? Homelessness happens in many different ways, sometimes it's unfortunate and people can't keep up with their rent and find themselves being chucked out of their homes. It's a sad and difficult situation to be in and I feel it's still an important story to show as it still happens in every day life! I do really feel sorry for Tiffany and Keegan, we just want them to be happy right? But, happiness may not be in store for them for a very long time?

I hope you've enjoyed reading my blog, I apologise once again that's a little late. Sadly, that's all we have for this week, but I'll be back again next Monday following up next week's episodes! Enjoy the rest of your week and keep yourself safe! There's got to be light at the end of this isolation tunnel right? Look after yourself, and if you ever want to leave me message about your thoughts and opinions of any of the current story-lines, i'd love to hear them and I'll always respond! Thank you everyone xXx

[doof-doofblog]

"We're Going To Make Him Pay ... Together!"

New Year Catch Up

(Episodes Commencing Thursday 31st December 2020 - Monday 4th January 2021)

Hello everyone and a huge HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! Although it's not the way we've all wanted to start 2021, but let's pray to God that 2021 will be just that little bit better compared to 2020. Personally, I'm happy to see the back end of 2020! Anyway I am now back and I'm going to be following up of the New Year's Eve and New Year's Day episodes! These are ones I've been looking forward to reviewing! But before we jump in, I have a bit of news and a few spoilers in store for you. The first one being that it's been confirmed that there's going to be a new, big, long-running storyline for business woman and longing mother-to-be Ruby Allen! What this new storyline will be is yet to be revealed - either way I'm looking forward to seeing what the soap has in store for her!

Secondly, it has also been confirmed that love will begin to bloom between Lola Pearce and Isaac Baptise! I, personally, am a little bit sceptical, I'm unsure how I feel about these two being together. I mean, can you guys see a romance lasting between these two? Please feel free to tell me what you think, I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Now let's get right to it and focus on the episodes with happened over New Year's Eve! Firstly I want to mention what a bloody fantastic actor Danny Dyer is! I am absolutely stunned by how incredible the episode on New Years Eve was!!! At first I was a little confused and shocked as to why Mick was suddenly standing on the roof of the Queen Vic, watching everyone enjoying the New Year celebrations, for a moment I thought I had missed something! But of course it all made sense as the episode continued! Finally after such a long time of battling with his inner emotions, Mick finally took that giant step and called the Samaritans, he finally talked to someone! I found it so so clever the way the episode jumped back and forward between Mick being on the phone, to the events which lead him to make the call. What a lovely surprise to see the return of Danny Hatchard - AKA Lee Carter! But you can sense the atmosphere between them all, Lee has no idea what's been happening between his parents over the past few months! However, it becomes instantly clear to him that something isn't right! He questions his parents as to what is happening and he is absolutely stunned to hear the news when they reveal to him that they're splitting up! But what grabs Lee's attention more than anything, is how Mick isn't fighting for his wife and just letting the affair happen - even when she mentions she's leaving for New Zealand to Nancy, it soon becomes clear to both Mick and Lee that she won't be going alone, plus she'll be taking young Ollie with her! This seems to really shock Mick and he quickly leaves the Cafe! As he rushes to his car, Lee follows and pleads to his Dad to talk to someone, he can see that his Father is not in a good place right now, he's looking lost, depressed, distressed - he even questions whether it's also down to his anxiety?! Later when Lee appears to have left, Linda joins her husband and in the car and questions him as to whether what their son said was true, is he depressed?! Is he ill? She tries to make him open up, but once again it gets her no where and Mick is like a closed book. Linda mentions that she'll be leaving for New Zealand the following day but assures Mick that she'll only be going for 4 weeks! Jumping between the different time lines, Mick gets visibly distressed whilst he's on the phone to "Joe" - almost to the point where he feels another panic attack coming on and he heads outside. Also I just want to mention how fantastic "Joe" is on the line to Mick, I'm not 100% sure whether it's a fellow actor or even if they've brought in someone who actually works with Samaritans to feature for that phone call, but either way - I can't applaud them enough!! Script writers also, incredible!!! You can visibly see how much the soap has worked with the Samaritans to be able do this episode justice!! Another thing I have to mention is the flashbacks that Mick is experiencing whilst on the phone, as he leaves the house and things get more and more intense, we can see visions of Mick's past of him in care, being isolated from other children and of course, Katy "looking after" him. It really got to me a bit, I found this episode very emotional! Oh another thing which I feel is very important to mention, whilst Mick makes his way outside, in the background behind him we can see Kush leaving the Slater household with Arthur in his arms - this is a very vital moment, has Kush actually taken Ruby's offer and advice? Taking her money and fleeing with his son?! As the soap returns its focus on Mick, he looks around at everyone on the Square, his eyes then dart toward the Vic, looking up at the roof - putting the phone down and away from his ear, he just walks ahead - nothing stopping him in his way. He ignores the celebrations, walks into the pub and sneaks upstairs, up and out onto the roof! He brings the phone back to his ear and we can hear "Joe" still trying to get Mick to talk to him, even though Mick feels as if he's ready to end his life and even tells "Joe" he's going to be finishing the call, somehow "Joe" manages to keep Mick on the phone, asking him the important questions, asking him about Katy - as it goes on Mick is getting more and more tearful, he's remembering everything he felt when he was a child, everything comes flooding and eventually everything comes to light. "Joe" asks him - "What did she do, Mick?" and .... I can hear the angels cheering as Mick finally reveals the truth someone "She abused me!" Finally Mick has found the strength to seek help and reveal what's happened to him! I have to say that I am completely blown away by this episode, definitely one of the best EastEnders have ever had! -- Now for the big one, New Year's Day! The first episode of 2021! I've got a feeling this is going to be another emotional one! There are a few things I want to mention but we'll leave the main big story till last! Firstly, let's talk about the Slater's. It's New Year's Day, their plan is to just have a movie day with snacks and goodies for the kids. Only as they're getting prepared, they come to realise that Arthur is missing. Kat and Stacey search the house and then out on the Square, when they notice that Kush's van isn't anywhere to be seen, the panic gets more serious. Eventually they decide to contact Martin and question whether he might have any knowledge to Arthur and Kush's whereabouts. But to their surprise, Martin is shocked to hear about their disappearance just as much as they are. Only, of course, Ruby acts all coy stating the fact that Kush is Arthur's Dad and wouldn't do anything to harm him - but even that doesn't sit right with the Slaters and they begin to panic that Kush might've actually kidnapped Arthur an fled the Square with his son. However, behind her husband's back, and the Slater's back, Ruby contacts Kush and instructs him to carry on with their plan, but interestingly when he thanks her for her help, she takes the pleasure in taking the thanks from him. Deep down, it's clear she's doing this to hurt Stacey, after she interfered in her marriage. But even for Ruby this is an all new low, don't you guys think?! We see that Kush is in a swanky hotel room with his little boy looking quite unhappy, even though Kush is doing this for his son, it looks as if little Arthur isn't happy about being away from his family. With panic getting to the Slaters, they rush to Phil - to see whether he might have some knowledge of Kush's disappearing act. However it instantly becomes clear that Phil has nothing to do with and no knowledge of Kush's whereabouts, considering the fact that Phil needs Kush to appear in court. The only positive outlook that the Slaters can focus on is the fact that Kush and Arthur haven't got their passports, and as Martin states "You can only go so far without a passport!" Only unbeknown to him and the rest of the family, Ruby has sent someone round to Kush's hotel room, providing him with fake passports for himself and his son. Is Kush really going to breech his bail and flee with Arthur? When it comes clear it seem unlikely they're going to find Kush and Arthur, Martin comes home to his wife, and it appears that it all seems to get to him as he begins to tear up - it's true that Martin cares for little Arthur just as much as Kush does! It seems a though Ruby never anticipated her husband getting as upset as he did, the smug look she had earlier in the episode now changes to guilt, how long will she be able to keep this a secret from both her husband and the Slaters?!

During this New Year's Day episode, the majority of the Square seem to be in high spirits, none more so than Stuart! He happily greets his brother on the Square, wishing him and his boyfriend a Happy New Year and Good Riddance to 2020! Only things seem to take a turn for the worse for poor Stuart as he ends up getting arrested, for what - I'm unsure. But once he's down at the station, it comes clear to him that the only reason he's been called in is down to DI Thompson. The look on his face when he comes to realise who's behind is arrest! Although while he's being questioned, it becomes clear to him that something isn't right, they are actually proceeding with an illegal arrest/interrogation. Thompson questions whether he could have Stuart done for bodily harm or attempted murder. Devastatingly, Callum is present as his brother is arrested, and he tries to question his sister-in-law for answers as to whether he's done something illegal recently, but Rainie refuses to give him any information. Later however, when Stuart has been released, he reveals to his brother that he is now out on bail, but also DI Thompson will be looking forward to an altercation with Callum. Needing advice and some help pretty damn quickly now he knows that Thompson will be coming for him once again, and that what he did behind Phil and Ben's back threatening to come to light, Callum takes it upon himself to ask Jack for help, as he's simply got himself in too deep and he's probably the only person who could help him out. 

Elsewhere on the Square, Phil is making sure that Patrick sticks to his agreement in letting him see Raymond. Guilty Patrick has to lie to Denise and make an excuse for him to be leaving the house with Raymond, especially considering the fact she's completely on edge since Lucas's return! Patrick informs her that they're simply going for a work, but in fact he ends up taking the small boy to McKlunky's, where eventually Phil turns up with a football for his son. As much as Patrick is nervous with Phil spending time with boy, Phil seems to really enjoy meeting his son and building a bond with him. However when little Raymond asks who he is, Patrick has to intervene and inform the young boy that he's just a friend of the family. Even though Phil is enjoying his time with his son, something makes me question how long he'll be able to hold up the pretence, how long will it be until he demands Raymond find out who he really is? And most importantly, how will Denise feel when she learns that Patrick has gone behind her back and betrayed her trust? Could she even warm to the idea of Phil spending time with his son, to be fair, Phil is all about family, right?! 

Now the main event! This has been the moment that everyone has been waiting for! After opening up to the Samaritans and coming to the realisation that Katy abused him as a child, Mick is in desperate need to find and talk to Linda. However, when it comes clear that she's not at Max's and nowhere to be seen, instead he takes it upon himself to give Katy a little visit. Now this who section when Mick was at her house was absolutely brilliant. Katy is stunned to see Mick at her front door, and he doesn't hesitate to let himself in as storms past her. This whole confrontation was absolutely brilliant, I felt like cheering Mick on as he confronted Katy about her actions when they were younger, finally claiming that what she did to him was actually abuse! However, she claims that what he's saying is all fantasies and stories he's just made up in his head, completely manipulating him and twisting everything that's being said. Meanwhile, whilst Mick is having this confrontation with Katy, Max and Linda are discussing their plan back on the Square in the Café. He informs her that he's going to be going to town to do some shopping and that if she's ready she should meet him on the Millennium Bridge at 6pm sharp! He mentions how much it'll mean to him, not just for having a new love in his life but a new fresh start with the woman he loves in a completely different country, even though Linda is looking completely unsure, she smiles and states how she couldn't possibly say "No!".

Later, Mick is seen walking through-out Katy's house. He finds himself back in her bedroom and he takes it upon himself to search through her belongings, he eventually finds the old letters he wrote to her when he was a young boy, proclaiming his love for her, but of course being a young boy at that age, he didn't understand. When Katy finds Mick rummaging through her things, she becomes incredibly erratic, informing him to keep away from her things - it's almost sick as it looks as if she's kept trophies of her actions, trophies of her abuse towards Mick. I feel during this scene, the confrontation is absolutely amazing between them both - the acting from both Danny Dyer and Simone Lahbib is incredible! As things take their toll, Mick pushes for Katy to finally admit that Frankie is his daughter, he pushes and pushes and pushes until she eventually screams out "All right!" - Leaving Mick incredibly stunned to hear the truth. Everything finally falls into place! But even then, when he's taking in the information of being the Father of Frankie, Katy once again twists everything, saying if he was to mention it to anyone, even the police she'll say that it was him who raped her, even though I doubt the police would ever believe that story as Mick was just young boy, and she was much older than him! Even so, how low can you even get? Katy is one sick individual! As everything comes to blows, he threatens to tell Linda, but it's at this very moment where Katy begins to panic and attempts to stop him from leaving the house, but it's no good, he pushes his way past and she's left screaming in the hallway, knowing her secret is going to come to light! While Max continues to wait for Linda on the bridge, Mick rushes back to the Square in search of his wife, although he can't seem to find her anywhere, he's shouting for her, pleading for her to still be around. You almost seem to panic, when the scene cuts back to Max on the bridge, you see his face light up and Linda is walking towards him, for one brief moment you think she has turned her back on Mick. But interestingly, Linda informs Max that it's not easy for her to jump up and leave, although she still loves Mick, she feels that their marriage is over, but she can't simply run away. She informs Max that she can't go to New Zealand with him, he's left utterly devastated as tears fall down his cheeks. She apologies and leaves making her way back to Walford. Now this is what absolutely made me cry, finally when Linda comes home, Mick is more than relieved to see his wife hasn't left. They begin to talk ever so slowly, Linda makes herself comfortable and ever so slowly Mick tries his absolute best to explain why he's been behaving differently and why he's been so distant in recent months. He explains that everything seemed to fall apart when Frankie and Katy arrived on the Square and entered his life, he can't seem to grasp the right words but eventually he reveals to Linda that Frankie is in fact his daughter. At first, Linda is absolutely devastated, believing that her husband had cheated on her all those years ago, hiding the fact he already had a child. Poor Mick tries to find the right words to explaining that he didn't know she existed. But when Linda questions if and when he slept with Katy, he admits that he did - but not in the way she thinks, it's then he reveals the true age of Frankie, "She's 30!" At first, this doesn't make any sense to Linda, how can Frankie be 30 years of age? But Mick's eyes begin to tear up again, she looks at him and works out the math, if Frankie is 30, it must mean that she was conceived when Mick was the age of 13 at least, but when Mick reveals he was only 12, her face is in pure shock and she realises EXACTLY what her husband is telling her. She throws her arms around him as he softly weeps on her shoulder. It's at this moment, I almost felt like crying - after so long Mick had finally revealed everything to his wife. This whole scene between Mick and Linda was so emotional, again I not only have to applaud Danny Dyer, but Kellie Bright also! The scene where she blamed herself for sleeping with another man, it's devastating! She asks why she never told him sooner, as she of all people would've understood more than anyone. (Especially after what happened when Dean raped her!) Neither of them are to blame, Katy is the cause of everything! But Mick voices that he couldn't bare to put his wife through something like that. She pleads for her husband to call the police, but Mick doesn't want that! Something tells me he wants to deal with it in his own way, he mentions to his wife he doesn't want the community gossiping about him and whispering things behind his back. The episode ends with them sitting on Arthur's bench in the Square, Linda informs Mick that he will always be her husband and he asks her will she be able to help him and stand by him no matter what his decision will be, without a word she clasps a tight hold of his hand, their fingers entwining. She's going to stand by her husband and hopefully, together they will bring Katy down for her vile, vicious crimes against Mick! Overall an emotional episode! -- The final episode I'll be covering will be yesterday's episode. Things to have slowly quietened down after the events of New Year's. The first thing I'm going to mention though is Callum. After pleading for Jack's help regarding DI Thompson, Callum bumps into Jack whilst on his run. Unfortunately Jack has some pretty bad news for Callum, that there's going to be a meeting with DI Thompson's boss. Callum instantly begins to panic, informing Jack that if his name gets dragged up he'll end up losing Ben and everything he's got. When Callum returns home, everyone in the family home are enjoying karaoke. Ben and Lola play along with their daughter and she sings along to Little Mix's "Shout Out To My Ex!". Little Lexi informs them that they need to come up with another song for 4 people, so Callum can get involved and they do it all as a family. You can see this really touches Callum's heart, as Ben turns around to his boyfriend to join in, Callum makes the excuse that he's got to get ready for work. Callum is visibly worried about losing Ben and the family he's gained. Later on out on the Square, Callum is all ready and heading to work, but Ben catches him before he leaves. He questions whether everything is alright between them, he can sense that there's something bothering his boyfriend, he says that he can talk to him about anything. Callum almost looks as if he's about to respond, only Jack calls him from a distance, he informs Ben that'll catch up with him at home. Jack approaches Callum and informs him that the meeting that was originally planned has now been cancelled, much to Callum's surprise. However Jack then mentions that there's been a change of plan, what on Earth could've changed? Is he still going to help Callum as much as he can?! 

Elsewhere on the Square, the police still seem to be searching for Tina. After her disappearance, Shirley is still going out of her mind with worry about her sister's whereabouts. She informs Sharon that the police are still searching through Tina's belongings. Shirley bangs on the Queen Vic door demanding to confront Ian and for him to stop lying about Tina being his attacker! However it's Sharon or comes out and warns her to stay away. I do feel for Shirley, the poor woman has no idea what's happened to her sister and also has no idea what's going on in her son's life! I worry how she's going to be able to cope once everything is revealed to her. I do feel that these two storylines are also big for Shirley!! She's probably going to feel so much sadness and guilt that I fear she may spiral out of control. What do you guys think?! Even Sharon attempts to apologise to Shirley but gets nowhere, something is telling me that the guilt of Tina taking the rap for Ian's attack is taking it's toll on Sharon. But what's even worse is that later on Gray sits with Shirley, informing her that her sister is safe and she's not worry. How bloody dare he! After what he's done, how can he even sit there and act like he's done nothing?! However it looks as if he panics when Shirley states that she'll be able to relax once Tina has been in touch, and the very fact that she always does eventually. Something tells me that Gray is going to sink even lower and make them think that Tina has been in touch with them. I personally hate it when Shirley thanks him for looking after her family ... Ooooh if only she knew the truth! I can't wait for Gray to get his comeuppance! 

Meanwhile, Stacey is still going out of her mind trying to get in touch with Kush! Eventually she manages to get through on the phone and overhears her son's voice say that they're going on an aeroplane! Kush panics when he notices that Stacey is on the line, she's pleading for him to bring Arthur home, Kush then decides to speak to her and warns her not to call the police, otherwise she'll never seen her son again. With nowhere left to turn, Stacey and Kat speak to Whitney about the possibility of Gray helping them out, she seems to know Gray better than anyone, so if anyone could act fast with the law, he possibly could give them some options. However, Whitney can't seem to understand why they're so frantic, the fact that Kush is Arthur's father and that he would never hurt him, plus Kush isn't some criminal mastermind and there's no way he's put his life, his sons life or his families life at risk, they come to realise that someone must be helping him escape. It's then that Whitney happens to mention, who on Earth would be out to hurt Stacey in such a way? As soon as she says those words, there's only one culprit who they know would be behind it. On the Square, Stacey confronts Ruby, demanding answers about her son's whereabouts. Of course, Ruby acts completely and utterly dumb and acts like she doesn't know a thing whilst her husband tries to defend her. Stacey is almost teary as she informs Martin that Kush has threatened her about her not seeing Arthur again, something really doesn't sit well with Martin. Later on, Martin is gathering all his thoughts as Ruby is trying to console him. He reveals to his wife how much it hurts not knowing where little Arthur is, it becomes clear to Ruby that she has a made a truly big mistake. Eventually she calls Kush up informing him that she can't keep giving him money and that he should return with Arthur, she literally had no idea how much hurt it would cause everyone, especially Martin! However when Kush realises he won't be getting anymore help from Ruby, he seeks help from somewhere else and eventually calls Whitney for her help. Whitney at first refuses informing him that he needs to come home and that Stacey is going out of her mind, but Kush isn't interested and informs her that he owes her a favour and asks her for help. She takes a deep breath and asks him where he is. Is Whitney really going to help Kush escape or is she just going to make him think she's helping and trick him back into returning to Walford with Arthur? 

Another thing I want to mention is Sonia, the first time we see her, she is in the hospital on her own and she appears to be crying to herself. Ash approaches her from behind, in concern for her colleague. Sonia informs her that she's actually been on site for the past 18 hours! We can see in her hand that she's holding something, but what exactly? A pendant? A piece of jewellery? It's hard to make out and I'm a little unsure, but when Ash also asks about what she's holding, she quickly makes an excuse to leave. Back at home, Ian decides to give her a visit after still feeling unwell, she's about to take his blood pressure but Ian being Ian, he's once again waffling on about himself and how his life has changed drastically since his attack and that his anxiety is through the roof. Only when he happens to mention Covid, Sonia informs him that he actually never had the virus and reminds him that people are dying because of the virus. Furious with his selfish words she throws him out before she can carry on with taking his blood pressure. As he leaves, she's left alone again and crying softly to herself. What is troubling Sonia so much? I do think with her being a nurse and tackling this virus could maybe be taking its toll on her mental health, or maybe even her emotions as a whole, has it gotten too much for her? Who knows? Either way, I'm intrigued to see what's got her so worked up. 

Last, but certainly not least, Ian is looking more and more unwell as the days go on, even Kathy has started to notice the change in Ian's health. She's still not convinced that Sharon loves her son and appears to think that she's after something, she voices her concerns to Phil. But even though that we know that Phil knows what Sharon is up to, he can't let anyone else know. She informs Kathy not to interfere and to leave Ian and Sharon to it. We know full well what Sharon is doing to him, but when Phil makes a visit to the pub to see things for himself, he can see how weak and ill Ian is getting. As Ian somehow spills a drink all over the bar, Phil makes his way into the back to confront Sharon. He states that she has gone way too far and that she's crazy to even comprehend poisoning him any further. But Sharon stands her grand and informs him that no matter what it takes, she will get justice for her son, whether he's going to help her or not! Only later on, when Sharon is alone in the cellar, Phil finds her and reveals that he can't simply forgive or forget what Ian did to Dennis, but he fears that Sharon might not be able to carry on on her own, he drops the bombshell that he will help her in bringing Ian down, getting revenge and getting justice for Dennis! 

Wow! I apologise that this post is so long, I've literally been working on it all day! I've really enjoyed catching up and reviewing the episodes I have missed. So much emotion and drama over the past few days, truly EastEnders at its best! I hope you enjoy reading as much as I've enjoyed writing! I'll be back again tomorrow with another post following tonight's episode. Enjoy the rest of your evening folks! Love you all xXx

[doof-doofblog]

"Leave Him Alone! ... Dad!"

Tuesday 29th December 2020

Good evening everyone! Hope you're all feeling good - devastating news about the next lockdown / Tier movement isn't it? Personally, I've have enough. I feel like I really need to cry but for some reason, somehow the tears aren't falling - yet! I'm going and not think about it and focus on my favourite soap instead! Before we jump into the episode, I want to share a bit of news with you, it has been announced that Natalie Cassidy (AKA Sonia Fowler) will be taking an extended break from the soap, there has been a recently storyline regarding Sonia's mental health, when this is due to be shown is unsure. But Natalie is expected to be off-screen from early January and will return early in the Spring!

Also, I still can't get over the suspense from the previous episode - as far as I'm aware, nothing has been confirmed that Tina is dead, I think that will remain a mystery until it's eventually (hopefully) proven! What do you guys think?! While we speculate, lets focus on tonight's episode! 

The first thing I want to talk about is Ruby! Following Martin's revelation that he doesn't want anymore children, she is still clearly devastated by the news. As Stacey and Kush bump into each other on the Square discussing children, Ruby approaches them (mainly Stacey) warning her to never interfere in her marriage again! In all honesty, I don't think Stacey was, she knows Martin better than anyone, she can clearly see that something was on his mind and maybe she just thought she was trying to advise or help her ex-husband. The whole scene leaves Kush feeling very awkward as they both squabble in front of him. However, later when Kush approaches Ruby in the club, she is surprised when he apologies to her for stealing money from her till and he acts pretty sincere, he informs her that it's part of his recovery program, that he must apologise to everyone he's hurt due to his gambling addiction. It looks as if his apology really touches Ruby's heart and she invites him to stay for a drink. After a while they've both decided to sit together whilst having their drinks, Kush opens up about the deal he has in place with Phil, informing Ruby about that money he'll be getting by tacking the rap for the Mitchell's petty crimes, regardless whether it means him going to prison for a long time or not. He informs Ruby that the only reason he's doing it is for his son. It's quite sad though as you seem to realise how many people Kush has lost - Shabnam, Zaair, Shakil, Carmel - Arthur is simply the only person he has left! Ruby appears to be really moved by his revelation, however when he tries to change the subject to herself and Stacey, he kind of puts his foot in it when he reveals that Stacey actually wants Martin back! Ruby seems to be taken aback by this, it's only later when Kush comes to find her in his office, she informs him he may not have to go through with Phil's plan and then drops the bombshell that she'll give him the money instead! Kush is completely and utterly gobsmacked, why would she offer him such a lifeline?! But instantly Kush sees right through it and how crazy her scheme is, if Kush was to do a runner and take Arthur with him, it might change Martin's mind of having a baby with her, which would be a way of keeping her husband! The big question is however, will Kush take Ruby's offer and do a runner with his son?! 

Elsewhere on the Square, Billy, Honey and Jay are trying to move on from recent events. Honey pleads to Billy to try and talk things through with Jay as adults. She hates the fact that this has caused a rift in the family. Even though Billy is reluctant to forgive and forget, Honey seems to bring him round, mainly for the kids. As they find Jay sat alone in the gardens, Billy informs him that he recognises that what both he and Honey did was a huge mistake, with it being Christmas and people having a drink etc etc, people don't seem to realise their actions. He then invites Jay to move back in with them, however later on Honey finds Jay at the Car Lot, it looks as if she's struggling to come to terms with the recent events. She announces to Jay that over the past few weeks she has started to get feelings for him, it's been hard for her to ignore and of course she's been worried about what people might say about the age gap if they were to become an item, she pours out her heard to Jay that regardless of that, she wants them to give it a try. For a split moment, it looks as if Jay is going to say exactly the same thing, but instead, with a heavy heart, he informs Honey that he can't do it, because of Billy, he can't do that to him! This leaves Honey possibly feeling humiliated and devastated, she literally poured her heart onto the table, for it to completely backfire, only something tells me that Jay does have feelings towards Honey also, will he be able to stick to his word and not betray Billy?! 

Finally the main focus of this episode was Trueman/Fox family. Denise is completely on edge after learning on Christmas Day that Lucas had been released from prison and for the past month has been spending time with their daughter, Chelsea. Denise is constantly looking out of the window and having the need to check on Raymond every couple of minutes. Both Patrick and Kim are worried for her well-being, they can see that she is driving herself insane as she's being so wary of Lucas's possible arrival! Trying to see if they can find a way to get rid of Lucas, both Kim and Patrick approach Jack for his help, they inform that he shouldn't be anywhere near Denise, only when Kim suggests coming up with a plan to trap him and catch him, Jack simply refuses as it would be going against his jobs rules - that's what I'm assuming anyway?! With them out of ideas, Patrick seems to take the very drastic route and approach Phil for his help, at first, Phil is convinced that Denise is after more money but wise man insists that Denise has no idea that he is seeking his help. It seems to take a while for poor Patrick to convince Phil to actually get rid of Lucas, but when he proposes a deal where he'll make sure he'll be able to see his son without Denise's knowledge, Phil is more than happy to oblige. Meanwhile, as Chelsea is treating her Father to a slap-up meal, she makes an excuse to leave the room and powder her nose, it's at this moment when Phil makes his move, he takes Chelsea's place and sits opposite Lucas - I just want to say what a brilliant scene I thought this was, it's been such a long time since we've these two share a scene together! Steve McFadden and Don Gilet are just absolutely brilliant, I loved how Lucas recalled on the time when young Ben attacked his young son Jordan - how interesting is it going to be when Ben sees Lucas back on the Square???!!! Even when he dropped the bombshell that he knew that Phil had had a child with Denise, I just thought it was all just brilliant! In typical Phil Mitchell style, he threatens Lucas and warns him to leave Denise alone and to leave Walford for good! Later on in the evening, Phil makes on last visit to Patrick, informing him that Lucas had received the message loud and clear and wouldn't be returning, but he revealed to Patrick that he wanted Raymond to be with him on New Year's Day! Patrick tries to reason with Phil, acknowledging that he's grateful for what he's done but for him to bring Raymond to him on that specific day may be a bit awkward, but Phil is adamant he wants the young boy on that day, they simply had a deal and voices that Patrick should hold his end of the deal. Meanwhile, as this arrangement is being made, both Lucas and Chelsea are leaving the restaurant and heading for their car, Lucas appears to be voicing his concerns as to whether them spending time together is a good thing - however the one thing that pointed out to me was that Chelsea informed her Father that she had done well for herself and she seems pretty good for money, something is telling me that Lucas is only trying to get into his daughter's good books for her money - I could be wrong, but something just makes me question why she would say that?! Interesting possibility?! As Chelsea gets herself settled in the car, out of no where a group of hitmen begin throttling Lucas (with what looks like a large pole)! Chelsea screams and shouts, pleading for them to leave her Father alone, but none of them listen as they continue to beat Lucas to a pulp - could Phil be behind this attack?! 

Something tells me that Lucas is only going to be out for revenge after this attack! A very interesting episode with quite a bit of speculation! I apologise for this post being so late! I hope you enjoy reading! We're slowly getting to the big one on New Year's Day! I may be a little bit behind but I am really looking forward to watching and blogging about it when I get the chance! Enjoy the rest of your week folks, I'll be back very soon! Love you all xXx

[doof-doofblog]

"You Can Tell Me Anything!"

Monday 30th November 2020

Hello again everyone! A brand new week starting on the Square, I'm this week is going to be a jam packed one, everything is going to be set in stone for the run up to Christmas now! I am officially back at my second job tomorrow after the lockdown, so I will be trying my absolute to write a blog as much as I can. With working two jobs as well as trying to seeing family, friends and my partner, it's going to be a hectic month that's for sure! I hope you're all feeling festive and are going to start enjoying the days leading up to Christmas, there is going to be so much drama over the next few weeks I can't wait to see what happens!

Anyway, let's jump right in with the episode, it begins with Linda outside her apartment, as Shirley watches from the other side of the Square, Mick darts out of the apartment in such a rush that he barely says a word to both Linda and Shirley. Linda tries to question where he's going and attempts to remind him that they had plans to take Ollie to school together, but Mick is so fixated on getting to where he needs to be, he doesn't bat an eyelid to his wife and simply says "Another time!". Even as his Mum tries approaching him as he walks past her, trying to inform him that she's ready for that talk he previously wanted, whenever he's wanting to talk - he simply ignores her and reaches for his phone. As he continues to storm off down the street, Linda and Shirley share a look of complete defeat as Mick calls Katy to inform her that he's on his way to meet her. I would absolutely love to know what Linda and Shirley are going to make of all of this once they find out!

Meanwhile, at the Branning household, as Max is eating his breakfast, he hears a lot of commotion happening upstairs, Jack and Amy are simply having a Father-Daughter argument. From what I can make out, Amy is arguing with her Dad about there not being enough food in the house for her to have, to which she storms out of the house leaving Jack in the house alone with Max. As Jack enters the room, Max questions Amy's behaviour, he points out to his brother that they wouldn't speak to their parents like the way Amy did to Jack. However, Jack is quick to defend his daughter, he explains that Amy is getting older, she doesn't have a mum to look out for her anymore, (R.I.P Roxy!) and Jack is now back at work, working all sorts of crazy hours they don't really get to spend time together anymore. He mentions that with his daughter growing up and slowly becoming a teenager, it doesn't seem right that she should have to share a bedroom with her brother, Ricky, it's about time she deserves her own bedroom, which basically means for Max is that he'll have to move out. Max is deeply frustrated by this news and storms out the room.

Meanwhile, Mick has caught up with Katy in the park, he seems to be ... Nervous? Agitated? I'm not too sure, he's informing Katy that he's been thinking of nothing else but going to visiting the building he spent his childhood in. Katy is sat as she watches him pace backwards and forwards, she suggests that maybe going to see this building might not be a good idea, as it could make things a hell of a lot worse for Mick and maybe bring back more memories that he'd much rather forget. You can really tell in Katy's eyes that she really doesn't want to go ahead with Mick's idea. Would it mean that her dark secret would come to light even more?! As Mick and Katy are having this conversation in the park, Shirley and Linda have met up in Gray's household, after seeing Mick outside on the Square. It looks as if Shirley has informed Linda about her husband approaching his Mum the other day when she was put in a very difficult spot, she was stuck in the middle of a crisis to be fair. They sit at the table together a begin to discuss Mick, they both know that something isn't right, something is going on inside his head and neither of them are able to reach out to him and help him to understand what's going on. Linda recalls how it's 31 years to the day that they were 12 years old and they faked their own wedding day, promising to be there for each other every day no matter what. Linda explains to her Mother-In-Law that he's not the same Mick anymore, something has changed inside him and he's pushing everyone he loves away.

Returning to Mick and Katy, they seem to be approaching a rundown building which is all boarded up and surrounded by fence. This scene I also felt was pretty important, Mick stares at the building as Katy suggests making a move, she uses the excuse it of being boarded up that his idea is pointless, although deep down, I am certain that she is quivery in her boots incase Mick remembers something she doesn't want him to. As Mick crouches the floor which almost looks like it's a rubble patch on the floor which was used for a bonfire, suddenly it looks as if Mick gets a flashback from his childhood of him and other kids using sparklers and giggling on what appears to be bonfire night. He informs Katy that she doesn't have to stay with him, but she takes no notice and insists on being there with him. As they walk around the building to another side, Mick approaches another door which has been completely boarded up, with his bare hands he attempts to rip the material away from the door, cutting himself in the process, as Katy offers him a hanky or a tissue to wipe his hand, he ignore her offer and continues to break the board away from the door.

Meanwhile, at the Vic, Stuart and Rainie are eating with Tiffany, little Abi is playing beside them on the floor. Out of nowhere, Rainie asks Tiffany a very personal question, when he last period was! Both Tiffany and Stuart share a look of amazement as Rainie continues to explain to Tiffany that she can keep track of her cycle on an app. After hearing enough information, Stuart speaks up to his wife and informs her that they don't really need to focus on things like that, to which Tiffany agrees. As Tiffany excuses herself to go the toilet, she sarcastically tells Rainie that she can go with her, although it looks as if Rainie almost takes her seriously as she begins to stand up. But as Tiffany walks away, Stuart tries to have a quiet word with his wife, he needs to remind her that they agreed they'd back off a little bit where Tiffany is concerned. He fears that if Rainie keeps carrying on the way she is, there may be a chance that there will not be a baby, considering there hasn't been any official paperwork that they've signed yet. However, as Stuart and Rainie are having this quiet conversation, Ian appears to be watching them as he clears glasses from the bar, seriously - why is he earwigging on such a private conversation?! It has nothing to do with him! As he continues to clear glasses, he takes one away from the table that the Panesar family are sitting at, Suki is quick to inform him that she's still drinking the glass he took away, sorry - but I thought Ian was looking so smug during this moment - he actually looks into the glass, claims it to be empty and says that the Landlord's word is final! - (Sorry but a pub would never be successful if the Landlord went round collecting drinks that were unfinished, especially if punters were still drinking from them - they'd be out of business instantly!! How can Ian even say those words?!) - Suki reminds Ian that they have some unfinished business to attend to, but Ian isn't interested in what she's got to say! She informs him that due to the story he leaked to the newspapers, he has lost her business, to which he feel no remorse, no sympathy, not even apologetic. As he walks away Kheerat whispers to his Mother that she's surprised she's let Ian get away with his actions, however Suki informs her son that she has a plan of getting payback on him. As Ian makes his way behind the bar, Max makes his way into the pub and confronts Ian, demanding that he wants his money back that he's owed and he wants no more of Ian's excuses. Ian attempts to explain that no matter how hard he's trying, he keeps getting pushed back - although we all know that Ian simply doesn't have the money - Max demands that the only way he can get his money back is to put The Queen Vic up for sale and he warns him that if he doesn't, he'll move into the Vic himself and throw Sharon and Albie out!!

Returning to Mick and Katy, the continue to wonder about the abandoned building, all sorts of different furniture left to rot. As Mick approaches a staircase, he recalls his bedroom being right at the very top. Katy continues to make excuses for leaving the building, but Mick ignores her concerns and continues to recall about his childhood memories, the fact that he when he first arrived there after his Mum disappeared, all the boys just stood and stared at him. He begins to explain that he went to visit Shirley the previous day to seek her help, but he shrugs and reveals that she was too busy doing other things - its then that Katy clings to that information about Shirley and begins to suggest that maybe his problem lies with his Mother, not the fact he spent his childhood in a home, but the reason why he came to be there in the first place. However, Mick is adamant that that has nothing to do with his thoughts that are flooding his head, he explains to Katy that there is something that he just can't seem to grasp. But from the look of Katy's face, she's looking as if she doesn't want Mick to figure out that one more thing that's missing.

Back on the Square, Linda has popped into the Minute Mart where Honey is informing her about Kat and Kush leaving the Square so suddenly. However Linda isn't the slight bit interested and asks Honey to serve her a bottle of white rum, only as she asks for the alcohol, Max makes his appearance and over hears Linda's request. Honey looks to Linda in concern and asks her whether it's a good idea to serve her the alcohol, but Linda reassures her that it's not for her, it's for Mick instead and they're actually celebrating! Honey happily passes over the bottle of rum to Linda, she and Max both share a slight look before she turns and walks out the shop.

Meanwhile, Mick is continuing to reminisce about his time in the old foster home. He explains to Katy that the issue with his Mum isn't the thing that appears to be bugging him, he reveals that it has something to do with the place he spent his childhood. As Katy sits beside him, she begins to recall a time of when Mick was 12 years old and he got chased by a boy who was holding a lit sparkler and burnt a hole in one of his favourite shirts. However, interestingly, Mick recalls how that day ended - he vocally remembers going back to Katy's place and removing his shirt. This conversation seems to be heading in a really dark direction as Mick is staring at her with his dark eyes, Katy begins to get her version of the story, which involves Mick and another boy crushing crisps into her carpet that she had to clean up. It looks as if Mick knows she's lying, you think he's about to mention what really happened between them that night, but he simply agrees and suggests they leave the abandoned building. As he gets up to leave, the relief in Katy's face is absolute undeniable!! You can see that she's clearly relieved to get out of there before Mick can recall the truth of what really happened.

Back at the Vic, Ian is attempting to get in touch with someone who will offer him a loan, I'm guessing?! But it seems that he's having no luck! As Sharon tidies the bar, Rainie and Stuart are fussing over Albie, commenting on how gorgeous the little boy is, Sharon smiles with pride at how her young son can fall asleep in such a busy bar. Only Ian seem to interrupt their conversation quite abruptly, informing he needs to have a quick word with Sharon when she gets a free moment. As Sharon make her way behind the bar, Rainie comments how Ian's appearance - claiming he's looking a bit more sweatier than usual, obviously trying to make a harmless joke, but Ian isn't in the mood for jokes at this moment in time. He clocks Whitney coming in the pub and approaching the bar and - of course - he takes his opportunity to spoil things for Rainie and Stuart. He questions them, quite loudly, how they'd managed to convince Tiffany into their deal? And as Ian wanted, Whitney questions what he's talking about - much to Stuart and Rainie's shock and dismay - he informs Whitney (in not so many polite words) that Tiffany has agreed to be Rainie and Stuart's surrogate so they can have a baby. Whitney rushes her way out of the Vic, assuming to find Tiffany, leaving both Rainie and Stuart completely annoyed that Ian has announced their plans in such a smug and vile way.

Back at the Carter household, Linda looks as if she's changed to go out for a party, she looks completely and utterly fed up, like she's waiting for someone. Suddenly footsteps can be heard approaching and as she get up to greet her husband, we can see that she's decorated their apartment with 90s theme music and banners. It looks like that she's spent all afternoon creating something special for her husband, she appears so happy to see her husband enter the room, whereas Mick is looks in surprise at his wife decorations. She notices Mick's wound as he approaches the sink to wash it clean. She reminds Mick that it's their non-wedding anniversary, as she recalls them that 31 years to the day they had a pretend wedding, promising each other that they'll always be best friends and that they'll always be truthful to one another. I did find this scene a little sad, Linda is pleading for her husband to notice her, acknowledge the effort she has made for him, but he simply doesn't have anything to say. She pleads for him to say something, but as he remains silent she realises that her husband isn't going to respond, removing her fish-net gloves she sits on the sofa looking incredibly devastated. Its then that Mick turns around and says to her very softly that she has done something incredibly lovely for him, her head looks up in a sense of hope that this will make him happy, but once again he uses the excuse that he's exhausted and makes his way to the bedroom. Linda follows him in absolute dismay and disbelief that he really isn't interested in the effort she has made for him, she bellows and bangs on the bedroom door as he shuts himself away. Softly they both cry on opposite sides of the door, Mick crouching himself to the floor on one side and Linda bows her head on the other.

Returning to the Vic, Ian looks as if he's finally come to realise that he's struggling to cope with everyone demanding him to pay them back. As Sharon notices that Ian is sat in the kitchen alone, he reveals that he's slowly sinking, he explains that Suki is now on his case, plus he's having to pay his Mum back as well as owing Max his money, he's struggling to get the funds to pay everyone back. He announces to Sharon that he has no other choice but to put the Queen Vic up for sale. Sharon pleads to him not to it, but as much as he promises that both she and Albie will be looked after, he simply has no other choice. Sharon suggests he takes a loan out on the Chippy, but once again that will be more money to cough up - which he doesn't have - and even admits that he's tried but the bank don't want to touch it. Sharon tries her absolute best to console her friend, he reminds him that he's had money problems once before and he's managed to find a way to solve it, what's to stop him this time?! Ian informs Sharon that if he doesn't sell the Vic, Max has threatened to move in himself and throw both her and young Albie out - Sharon then informs Ian that Max can try all he likes, but she won't budge. She tries to reassure her friend and promises to be by his side, she instructs him to tell Max that he will get his money all in good time and that he won't be putting the Queen Vic on the market!

The final scene, we're in the park. Linda is sat alone on the swing, holding a bottle of alcohol in her hands, she's looking incredibly teary as she begins to remove the cap from the bottle. Suddenly Max approaches her from behind and informs her gently that whatever has made her upset, drinking a bottle isn't going to help the situation, poor Linda looks like a completely lost soul, she simply looks up at him and says "Then what will?" - he looks to one side and persuade her to follow him. Eventually they find themselves in the kitchen of the restaurant, Max pouring the alcohol down the sink as she's sat upon one of the counters. He questions what's made her upset as he comments that she looked as if she was about the down the whole bottle when he found her. Linda reveals to Max that she can't seem to understand how and why she has gotten to this point in her life, she always believed that her and Mick's marriage would be solid. Max tries to reassure her that Mick loves her, but from what I can make - she seems to believe that Mick's distance is down to what she's put him through over the past few months with her alcoholism. It looks as if she blames herself for Mick's behaviour and why he's being so distant with her. Suddenly Max tells her that if that is the case, then Mick doesn't see her how he sees her (this seems to grab Linda's attention instantly) - Max explains that he'll always be there for her to try and keep her sober, he promises her that she can go to him for anything, they're mates and she can talk to him about anything. Suddenly Linda plants her lips against Max's and they're in a passion embrace. Only unbeknown to them, Ian make his way into the restaurant, he appears to be looking for something but - of course - he happens to look straight ahead and sees Max and Linda in their passionate embrace. He's left with an absolute smug grin on his face!!!

Oooooh what is he going to do now after finding him in that position? Will he maybe blackmail him?! Will he threaten to inform Mick? What is Linda going to do now after kissing Max for a second time? It's understandable she's been wanting this type of attention for a long time, and her husband hasn't been in the right frame of mind to give her that attention she so desperately craves, even when she's spent so much time trying to help him, understand him and be there for him. Mick doesn't seem to realise that he really is pushing everyone away. Things need to start getting fixed and urgently! What do you guys think?! Thank you so much for reading! I'm really looking forward to seeing what happens next! I'll be back tomorrow evening following tonight's episode! Thank you all for your on-going support! Love you all xXx