Every EastEnders icon returning as Jacqueline Jossa and Thomas Law make comebacks

EastEnders is set to welcome a few familiar faces back to Albert Square, including some that viewers had long thought were dead.

The BBC soap's new showrunner Chris Clenshaw has “big plans to evolve EastEnders creatively in the next few years" and this seems to be by bringing back beloved characters for exciting new storylines.

Here is everything that viewers need to know about the biggest names coming back to Walford.

Michelle Collins | Cindy Beale

New details have emerged of Michelle Collins return to EastEnders as Cindy Beale, and she returned on the show's episode on 21 June where she was unmasked as George's missing wife Rose.

She was apparently put into witness protection, and that is the reason why she was unable to return to Albert Square until now.

The iconic villain was famously killed off-screen after being sent to prison. But Cindy won’t be alone in her return to Walford either, because her ex-husband Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt) will be coming with her.

Ian will return to the show on 22 June, and a trailer was revealed ahead of the episode by the BBC, in it Cindy and Ian had an emotional heart-to-heart.

Adam Woodyatt | Ian Beale

Ian previously made a surprise cameo in the soap in 2022, when his character attended Dot Cotton’s funeral and was seen speaking on the phone to someone - presumably Cindy.

This isn't the first time that one of Ian's loved ones has faked their own death, because his mother Kathy (Gillian Taylforth) had previously been presumed dead but was revealed to still be alive in a storyline from the soap in 2015.

Fans of the soap were left confused by the news that Cindy would be returning despite her death years earlier, and even Collins told the Daily Star in 2015 that she believed the character's return would be an “anti-climax” when she was asked about the possibility after Taylforth's return to the soap.

Clearly Collins no longer feels this way. But what she will be returning for in Albert Square is as yet unclear given her and Ian's daughter Lucy was killed on the soap in 2014.

Thomas Law | Peter Beale

Lucy's twin Peter has been confirmed to be reappearing in the show, as he made a surprise appearance on the soap on 22 June. Thomas Law reprises the role after leaving in 2010, the character was played by Ben Hardy from 2013 – 2015, and Dayle Hudson from 2020 to 2022.

It was revealed that he had been living in France with Cindy over the past few months, and he will be returning to the square later this year.

Law said of returning: “Over the years, I had hoped for a return to the Square although I never thought it would happen so it’s an absolute delight to be back in Walford as Peter Beale.

"It’s been great to see familiar and new faces, and I can’t wait to explore the character again in the wake of Cindy’s return – it’s an exciting time to return!”

Jacqueline Jossa | Laura Branning

Fans of the soap were surprised when Jacqueline Jossa unexpectedly returned to the program on 22 June, reprising her role as Laura Branning.

The character will lock heads with Cindy, who she was shocked to learn was still alive but was particularly appalled by the fact she didn't even return to Walford when her daughter was murdered.

Lucy Benjamin | Lisa Fowler

On Wednesday, 24 May the BBC announced that Lisa Fowler would be returning to the soap, with Lucy Benjamin set to reprise her role.

Benjamin’s return is being described as a “short stint” and her episodes will air in summer 2023.

Read more: EastEnders spoilers - Lola dies in tragic scenes, the Knight family arrives in the Square

The character was last seen on the show in 2020 when she fled with her daughter Louise and her granddaughter Peggy, and she will be coming back with Peggy much to the surprise of the little girl’s father Keanu Taylor.

Kim Medcalf | Sam Mitchell

Kim Medcalf's Sam Mitchell will come back to the square once again after she left the show in April following a brief stint on the soap, previously it'd been 17 years since the actor had been on the show.

Sam will make a reappearance in Walford later this year, and according to a report from Metro the character won't be back for "most of the summer." An official return date has not yet been confirmed.

Linda Henry | Shirley Carter

According to a report from Metro, fans can also expect Linda Henry to return to the show as Shirley Carter, after the character's exit in 2022.

Though no date has yet been revealed for the character, the publication reported that Shirley would make a reappearance in future.

Rita Simons | Roxy Mitchell

She may not be the only character to make a surprise comeback, as Rita Simons recently teased that her character Roxy Mitchell may not be dead after she recently made a cameo via a hallucination.

Roxy appeared during a family therapy session for her Amy (Ellie Dadd) telling her daughter to not give up during her mental health struggles.

Watch: EastEnders star Rita Simons says her character may not be dead.

Desperate measures?

EastEnders' rush of returning faces comes as the future of soaps no longer appears as secure as they once were. Beloved Australian show Neighbours faced cancellation in March 2022 because of falling viewership and rising costs.

In the end, the show was picked up by Amazon Freevee in November 2022, but it sparked fears that the longevity of soaps is no longer a given, and their legacy also may not be enough to draw in the same amount of viewership that it once had.

EastEnders, though it has remained popular on BBC iPlayer has seen ratings drop for linear TV viewership in recent years.

In October 2021, for example, Digital Spy reported that the show drew in 4.09 million viewers for its most-viewed episode, with Coronation Street receiving 5.70 million, and Emmerdale 4.96 million at the time.

So the decision to bring back several iconic characters in EastEnders may have been taken in a bid to address this issue.

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In August 2022, BBC Chief Content Officer Charlotte Moore said at the Edinburgh International TV Festival that the soap’s future is secure despite its dip in ratings, and confirmed that new showrunner Chris Clenshaw has “big plans to evolve EastEnders creatively in the next few years."

Moore added: "Of course, we are all seeing the way audiences are shifting – young audiences are shifting more than any other and they are looking at different titles across different platforms, so we would be mad not to see those shifts and those changing tastes and those changing attitudes.

"But do I think that soap will still play a part in the ecology of television in an on-demand and iPlayer world for some time? Absolutely. I think it's really, really important."

EastEnders airs Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings on BBC One.

This article originally appeared on Yahoo TV UK at https://uk.news.yahoo.com/every-eastenders-icon-returning-as-jacqueline-jossa-and-thomas-law-make-comebacks-083718202.html