EastEnders' Brian Conley is smiling on the red carpet
Soaps

Brian Conley exits EastEnders, forcing Christmas storyline rewrites

What will this mean for the Christmas storylines?

| Updated:

BBC soap EastEnders is said to be in a heap of chaos as Rocky Cotton star Brian Conley ‘abruptly quits’ the show.

The actor has allegedly asked soap bosses to write him out as soon as possible. But, what will this mean for the upcoming Christmas storylines in EastEnders?

EastEnders' Brian Conley is smiling on the red carpet
EastEnders writers are said to be racing to rewrite storylines (Credit: SplashNews.com)

Brian Conley ‘abruptly quits’ EastEnders

The Sun has reported that Brian Conley has ‘abruptly quit’ EastEnders after a row with BBC bosses. Soap writers are now said to be racing to rewrite the soap’s big Christmas storylines to fit in Rocky’s exit.

Currently, Rocky has been involved in some big storylines, including his recent bigamy storyline. But, the soap’s long-term plans for the character have now been jeopardised amid Brian’s alleged demands to be written out as quickly as possible.

An insider alleged to The Sun: “It looks as though he’s just not enjoying being on EastEnders any more — and has been telling a lot of colleagues and telly friends he wanted out for a while. It’s all come to a head, and at the National TV Awards last week he was pretty open with co-stars and friends about his exit.”

Adding to this, they also revealed: “The Beeb wanted him to stay, but he’s having none of it. The truth is, bosses are furious. They’d made so many plans around him and his character, and they really thought he was in for the long haul.

“Whatever has wound him up, it feels like he can’t get out of there quick enough — and now they’re going to have to rewrite their storyline plans for his rapid exit.”

How will Rocky leave the soap? (Credit: BBC)

How will Rocky Cotton leave EastEnders?

With Brian wanting to be written on immediately, the soap’s upcoming storylines have been thrown into chaos. Viewers know that one Walford resident is set to die at Christmas but now, the soap may soon be forced to kill off Rocky despite having other ideas. The insider explained: “If Brian wants out, it makes sense to switch it around.”

But, how will Rocky leave the soap? Will it be before Christmas or will the soap’s plans change? Will Rocky end up being the dead guy at Christmas? Have the original plans been ruined?

It has now been revealed that Brian is soon set to embark on a national tour starting on September, 24.

This likely means that Brian will finish filming his final scenes before the month is out. In other words, it hints that Rocky’s exit will air before Christmas, but could this be the case?

Entertainment Daily has contacted EastEnders reps for comment.

Read more: Complete EastEnders cast list for 2023 right here!

Rocky and his TWO WIVES? 💍 | Walford REEvisited | EastEnders

EastEnders usually airs Monday to Thursday at 7.30pm on BBC One.

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Tamzin Meyer
Assistant Soap Editor