EastEnders bosses look set to recast Bobby Beale.
The murderous teen – who has already bumped off his half-sister Lucy Beale (Hetti Bywater) in one of the soap’s biggest whodunits of all time – is set to return to Albert Square soon when he is released from a young offender institution, but producers are said to be searching for a fifth actor to play the character, who was most recently portrayed by Eliot Carrington.
A TV insider told The Sun newspaper’s Bizarre TV column: “The production team have always been keen to develop his character and want to find the right actor to take him into adulthood.”
Eliot played bitter Bobby, who also battered step-mum Jane Beale (Laurie Brett) over the head with a hockey stick, leaving her critically injured, from 2014 to 2017 after taking over from Rory Stroud.
Rory took the reins from Alex Francis, who played the part from 2007 to 2012, after Kevin Curran portrayed Bobby from 2003 to 2007.
Bobby has been mentioned several times on screen in recent weeks with his dad Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt) panicking about his son being released from a detention centre, where he is serving a three-year sentence.
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The epic Who Killed Lucy Beale? storyline ran from April 2014 to February 2015, with bookmakers taking bets on the possible culprit.
The 11-year-old character was an 100/1 outsider when the market first opened, but Bobby ended up as the favourite just days before he chillingly confessed to Jane that he committed the crime.
Lucy’s killer was unveiled in a special live week of episodes, with Bobby coldly confessing: “Whatever she says, she started it. She made everyone unhappy.”
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Bobby’s life didn’t get off to a great start as there were doubts Ian was his dad, with rumours rife that Garry Hobbs (Ricky Groves) had fathered him with Laura Beale (Hannah Waterman).
But they were later quashed when a blood test proved Ian was in fact the lad’s father.
EastEnders is on Mondays and Fridays at 8pm and Tuesdays and Thursdays at 7.30pm.
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