Gillian Taylforth thinks 'EastEnders' is "back on top" following the exit of soap boss Sean O'Connor.
Gillian Taylforth
The long-running soap has come under fire over the past year or so for its "terrible storylines" but the cast - including the 62-year-old actress who plays Kathy Beale - thinks the show is finally on the rise again now that John Yorke - who previously worked on the programme - has reclaimed his executive position after Sean was given the boot following his decision to kill off Ronnie and Roxy Mitchell (Samantha Womack and Rita Simons) in this year's dramatic New Year's Eve episode.
Speaking to The Sun newspaper, Gillian said: "Diane Parish [Denise Fox] came up to me afterwards and said: 'EastEnders is back!' and she's right, all our hairs were up, it's a brilliant moment.
"The wonderful John Yorke is back so things have all changed. Christmas and New Year people are going to go: 'Wow, EastEnders!' It's the show rising high again."
Fans were left gripped to the edge of their seats last night (01.12.17) when Max Branning's (Jake Wood) big revenge plot, which saw the Carters lose the Queen Vic pub, was revealed.
She said: "The episode where the Square finds out is so great. It's in the pub and when it happens, it's so weird because all of us had the hair on our arms go up because it's a real duff duff moment."
And Gillian can't wait to see what unfolds over the festive season as not only will the Carter clan - including Mick and Linda (Danny Dyer and Kellie Bright) - be turfed out on the street, her character Kathy will come face-to-face with James Willmott-Brown (William Boyde) after he raped her in 1988.
Tagged in Danny Dyer Gillian Taylforth Jake Wood