Max Branning
EastEnders' Max Branning is to become one of the main suspects in the upcoming Lucy Beale murder storyline.
The womaniser - played by Jake Wood - will become the prime focus in the chilling case after it was revealed in last night's (03.04.14) episode that he's been having an affair with the 20-year-old businesswoman (Hetti Bywater).
A source told the Daily Mirror newspaper: "This development is really set to put the cat amongst the pigeons in Albert Square.
"It will shock many viewers and also put Max closer that anyone to Lucy just weeks before she is killed."
This isn't the first time Max has struck up a relationship with a younger woman as he also had an affair with his late son Bradley's wife Stacey Branning (Lacey Turner) in 2007.
However, the news that Max is sleeping with Lucy could be enough to turn his recovering alcoholic daughter Lauren (Jacqueline Jossa), who is close friends with the blonde beauty, back to her old ways.
The source explained: "If Lucy's friend Lauren finds out it could be enough to send her back to the bottle. She will really struggle to cope."
Lucy will leave Walford later this month after she's brutally slaughtered by a fellow resident, but bosses are remaining tight-lipped on the identity of the killer until next February.
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