DRW50

The BBC really seems to be very invested in Kellie Bright and Danny Dyer - Strictly Come Dancing was so deadset on having Kellie and her Derek Hough-esque partner win that they wildly overscored them and trashed most of the other remaining competitors, and when they still lost, because they screech and dance like they're on bad coke, the judges went around saying she should have won and it's an outrage and so on. Then there's Danny Dyer bragging about how he got to personally plan Mick's stag do, which I've rarely heard of on a soap. If only any of this was validated by anything either of them display onscreen.

Poor Carl. I'm glad he mentioned Kathleen... I wonder why Lorna took Gregory's water bottle.

That was a real surprise for Kirkland. I'm glad Ryan was there with him. You really are making Christy and Eric into such an umbrella story. Great to see the bonding with Lindsay and Charlie.

Wonderful to see Ryan back. And he's straight talking to Vicky like he always did. Ugh at Michael perving around Stacey again. He never changes. I did enjoy her heart-to-heart with Lindsay.

Well that sex scene probably wouldn't air on a soap...yours is more realistic by far. It does feel like Marley's been pregnant forever, lol. Love all the use of history in this chapter.

So are Olivia and Dennis married with several kids? It's great to see Olivia name-checked in this. Loved her. I wonder if Maggie and Matt will be hooking up. Very emotional scenes at the Cory mansion.

It's nice to see Michele having some doubts about all her scheming. Elizabeth doesn't really know how disturbed Michele is... Such a real, honest, believable, and totally in-character argument between Jake and Vicky. And everything with Lorna, Felicia and Mitch walking in on Carl and Devin was perfect. I love when Lorna says "I spelled it different." So her.

It's good to see the Joy story back again. I love the conversation Steven has with Vicky - it sounds just like her.

I wasn't expecting that twist with Devin as Iris' partner. Wow. And I'm glad Iris is thinking logically about the business rather than just being a one-note schemer. That whole thing with Felicia and the drink she kept putting down - Jim Reilly would be proud. I loved it.

Kirkland's insecurities dominating him. Love the thought of Amanda and Iris working together, and Amanda's head being in the business, instead of acting irrationally. I wonder if Christy is trying to kill Felicia or make her fall off the wagon. Great casting of Wendy Moniz.

Such sad news for Jimmy Carter and family http://www.ajc.com/news/news/local/hours-after-grandsons-death-jimmy-carter-teaches-s/npn6n/ Lindsey Graham drops out. http://www.politico.com/story/2015/12/lindsey-graham-suspends-presidential-campaign-217028

Great to hear that Alla will be back on soaps. Thanks for the links. I wish they put up all 5 clips on those...

I'll have to check that out. I was looking at a few of his clips because I heard a bit of him in a clip of the UK Sound of Music. Maria can be sung emotionlessly sometimes but he really acts and sings it superbly.

A lot of the cast in those years has a trashy vibe and there were constant reports of feuding and fussing. I guess the show being a huge hit at that point didn't help, as the tabloids dug in, and did a lot of damage (just ask Steve McFadden and Lucy Benjamin). You don't hear about that much now - the worst you hear is stuff like Whitney and one of the Moon brothers in an ice cream shop, or Fatboy or whoever else being suspended. I guess they know they can't get away with too much these days.

To be fair, Hannah had that type of face... Here's the article. http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/147365/Boozy-Kat-slaps-Eastender-pal-Laura-at-Parkinson-TV-bash.html

Oh wow. I didn't know that there was bad blood between Jessie and Elaine. Jessie must've been a hot mess her first run on EE b/c she stayed clashing with her costars. There are rumors she didn't or doesn't get along with Steve McFadden and that they rarely interact onscreen as a result. That he tried to campaign to not bring her back. And that at the end of her first stint she was only close to two people - Charlie Brooks and Shane Richie. Then there were claims that she slapped Hannah Waterman (Laura Beale) in the face at a Christmas party. Supposedly she's not so bad now though.

Everything about Stacey's current role on the show feels very unearned. I'm supposed to be enthralled in mental illness story #4934 and her being so unpleasant all the time, and I'm just not. I don't care about her mental illness, or her pregnancy, or her relationships that have whopping anti-chemistry all around. At least with Kat I do care, but the stories still suck. That the best they can come up with for Kat is a long-lost son makes me sad. I would have much rather seen new friendships, a new job, etc. but I guess that isn't "shocking" enough. And we get more misery...not that we ever see it in proper focus, as, from what I remember, the episodes after she tried to kill herself were hijacked by those [!@#$%^&*] Carters or [!@#$%^&*] Mitchells.

Maybe Jake was a bartender or something?

I'm not sure she acts much now. She had a bad drinking problem and a year or two ago she was papped boozing again. She also had a bad feud with Jessie Wallace. The main problem is the show doesn't understand anything about why the Slaters worked, because the show hasn't been able to write good material for the Slaters since 2002. Even Stacey's best material was on her own, not with her family - she and Sean stopped having real interaction once DTC/Santer came in, and she was never all that interesting with Charlie or Mo. I think Kat could work if they ditched Alfie and had her in a brand new direction, but they aren't willing to do that. I also think Stacey really has to go.

I think if they actually believed Michelle would return, they'd ask her, as they were still using her photo this year and have still made reasons for Zoe not to return. I'm glad to hear they at least asked Kacey.

This may be why she isn't back. http://squaremilenews.blogspot.com/2012/07/eastenders-stars-cocaine-shame.html