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"Who Killed Archie?" is a storyline from the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

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soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

'' EastEnders''. It began on 25 December 2009,

Christmas Day Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, ...

, when the character

Archie Mitchell Archibald Lionel "Archie" Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Larry Lamb. He first appeared on 8 July 2008 as a newest member of the Mitchell family—who had first appeared on the soap in 1990� ...

, played by

Larry Lamb Lawrence Douglas Lamb (born 1 October 1947) is an English actor and radio presenter. He played Archie Mitchell in the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'', Mick Shipman in the BBC comedy series '' Gavin & Stacey'' and Ted Case in the final series ...

, was murdered by an unseen person. Events leading up to and following the murder put several characters in the frame, in the style of a

whodunnit A ''whodunit'' or ''whodunnit'' (a colloquial elision of "Who asdone it?") is a complex plot-driven variety of detective fiction in which the puzzle regarding who committed the crime is the main focus. The reader or viewer is provided with th ...

mystery. The culprit was kept a tight secret within the production crew as well, with only seven people knowing the identity of the killer. The murderer was revealed as

Stacey Slater Stacey Slater (also Branning and Fowler) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', portrayed by Lacey Turner. She first appears in episode 2826, originally broadcast on 1 November 2004. The character is introduced as a fe ...

(

Lacey Turner Lacey Amelia Turner (born 28 March 1988) is an English actress. She is known for portraying the role of Stacey Slater on the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' (2004–2010, 2014–present), for which she has won over thirty awards, including four ...

) during a live episode titled " EastEnders Live", broadcast on 19 February 2010, the show's 25th anniversary. Turner was told thirty minutes before the broadcast that Stacey was the killer, and actors rehearsed several possible endings. Finally, a two-hander episode between Stacey and her ex-lover

Max Branning Max Branning is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Jake Wood. He made his first appearance on 27 June 2006. Wood took a four-month break from the show in 2011 and the character was absent between August and No ...

(

Jake Wood Jake Dylan Wood (born 12 July 1972) is an English actor and podcaster, known for his role as Max Branning in the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders''. He has also made guest appearances in series including ''Only Fools and Horses'' and '' Red Dwarf'' ...

) on 26 March 2010 explained how she killed Archie - who had previously been the show's main antagonist prior to the character's death and murder storyline.

Storyline creation and development

The storyline was created in spring 2009 during a story conference, where executive producer

Diederick Santer Diederick Santer (born 3 July 1969) is a British television producer and is best known for his work on the popular BBC television soap opera ''EastEnders'', a post which he assumed on 23 October 2006 and left on 1 March 2010. He was Chief Exec ...

, storyliner

Dominic Treadwell-Collins Dominic Treadwell-Collins (born 26 August 1977) is a British television producer, known for his work on the soap operas ''Family Affairs'' and ''EastEnders'', creating the ''EastEnders'' spin-off series '' Kat & Alfie: Redwater'' and Executive P ...

, series consultant and lead writer

Simon Ashdown Simon Ashdown is a British television writer, best known as being a BAFTA award-nominated ''EastEnders'' writer. Career From 1995 to 2013, Ashdown was series consultant and lead writer on ''EastEnders''. He was involved in the creation of the Sl ...

, series producer

Lorraine Newman Lorraine Newman (born 1978) is a British scriptwriter, television producer, and the executive producer of the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' from 2012 to 2013. Newman, who has worked on ''EastEnders'' for "nearly 20 years", received the role of ...

, script producer Sharon Batten, and Controller of BBC Drama Production John Yorke were considering what to do for the Christmas Day 2009 and 25th anniversary episodes. They discussed the character Archie Mitchell and how everyone hated him, and decided on a storyline with characters' hatred and anger towards Archie building up before Christmas, with a peak on Christmas Day when he is killed and another for the reveal on the 19 February 2010 anniversary. They decided to keep the killer's identity a secret within the small group and decided to reveal it during a live episode so that the secret could be kept for as long as possible, and managed the story on a need-to-know basis. The live episode's director,

Clive Arnold Clive Arnold is a British television director, known for his work on the BBC One soap opera ''EastEnders''. Career Arnold began in showbusiness as an actor, working for six or seven years for the BBC. During this time he realised his talents may ...

, became the seventh person to discover the identity of the murderer. They went through the characters to decide who would create a "shiver" moment, and decided against Janine, even though she could have done it, because she has killed before. The killer was going to be Archie's wife

Peggy Mitchell Margaret Ann "Peggy" Mitchell (also Butcher) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''. Peggy was initially played by Jo Warne when she first appeared in the episode broadcast on 30 April 1991, featuring in 10 episodes. ...

(

Barbara Windsor Dame Barbara Windsor (born Barbara Ann Deeks; 6 August 193710 December 2020) was an English actress, known for her roles in the Carry On (franchise), ''Carry On'' films and for playing Peggy Mitchell in the BBC One soap opera, ''EastEnders''.

), until producers discovered Windsor had planned to leave the show, so they decided on Stacey. Although scripts initially diverted attention away from Stacey, Santer realised that drawing attention away from her too much might make it more apparent. Santer said there were three big clues to the killer's identity, "one in the Christmas Day episode, one more recently than Christmas and there's another one that, if I were to tell you where it was, would perhaps give it away too easily," however, in a chat with

Sharon Marshall Sharon Jean Marshall (born 21 September 1971) is a British entertainment journalist and screenwriter best known for being the resident "Soap Expert" from 2003 to 2022 on ITV's '' This Morning''. Television career In 2006, Marshall appeared as ...

shown on '' This Morning'' on 18 February 2010, he said the second clue was about halfway through the investigation and the third was "on screen but not necessarily in the programme". He also said that the outcome would be "surprising", "satisfying" and "in retrospect, inevitable", adding that "it makes sense". Santer confirmed the clues in an interview on the ''EastEnders'' website: on Christmas Day Stacey disappears and it is never explained why, and then reappears on Boxing Day appearing "not quite with it"; Stacey is the only character still sufficiently angry enough to spit on Archie's grave at his funeral; and Stacey is the first character to feature in the Christmas Day trailers. Plans to broadcast the first ever live episode of ''EastEnders'' were announced by the BBC on 15 September 2009. Santer initially refrained from discussing the episode's plot, but commented that it would resolve a "big storyline" which would "keep the audience (as well as the cast and crew) guessing until the very last moment." Santer confirmed that Archie's killer would be revealed in the live episode, and that their identity would be kept secret until the night of broadcast, even from the cast member playing them. The ''EastEnders'' cast and crew had two weeks to rehearse the episode prior to its live transmission. The script was issued on the afternoon of 5 February 2010, written by Simon Ashdown. The first read-through took place on 8 February 2010, though producers held back the part of the script revealing Archie's true killer. Ten different possible endings were scripted and rehearsed, each showing one character confessing to the murder. The ten characters were

Janine Butcher Janine Carter (also Butcher, Evans and Malloy) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'', introduced in 1989. The character was played by Rebecca Michael from 1989 to 1993, Alexia Demetriou from 1993 to 1996, and Charlie ...

(

Charlie Brooks Charlene Emma Brooks (born 3 May 1981) is a British actress. Known for the role of Janine Butcher in the BBC One soap opera ''EastEnders'', she has received numerous awards since her first appearance on the soap in 1999, with storylines inv ...

Jack Branning Jack Branning is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Scott Maslen. He made his first appearance on 29 October 2007. He is the youngest child of Jim (John Bardon) and Reenie Branning (Joy Graham) and the brot ...

(

Scott Maslen Scott Alexander Maslen (born 25 June 1971) is an English actor and model, best known for his portrayal as DS Phil Hunter in ITV's ''The Bill'' and Jack Branning on the BBC's flagship soap ''EastEnders'' since 2007. He also took part in the 20 ...

Ronnie Mitchell Veronica "Ronnie" Branning (also Mitchell) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera, ''EastEnders'', played by Samantha Womack. She and her younger sister Roxy Mitchell (played by Rita Simons) were introduced by executive producer Died ...

(

Samantha Womack Samantha Zoe Womack ('' née'' Janus; born 2 November 1972) is an English actress, singer, model and director who has worked in film, television and stage. Womack initially planned a career in singing and she represented the United Kingdom i ...

(

Ian Beale Ian Beale is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Adam Woodyatt. He is the drama's longest-serving main character and, following the departure of Pauline Fowler ( Wendy Richard) in 2006, became the only one ...

(

Adam Woodyatt Adam Brinley Woodyatt (born 28 June 1968) is an English actor. He is known for his role as Ian Beale in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', which he played between 1985 and 2022. Early life and education Woodyatt was born on 28 June 1968 in W ...

Phil Mitchell Phil Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Steve McFadden. He was introduced to the soap opera on 20 February 1990 and was followed by his brother Grant Mitchell (EastEnders), Grant (Ross Kemp), s ...

( Steve McFadden),

Billy Mitchell William Lendrum Mitchell (December 29, 1879 – February 19, 1936) was a United States Army officer who is regarded as the father of the United States Air Force. Mitchell served in France during World War I and, by the conflict's end, command ...

(

Perry Fenwick Perry Fenwick (born 29 May 1962) is an English actor. He is known for portraying the role of Billy Mitchell in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', a role which he has played since 1998. Career Television Fenwick's first regular television ro ...

Ryan Malloy Ryan Malloy is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Neil McDermott. From his arrival on 28 April 2009, the character remained a mystery in the show for a number of months, until he was revealed as the half-brot ...

(

Neil McDermott Neil McDermott (born 15 December 1980) is a British stage and television actor, who is best known for portraying Ryan Malloy in the BBC television soap opera ''EastEnders''. Career McDermott appeared in the 2008 ''Doctor Who'' episode "The Nex ...

), Peggy and Stacey. Santer reiterated that the actor playing the killer would only be told so thirty minutes before the broadcast. He explained that the killer "may be revealed to the audience rather than the

Square In Euclidean geometry, a square is a regular quadrilateral, which means that it has four equal sides and four equal angles (90- degree angles, π/2 radian angles, or right angles). It can also be defined as a rectangle with two equal-length a ...

", preserving secrecy as the crew began filming episodes to be transmitted after the live broadcast. Brooks, who plays Archie's former lover Janine, found the secrecy difficult to work with, explaining: "In the episodes to be shown afterwards, you're being told to look or speak a certain way, but not why." Santer confirmed that the cast found the episode challenging, stating: "They are as desperate to know who did it as the viewers." Actor

Charlie Clements Charlie Clements (born 5 June 1987) is an English actor known for the role of Bradley Branning in the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'' from January 2006 to February 2010. He has won several soap and magazine awards for his performance. Biograph ...

, who played

Bradley Branning Bradley Branning is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Charlie Clements. He made his first appearance on screen on 24 January 2006 and last appeared on 22 February 2010 after he was killed off in the show's ...

, announced in November 2009 that he would be leaving the soap in 2010. The moment Turner was told Stacey was the killer was filmed for a live reaction show broadcast immediately after "EastEnders Live" on

BBC Three BBC Three is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes targeting 16 to 34-year-olds, covering all genres including animation, comedy, cur ...

, though it was not broadcast. '' EastEnders Live: The Aftermath'' was presented by Lamb's son

George George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presid ...

and included other behind-the-scenes material. Turner received a call to see Santer about 20 minutes before the broadcast, where she was told that Stacey was the killer. She explained that she had no idea her character was the murderer, even after receiving the call. She hoped viewers would sympathise with the character as she not only has to deal with the guilt of killing Archie but was also inadvertently responsible for Bradley's death. Wood was also told as he supported Turner in the final scene in which she was revealed as the killer. Santer also brought in Maslen and McDermott as decoys in case other cast and crew members realised. Following the live episode, a two-hander episode featuring Max and Stacey was announced. The episode, broadcast on 26 March 2010, explains how and why Stacey killed Archie.

Later development

Although the true identity of Archie's killer is kept a secret between Max and Stacey for several months, Max's daughter

Lauren Branning Lauren Branning is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''. The role was originated by Madeline Duggan, who first appeared on 3 July 2006. Duggan played the role for four years until her exit on 23 June 2010. Three months l ...

(

Jacqueline Jossa Jacqueline Mary Osborne (''née'' Jossa) (born 29 October 1992) is an English actress and television presenter. She is known for portraying Lauren Branning in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' from 2010 to 2022, and winning the nineteenth ser ...

) becomes suspicious in November 2010 when Max tells her Bradley was innocent. Lauren suspects Max killed Archie as she becomes paranoid about his anger. Jossa said in an interview with website Digital Spy: " aurens thinking about Archie's murder and realising that if Bradley didn't do it, it must have been someone else. As far as she knows, her dad is the only person who knows that Bradley didn't do it, so she's trying to put this puzzle together and it's all adding up to Max being the killer, because everything he does seems to lead to a lot of aggression." However, Lauren soon works out that Stacey is the murderer after speaking to her. Jossa said she was excited that her character was one of only a select few to know the true identity of Archie's killer.

Suspects and motives

There were officially ten suspects for the murder, though the ten were not known to viewers or cast members, who speculated about the identity of the killer. On Christmas Eve, storylines showed Archie evicting his wife Peggy, daughters Ronnie and Roxy, Peggy's son Phil and Phil's son

Ben Ben is frequently used as a shortened version of the given names Benjamin, Benedict, Bennett or Benson, and is also a given name in its own right. Ben (in he, בֶּן, ''son of'') forms part of Hebrew surnames, e.g. Abraham ben Abraham ( he, ...

(

Charlie Jones Charles, Charlie, Charley or Chuck Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Chuck Jones (1912–2002), American animator, director, and producer * Charles Jones (c. 1889–1942), American actor better known as Buck Jones * Charles Jones (pho ...

) from their home, The Queen Victoria public house, after he became the landlord. Ronnie had a further motive as Archie had caused her to suffer a miscarriage and she blamed him for the death of her daughter Danielle Jones (

Lauren Crace Lauren Rose Crace (born 25 May 1986) is an English actress and radio presenter, known for her portrayal of Danielle Jones in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' from 2008 to 2009. Early life The daughter of contemporary writer Jim Crace and Pa ...

) earlier in 2009. Peggy discovered that Archie had paid her daughter Sam Mitchell (

Danniella Westbrook Danniella Westbrook (born 5 November 1973) is an English actress, best known for originally playing Sam Mitchell in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' on and off from 1990 to 2000 and 2009 to 2016. Away from ''EastEnders'', she has presented va ...

) to skip bail, thus plunging the Mitchells into debt, and Sam returned on Christmas Day to discover she had been manipulated. Phil was also a suspect after failing to kill Archie on Peggy's request earlier in 2009. Simons explained that the killer was likely to be the most unsuspecting person, and stated that Roxy was "pretty much the only non-suspect," but said she felt the character would not go so far as to kill her father, even though she had seen his true colours. Woodyatt said his character, Ian Beale, would have done anything to stop his wife Jane (

Laurie Brett Laurie Brett (born 28 March 1969) is a Scottish actress, best known for her roles as Jane Beale in the BBC One soap opera '' EastEnders'' and Christine Mulgrew in the BBC One school-based drama series '' Waterloo Road''. Early and personal life ...

) from finding out that he had sex with Janine, so it would be plausible if it turned out that Ian had killed Archie. Archie had a laptop recording of Ian and Janine together that he had threatened to give to Jane. Janine, who was engaged to Archie, also had a motive as Archie had been using her to gain ownership of The Queen Victoria and threw her out on Christmas Day. She was seen holding a knife before Archie was killed. McDermott said his character,

, "probably would have the balls to kill Archie" and it would be a possibility due to the character's past, although he accused Janine of the murder, making it unlikely unless he was "quite conniving." He stated Ryan's only motive would be out of love for Janine.

Glynis Barber Glynis Barber (born Glynis van der Riet; 25 October 1955) is a South African actress. She is known for her portrayals of Sgt. Harriet Makepeace in the British police drama '' Dempsey and Makepeace'', Glenda Mitchell in ''EastEnders'', DCI Grac ...

, who plays Archie's first wife

Glenda Mitchell Glenda Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Glynis Barber. The character first appeared in the programme on 7 January 2010. She was axed in February 2011 and departed on 8 March 2011. She returned ...

and was not seen in the programme until after the murder, said her instinct was that Glenda did not kill Archie, even though she had been told it was possible. Bradley Branning's motive came from the discovery that Archie raped his partner Stacey, and Clements said that if other characters knew, it would give Bradley a motive and the fact that Bradley punched Archie would make him a prime suspect. He stated that he hoped Bradley was not the killer, though in an interview with daytime television show '' This Morning'', he stated it would be "quite historical to go down as the one who killed Archie Mitchell". The rape also gave Stacey a motive, and before she was sectioned in 2009 for

bipolar disorder Bipolar disorder, previously known as manic depression, is a mental disorder characterized by periods of depression and periods of abnormally elevated mood that last from days to weeks each. If the elevated mood is severe or associated with ...

she accused Archie of trying to kill her. Jack Branning's motive came from his love for Ronnie and hatred of Archie, and he threatened Archie on Christmas Day. Maslen said it would be "great" if Jack was the murderer, but added that he may have taken the blame if Ronnie was guilty. Other possible suspects included Peggy's son Grant Mitchell (

Ross Kemp Ross James Kemp (born 21 July 1964) is an English actor, author, and television presenter. He rose to prominence in the role of Grant Mitchell in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''. He is also known for his other roles as Graham Lodsworth in ' ...

), Billy Mitchell and Tracey the barmaid ( Jane Slaughter). Slaughter said Tracey's only motive would be to protect The Queen Victoria or one of the Mitchells. Odds on the killer's identity changed frequently in the fortnight preceding the transmission of "EastEnders Live". On 5 February, the clear favourite was Stacey Slater, with odds at Bodog of 2/1. By 9 February, Stacey's odds had shortened to 6/4, though the character dropped into third place by 12 February, usurped by her brother

Sean Slater Sean Slater is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Robert Kazinsky who made his first appearance on 22 August 2006. Sean's existence was revealed on 9 December 2005 when his sister Stacey Slater (Lacey Turner ...

(

Robert Kazinsky Robert John Appleby (born 18 November 1983), known professionally as Robert Kazinsky, is an English actor. He is known for his roles as Casper Rose in the Sky One drama ''Dream Team'', the Don in '' Captain Marvel'', Sean Slater in the BBC soa ...

), who was last seen in the soap on 1 January 2009, at odds of 9/4, and Ben Mitchell at 7/2. On 14 February, the unlikely favourite became Tracey the barmaid, a background character whose odds shortened considerably from 40/1 to 11/4. Sean moved back into first place on 16 February, with odds of 2/1, and remained there until the eve of broadcast. Stacey Slater's odds fell to 16/1. William Hill had Sean as the favourite on 18 February with odds of 4/7, though on the morning of 19 February, Ben became the bookmakers' favourite. Polls on both the BBC website and on Digital Spy that ran in the week leading up to the live episode showed Bradley Branning as the person viewers most expected to be the killer, followed by Jack Branning, Ben Mitchell, Sean Slater and Sam Mitchell.

Plot

Events leading up to the murder

(

) and

's (

) wedding day, the true identity of Danielle Jones (

) as

's (

) daughter is revealed. Archie has told Ronnie that her daughter, whom he gave up for adoption as a baby, has died. Just after Ronnie realises the truth, Danielle is hit by a car driven by

(

) and dies in Ronnie's arms. Peggy throws Archie out and asks her son

( Steve McFadden) to kill him, but Phil just forces him to leave. The Mitchells also form a new rivalry with Janine, as she was the one responsible for hitting Danielle with her car and causing her death. Ronnie is the most hurt about this and struggles to cope. She starts another relationship with

(

), leading to their engagement. However, upon realising she wants another baby, she leaves Walford for a while, selling her portion of the club to Jack, who in turn gives it to Archie. After returning, Ronnie sleeps with

(

) and

Owen Turner Owen Turner is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Lee Ross. He originally appeared in the show on 15 June 2006 and left the show in late 2006. In 2009, it was announced that Ross would return to the show; he ...

( Lee Ross), and becomes pregnant with Owen's child.

(

), Danielle's best friend in Walford, is also deeply affected by the incident, which triggers her

. She becomes non-compliant with her medication, has sex with Ryan, and is raped and attacked by Archie at the launderette. She believes both men are planning to kill her and is involuntarily committed to hospital, where she befriends Becca Swanson (Simone James). Upon her return to Walford along with Becca, Stacey restarts a relationship with

(

) when he rejects his girlfriend Syd Chambers (

Nina Toussaint-White Nina Toussaint-White is an English actress who has acted in '' Casualty,'' ''The Bill, and EastEnders.'' Early life Toussaint-White was raised in Plumstead, south east London, Toussaint-White was educated at Plumstead Manor School and Negus Six ...

) for her. When Archie returns, he attempts to reconcile with Peggy, but comes up with a plan to steal the Mitchells' business,

The Queen Victoria The Queen Victoria (more often referred to as The Queen Vic or The Vic) is the Victorian public house in the BBC soap opera, ''EastEnders''. It has the fictional address of 46 Albert Square, Walford, London E20. Appearance and developmen ...

public house A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and wa ...

, with Janine's help. However, Janine, along with Ryan, whom she is dating, plans to steal it from Archie at the last minute. Peggy's daughter Sam Mitchell (

), who has been in Brazil on the run from police due to her involvement in the murder of

Den Watts Dennis "Den" Watts is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by actor Leslie Grantham. He became well known for his tabloid nickname, "Dirty Den". Den was the original landlord of The Queen Victoria public house fr ...

( Leslie Grantham), returns to Walford, thinking the charges have been dropped. She is subsequently arrested, and the Mitchells put up £250,000 bail to have her released. Archie convinces Sam to leave again, paying for her to go. Phil is then forced to take out a loan from

(

). Ian accepts, on the condition that if the loan is not paid back within a certain time, he becomes owner of The Queen Victoria. Archie and Janine learn of this and try to get Ian to sell the loan to them. When Ian's wife

Jane Beale Lesley Jane Beale (also Clarke and Collins) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera, ''EastEnders'', played by Laurie Brett. She made her first appearance on 22 June 2004. Brett took maternity leave in 2011 and departed on 19 May. Sh ...

(

) leaves him, Janine gets him drunk and has sex with him, making an audio recording of them together. Archie and Janine blackmail Ian into selling them the loan and Archie tells the Mitchells they are trespassing. Once Archie finds out that Janine plans to fleece him, he proposes to her to keep her from going astray. Ryan is hurt by this setback and ends his relationship with her. Ronnie stands up to Archie and he pushes her into the bar, not knowing she is pregnant, though

Roxy Mitchell Roxanne "Roxy" Mitchell (also Slater) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera, ''EastEnders'', portrayed by Rita Simons.Rita Simons Rita Joanne Simons (born 10 March 1977) is an English actress and singer from London. She is best known for playing Roxy Mitchell in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' from 2007 to 2017, when her character was killed-off, alongside her on screen ...

) then reveals it. Ronnie has a miscarriage and Peggy tells Archie he has killed another of Ronnie's children, warning him to stay away from her. Peggy eventually hands over the keys and the family of Peggy, Phil, Ronnie, Roxy, Ben Mitchell (Charlie Jones) and Roxy's baby

Amy Mitchell The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'' which aired in 2008 (by order of first appearance). All characters were introduced by executive producer Diederick Santer. Santer introduced four c ...

leave on 24 December 2009. They end up being taken in by Jack, who vows revenge on Archie. On Christmas Day, Archie tells Ian the CD of the recording is under Ian's Christmas tree for Jane, but Ian fails to find it. Archie tells Janine that they should skip Christmas dinner as he has made a surprise treasure hunt for her. Janine eventually finds an envelope containing a one-way ticket to Gdańsk,

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

and Archie throws her out onto the street telling her he knows how she and Ryan tried to double-cross him. Archie is visited by Jack who threatens to kill him if he hurts Ronnie again. Archie finds Ian searching his living room for the CD and Archie says it is on his laptop and he can make copies at any time, threatening Ian with a phone call to Jane, before ejecting him from the pub. Ian leaves, though not before telling Archie that if he does call Jane he'll wish he was dead. Sam then returns and attempts to confront Archie but he shuts the door on her. Ronnie subsequently arrives and tells him with no emotion that he will not make her care for him and she would not care if he died. Archie, after explaining how his father never smiled at him once and the impact had practically taught him to do the same, throws her out onto the street reminding her that it was the exact spot she pushed Danielle onto the night she died. The Queen Victoria bust

Shortly afterwards, Archie is visited by Peggy and he pleads with her to come home to him as she is the woman he loves. Peggy says she is not just a sweet and innocent old lady and that he has no idea who he is messing with. She tells Archie if he does not leave the pub that night he will regret every cruel and evil act he has ever done. He tells her that unless she returns he will have the pub converted to flats. He then becomes emotional as he tells Peggy that he will be waiting for her as she walks out on him. Bradley walks in and punches Archie in the face twice but accidentally punches the bar as well, cutting his hand. He tells Archie to stay away from his girlfriend Stacey because she has said Archie raped her three months previously which resulted in her becoming pregnant with his child, and Bradley leaves. As Archie picks up his snowglobe from the floor, the bust of Queen Victoria is pushed from the bar and hits him on the head.

After the murder

Ronnie finds Archie on the floor of The Queen Victoria and he apologises to her before he dies. When the police are notified of the death they arrest Ronnie, but later release her without charge.

DCI Jill Marsden DCI Jill Marsden is a fictional character in the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'', played by Sophie Stanton. She made her first appearance on 5 March 2001 investigating the shooting of Phil Mitchell ( Steve McFadden), which was part of the whodun ...

(

Sophie Stanton Sophie Stanton (born 1971 in London, England) is an English actress, director and playwright. She is best known for her role as DCI Jill Marsden in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' in which she has appeared on and off since 2001. Career Ea ...

) investigates the rest of the Mitchell family. Phil is given a false alibi by his friend

Shirley Carter Shirley Carter is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Linda Henry. She first appeared on 7 December 2006, during episodes set in Dorset. This is Henry's second role in ''EastEnders'', as she previously playe ...

(

Linda Henry Linda Varilis (''née'' Henry; born 24 August 1959) is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Yvonne Atkins in the ITV drama '' Bad Girls'' and Shirley Carter in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', a role she has played since 200 ...

), who finds a blood-stained shirt amongst his belongings. Phil explains that he found Archie dead and lost his balance, falling into the blood, but did not call the police because he panicked. They burn the shirt, and when Marsden visits them again, asking to see the clothes Phil was wearing at Christmas, Shirley produces a freshly laundered one. Shirley's flatmate

Heather Trott Heather Trott (also Peterson) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Cheryl Fergison. She made her first appearance on 26 June 2007. The character was introduced as a guest character, but later became a regula ...

(

Cheryl Fergison Cheryl Fergison (born 27 August 1965) is an English actress. She is known for portraying the role of Heather Trott in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' a role in which she starred in from 2007 until 2012. Career After training at Rose Bruford ...

) reveals that Phil was not really with Shirley on Christmas Day, prompting Shirley to make an anonymous call stating she saw Janine enter The Queen Victoria on the day of the murder, deflecting suspicion from Phil. Peggy and Phil attempt to pin the murder on Sam, who retaliates by blaming Peggy. Both are questioned by Marsden at the police station, and though Peggy is released without charge, Sam is arrested for breaking her bail. Ian has Archie's laptop, and though he deletes the audio file of him and Janine from it, it later comes to light, and he and Jane throw the laptop into the canal. Janine attempts to blackmail Ian, and when he rebuffs her, she tells the police about the recording and the laptop, leading to his arrest. Ian admits to stealing the laptop from The Queen Victoria on Christmas Day, but denies murder. The police charge him with murder, but when Janine admits the truth, the charges are dropped. Marsden and her colleague DC Wayne Hughes (Jamie Treacher) attend Archie's funeral, but do not see Stacey spit on Archie's grave. Jack, a former police officer, tells Hughes he can help out with any "local information" they might need. After the funeral, Bradley proposes to Stacey at the car lot, and she accepts. Jack later learns that Archie raped Stacey, that she is now pregnant with what she believes is Archie's baby, and that Bradley punched him on Christmas Day. Jack urges Bradley to tell the police what he did, desiring to keep Ronnie out of trouble. Marsden reveals she has a new forensic profile and a DNA screening process will begin. She asks all white males to volunteer for DNA screening, and when Bradley complies, Jack bribes Hughes to make the samples disappear. A ring Roxy inherited from Archie, which went missing at Christmas, is planted in Janine's flat. Marsden receives an anonymous tip-off and Janine is arrested after the ring is found in her teapot. She is interviewed, but is released due to lack of evidence. She realises that Peggy planted the ring in an attempt to frame her. When Shirley thinks Phil is seeing another woman, she accuses him of only being interested in her for her alibi. He says it is not true, but she drunkenly threatens to withdraw the alibi, and walks to the police station. Becca becomes hurt upon realising that Bradley and Stacey are getting married. While they are away at their own wedding, Becca steals a hairbrush with Archie's hair from The Queen Victoria, intending to have a DNA test done on Stacey's baby to prove if it is really Archie's. However, she has doubts and goes back with Stacey to return the brush, but is caught by Ronnie. Becca coerces Stacey to confess Archie raped her and the baby is his. However, Ronnie tells Stacey that Archie underwent an operation a few years back that left him infertile, meaning that Stacey's baby is not his. Roxy accuses Ronnie of murdering Archie. Ronnie denies it, but tells her she found out about Archie raping Stacey, and admits that Archie had also raped her as a child. Peggy tells the two of them that when Archie was murdered, she found him lying on the floor, took her divorce papers from the bar and left him to die. Phil tells Peggy about his alibi, the shirt and that he found Archie dead on Christmas Day. Shirley then returns and says Phil has got away with it as she has not told the police anything. Meanwhile, Becca anonymously reports to the police that Bradley had a motive for the murder. Jack receives a call from Hughes to say that Bradley is about to be arrested and urges Bradley to leave Walford as quickly as possible. Bradley and Stacey quickly pack their bags at home.

(

) says an emotional goodbye to his son and Jack agrees to help them escape. They leave via the back door as Max delays the police at the front, and hide a few streets away. Jack also leaves by the back door but Marsden sees him and he is unable to meet Bradley and Stacey, who are nervously waiting. Bradley says they should go without Jack, but when they go to get a taxi to St Pancras railway station, Bradley realises he has left the passports at home and goes back to get them, leaving Stacey to wait. However, Stacey grows impatient and phones him. The police notice him when his phone rings, and in a bid to escape them, he runs up a fire escape and crawls across the roof of The Queen Victoria with an officer following him. He shouts at Stacey to run, but stumbles and falls backwards from the roof to his death as the residents look on in horror. Max and Stacey are devastated, and he pulls her away from the body. She tells him it is her fault, as Bradley did not kill Archie, she did. The following day, Marsden says the police will no longer be pursuing the investigation. Stacey then goes missing, and on the day of Bradley's funeral, Jack receives news that a court has found Bradley guilty of Archie's murder. Max tracks down Stacey to a flat where Stacey explains that she was angry at Archie and was worried about what Bradley would do to him after he found out about the baby. A minute after Bradley confronted Archie, she found Archie on the floor and, lucid and angered at what he had done to her and to Danielle, pushed the bust onto his head, but ran after his fingers twitched, fearing he would call the police. Stacey reveals that she did not initially tell Bradley the truth about what she did that night, fearing that he would take the blame for her. When she finally told him while they were packing on their wedding night, she offered to confess to the police herself, but he convinced her to flee Walford with him regardless. After forcibly trying to make her confess to the police, Max eventually tells Stacey that no one else needs to know that she killed Archie, reasoning that Bradley would want her to be happy, and sends her home. Becca continues to live with Stacey, and tries to exclude Stacey's mother

Jean Slater Jean Slater (also Walters) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera, ''EastEnders'', played by Gillian Wright. Her first appearance is in the episode first broadcast in the United Kingdom on 16 December 2004. Having only been introduce ...

(

Gillian Wright Gillian Wright (born 5 May 1960) is an English actress, best known for portraying the role of Jean Slater on the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' since 2004, for which she has won a number of awards. She was a teacher and theatre director before ...

) from her life. However, when Jean reveals Becca's involvement in Bradley's death, Stacey slaps Becca, which causes her to have a meltdown leading to getting kicked out by Jean as Stacey tells her mother she can trust her again. Later, Stacey figures out that Ryan must be her baby's father but decides not to tell him so as to not complicate his rekindled relationship with Janine, even when he is with her in the hospital as she gives birth to her daughter

Lily ''Lilium'' () is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants growing from bulbs, all with large prominent flowers. They are the true lilies. Lilies are a group of flowering plants which are important in culture and literature in much of the world. M ...

. Several months later, at Janine and Ryan's wedding reception, Stacey confesses her fear about Archie still being alive to Peggy, who tells Stacey that Archie is dead and that Bradley killed him, accidentally causing Stacey to confess the truth to her. Peggy wants to call the police but after a fire at The Queen Victoria, Peggy tries to convince Stacey to admit to arson as the sentence would be a lot less than that for murder. She leaves Walford while letting Stacey take care of Lily who needs her. Stacey also tells Ryan that he is Lily's father, and although he initially refuses to acknowledge her, he later bonds with her and gets used to the idea of being a father while Janine and Stacey are arrested on a night out. Upset with this, Janine attempts to sabotage his relationship with Stacey, but her actions inadvertently cause them to realise their growing attraction to each other. Max's daughter

(

) becomes angry at Max for never mentioning Bradley, leading to his confessing that he knows Bradley did not kill Archie. Lauren starts to suspect Max as he has become violent towards other people, but he tells her he promised to look after the real killer, who is no longer a danger. When Lauren sees Stacey dancing with Max, she accuses her of flirting with Max, but Stacey says they are just friends and he promised he would always look out for her. Lauren realises that Stacey is the killer and tells Max she knows this. She confronts Stacey, who confesses, and Lauren records it on her mobile phone. Lauren later hands the recording to Janine as Stacey and Ryan have begun having an affair. Max wipes the recording so on Christmas Eve, Janine publicly announces in the pub after trying to play the recording that Stacey killed Archie. Outside, Stacey privately tells Ryan that Janine is telling the truth. As Christmas Day runs through, Stacey experiences numerous upsetting thoughts about her role in Archie's death, and tells Jean about this. Upset, Jean takes Lily away from her, and things are made worse when Janine attempts to frame Stacey by stabbing herself while placing the knife in Stacey's hands and convincing Jean to call the police. Stacey considers suicide, but Max offers to help her flee the country. On the way, Stacey convinces Jean that Janine has framed her for the stabbing, and breaks off her romance with Ryan when he offers to come with her. Before Stacey and Max leave Walford with Lily, Ronnie and Roxy confront Stacey about the truth. Although Roxy wants her jailed, Ronnie quickly tells Stacey to go, feeling that she has suffered enough. Max drives Stacey to the airport, and tells her that he still loves her, offering to leave the country with her. Stacey tells him that the only man she has ever loved is Bradley. They share a teary and emotional goodbye with each other as Max watches Stacey leave for her flight. Stacey is last seen holding Lily in her arms while on the plane. In 2014, Stacey is found living in London using a false name. Her cousin

Kat Moon Kathleen "Kat" Slater (also Moon) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Jessie Wallace. She is also played by Kate Peck in a flashback in 2001 and Sumar-Elise Sandford in a flashback in 2018. Kat is the sec ...

(

Jessie Wallace Karen Jane Wallace (born 25 September 1971), known professionally as Jessie Wallace, is an English actress. She is known for portraying the role of Kat Slater on the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'' since 2000. Her role as Kat won her the Natio ...

) brings her back to Walford. Stacey is still wanted by the police for stabbing Janine, and is eventually seen by Ronnie and Roxy. Roxy threatens to call the police but Ronnie convinces her not to. However, after Janine drops the charges, Stacey decides that she needs to clear Bradley's name, so tells the police she killed Archie. She is subsequently sentenced to five years in prison, but she decides to appeal the sentence, taking her

into account. The appeal is successful and Stacey is released. In 2019, while Stacey's old friend

Ruby Allen A ruby is a pinkish red to blood-red colored gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum ( aluminium oxide). Ruby is one of the most popular traditional jewelry gems and is very durable. Other varieties of gem-quality corundum are called sap ...

(

Louisa Lytton Louisa Claire Lytton (born 7 February 1989) is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Ruby Allen in '' EastEnders'' and Beth Green in ''The Bill''. She also finished fourth in the fourth series of '' Strictly Come Dancing'' in 20 ...

) tries to find some closure after being raped, she learns what Archie did to Stacey and they visit his grave together - with Ruby convincing Stacey to get the closure she needs in order to move forward with her life. Stacey does so by telling Archie off for his actions against her and ruining her life, before concludingly telling him he cannot hurt her anymore - nor does he deserve any sympathy from her or anybody else.

Reception

Overnight figures showed that Archie's murder on 25 December 2009 was watched by 45.9% of the viewing audience for that time, an average of 10.9 million and a peak of 11.9 million. It was the most watched TV show on Christmas Day 2009 in the UK. The following episode where the murder was discovered was also the most watched show of the day, with overnight ratings of 8.1 million, representing a 37.9% audience share. The investigation storyline helped ''EastEnders'' become the most watched soap opera on British television for the first time in three years, with average viewing figures for January 2010 of 10.8 million (40.4% audience share) compared to '' Coronation Street'' 10.4 million (38.2%). Overnight figures for the live episode indicated that it averaged 14.91 million viewers and a 54.6% audience share, peaking at 16.58 million with a 59.4% share in the final five minutes of broadcast when Stacey was revealed as the killer. The 10:30 pm repeat of the episode on

drew a further 1.42 million viewers, attaining a 7.7% share. ''EastEnders Live: The Aftermath'' drew 4.3 million viewers and a 15.9% audience share, becoming BBC Three's highest rated programme ever, as well as the most-watched multichannel programme of the day. The documentary attained a further 1.21 million viewers and a 9.4% share upon its repeat at 11 pm. Santer was delighted by the viewing figures, stating: "To get this incredible response from the audience is truly remarkable – these numbers go far beyond what we ever hoped for. I am so proud of our cast and crew for their incredible performance last night. This rating is the icing on our silver anniversary cake." Jay Hunt, controller of

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

commented: " heextraordinary live episode was a fitting celebration of 25 magnificent years for ''EastEnders''. The audience were clearly gripped by one of the greatest soap whodunnits ever." Discussing the ratings for ''EastEnders Live: The Aftermath'', controller of BBC Three Danny Cohen appraised: "It is an amazing testament to the ''EastEnders'' team and the brave and brilliant drama they provided." Archie's murder was compared to that of Den Watts in ''EastEnders'' in 2005 by Polly Hudson of the ''

Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily tabloid. Founded in 1903, it is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was simply ''The Mirror''. It had an average daily print c ...

'', while Nancy Banks-Smith of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' called it a rip-off of '' Citizen Kane''. Andrew Grimes from ''

Manchester Evening News The ''Manchester Evening News'' (''MEN'') is a regional daily newspaper covering Greater Manchester in North West England, founded in 1868. It is published Monday–Saturday; a Sunday edition, the ''MEN on Sunday'', was launched in February 20 ...

'' said the Christmas Day episode was "in every sense compelling, and to my utter astonishment, a complete and utter joy", and John Gibson of ''

Edinburgh Evening News The ''Edinburgh Evening News'' is a daily newspaper and website based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was founded by John Wilson (1844–1909) and first published in 1873. It is printed daily, except on Sundays. It is owned by JPIMedia, which also ...

'' gave the murder discovery episode on 26 December 2009 a negative review, saying "Hard to tell what was most horrific ... the murder, which was bloody, the acting, which was dire, or the script, which was torture." Tim Teeman of ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

'' called the revelation of Stacey as Archie's killer a "genuine surprise", while Pat Stacey of the ''

Evening Herald ''The Herald'' is a nationwide mid-market tabloid newspaper headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, and published by Independent News & Media who are a subsidiary of Mediahuis. It is published Monday–Saturday. The newspaper was known as the ''Even ...

'' felt that revealing Stacey as Archie's killer was "a slight let-down" and "a little bit predictable". The storyline was nominated in the Killer Secret category at the 2010 All About Soap Bubble Awards. It also received a nomination in the Best Storyline category at the 2010

British Soap Awards The British Soap Awards (BSAs) are an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom which honours the best moments in British soap operas. The ceremony is televised on ITV and has been presented by Phillip Schofield since 2006. The trophies gi ...

and the Best Soap Storyline category at the 2010 TVChoice Awards. Real life police detectives criticised the portrayal of detectives in the show, saying that viewers who see them talking to residents about the case and accepting bribes may believe they operate that way in reality. The BBC insisted that a police consultant was used, adding that "this is heightened fiction and all the things that we show might not always represent real life." The storyline was referenced by Prime Minister

Gordon Brown James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in Tony B ...

when referring to allegations of bullying, saying "The only thing I haven't been accused of is murdering that guy Archie Mitchell in ''EastEnders''." Bookmakers estimated that over £1 million would be spent gambling on the outcome of the storyline.

Ladbrokes Ladbrokes Coral is a British gambling company founded in 1886. Its product offering includes sports betting, online casino, online poker, and online bingo. The business is split into two divisions, UK and International. UK operations are c ...

experienced its busiest ever 24 hours of gambling on a television series ahead of the episode's transmission, taking £100,000 in bets on 30 different characters, while William Hill took £500,000, surpassing the amount placed on ''

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

'' Who shot J. R.? storyline in 1980. Spokesman Rupert Adams commented: "The BBC were amazing keeping this quiet. We have broken even which in a market like this is amazing. We have had a roller-coaster but have enjoyed every minute."

References

External links

Marsden's video diaries
* {{Good article EastEnders storylines 2009 in British television 2010 in British television Whodunit storylines in soap operas Detective fiction