EastEnders celebrated the 80th anniversary of V.E. Day with a grand party at the newly re-opened The Vic – but it was a bittersweet occasion for one character.
The special tribute episode opened with black and white archival footage of Spitfire planes in the skies, before showing scenes of debris and devastation to buildings in London’s East End from the bombing in World War II.
Still in black and white, Jean appeared and made her way across the square to the cafe, with the scene cutting between present day and archival footage showing the clear-up operation during the Blitz.
She eventually entered the cafe and found Nigel showing Alfie further archival footage on his phone. “That’s the real East End,” he told him. “Blitz spirit.”
Nigel was one Walford resident keen to celebrate the historic anniversary, but as his dementia continues to take hold, he had the date right but not the year – believing its 1995, with his pal Arthur throwing a 50th anniversary party for V.E. Day at The Vic.
A concerned Jean and Phil agreed to quietly tell Nigel the truth, but Jean bottled it and turned to Phil, Little Mo and others to help her plan a last-minute party.
BBC
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Phil went to the pub to persuade Linda to re-open The Vic for the party but she was adamant that the pub was to stay closed, with many still mourning the death of Martin.
However, a little later, Linda opened the pub doors to find Mo, Honey, Billy and a bunch of market traders outside decked out in Union Jack decorations, embracing the V.E. Day spirit.
Honey and Billy convinced Linda that they can remember their friend Martin at the party, as well as those previously fallen during the war.
BBC
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Outside the pub, Nigel paid a visit to the war memorial, where he was greeted by his late wife Debbie and adopted daughter Clare in a poignant scene.
Nigel recalled a memory to the two of them from the day of the 1995 anniversary, when Grant and Nigel were selling poppies in the square and were told by a customer that the past didn’t matter: “Grant says ‘Yeah, you’re right, we should look to the future, that’s what they died for’.”
Later, Nigel arrived at The Vic ready for the V.E. Day celebrations. A proud Jean showed off the decorations and trouble she’d gone to for the occasion, but Nigel mistook her for Debbie and believed it was Arthur who had arranged everything.
BBC
BBC
Despite Nigel’s memory, his mood remained jubilant, leading the toast to the fallen with his neighbours in The Vic, before dancing animatedly with Jean as the party kicked off.
The episode ended with Vera Lynn’s ‘We’ll Meet Again’ playing, with the action chopping and changing again between clips of the residents dancing in The Vic and archival footage of people dancing in the streets on V.E day.
EastEnders airs on Mondays – Thursdays at 7.30pm on BBC One. The show also streams on BBC iPlayer, where most episodes drop early at 6am ahead of their TV broadcast.
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