Real reason EastEnders favourite refused to return for 40th anniversary episodes
Fans were keen for the iconic character to make a comeback during the anniversary episodes last weekFans were keen for the iconic character to make a comeback during the anniversary episodes last week
EASTENDERS fans are still reeling after the 40th anniversary episodes that aired last week.
The iconic BBC soap opera turned 40 last week, and to commemorate the milestone, a live episode aired.
In the live episode, Martin Fowler was tragically k.i.l.l.e.d after a beam fell on his legs after the Queen Victoria pub suffered an explosion.
The devastating scenes came soon after Martin confessed his undying love for ex-wife Stacey Slater.
But ahead of the live episode and the other 40th anniversary episodes airing, fans were making an urgent plea for an iconic character to return to Walford.
Fans were desperate for one Slater family member to return to the soap to mark the show’s anniversary.
“With Lacey Turner going on maternity leave and presumably a Stacey exit – it’s perfect timing for Zoe’s return..” one person penned amid the anniversary episodes.
“Kathy’s comeback for the 30th was such a OMG moment. Will the 40th offer a similar surprise? I predict a Zoe Slater return,” speculated another.
A third tried to manifest Zoe Slater’s return, writing: “ZOE SLATER WILL RETURN TONIGHT LIVE ON #EASTENDERS.”
“If this big return in #Eastenders isn’t Zoe Slater, then quite frankly, I couldn’t give a f**k who it is,” said a fourth.
And now it has been revealed that Michelle Ryan, who played the role of Zoe Slater on the hit soap, has TURNED DOWN multiple offers to return.
“Bosses reached out to Michelle several times over the years, they would love to have her back.
“For example, as the soap was approaching its big 30th anniversary, it was a gentle approach asking if she would consider a return in the lead up to it all,” a source told MailOnline.
The source went on: “This was at the very early stages of their plans but Michelle refused and there was a lot of disappointment amongst bosses.”
They added how it’s “quite baffling” why she wouldn’t want to reprise her character.
“It’s been 20 years since she left Albert Square but still people are talking about her character,” they went on.
Michelle previously admitted that she “got quite bored in the end” of playing Zoe.
Speaking to the Bristol Evening Post at the time of her show departure, she said: “Doing the same thing day in, day out. It’s just so boring. I like to jump from different things.
“I always saw EastEnders as an apprenticeship. I always wanted to go on and do different things. I have some really good friends from that show but the door is closed.”
Michelle, 40, played the iconic role of Zoe Slater in the hit soap, with her stepping into the role at just 15.
Making her first appearance in the soap back in 2000, alongside the rest of the Slater clan, Zoe was a fan-favourite.
Her character’s key storylines in the soap included discovering Kat Slater was her mother and not her sister, as well as being involved in the cover up of the m.u.r.d.e.r of Den Watts.
Zoe was only in the soap for five years, yet made a huge impact.
Michelle departed the soap in June 2005 and has never reprised her role since.
