EastEnders’ Lauren Branning in painful ‘addiction storyline’ amid baby bombshell
A multitude of EastEnders viewers have speculated Lauren Branning may be set for another devastating storyline. But in upcoming scenes, the fan favourite gets a huge shock.
Years after her addiction to alcohol, viewers are convinced Lauren Branning is set for another devastating storyline – but instead, the fan favourite will find out she’s pregnant with her second child.
The fan favourite, who has been portrayed by Jacqueline Jossa since 2010, is the mother of a son named Louie, whom she shares with Peter Beale (Thomas Law). In recent EastEnders scenes, her experience with motherhood prompted her to support Anna Knight (Molly Rainford) who’d found out she was pregnant with Bobby Beale’s child at the time.
But this Wednesday, November 13, one BBC One regular took to Twitter, now X, to suggest that, after standing away from all the drama unfolding in Albert Square, Lauren will be pushed into the spotlight for a gut-wrenching ordeal as spoilers for next week have teased she will discover she is pregnant.
The suggestion emerged when a fan reacted to the spoilers, writing: “WOW! I didn’t see this one coming at all. Lauren is pregnant which means Peter is going to be a dad again after already having Louie. Lauren is already a great mum to Louie. Can’t wait to see how Peter is going to react to the news. I wonder how far gone Lauren is?”
Lauren finds out she is pregnant next week – how will she react? (Â
BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron)
This then prompted a second to comment: “Yeah and with the rumours of her having a painkiller addiction, I wonder if someone will tragically happen for Lauren and Peter for her to spiral down the addiction route.”
In scenes due to air next week on the London-based programme, Lauren will first struggle with pain and take her frustrations out on Peter over their childcare issues. To make matters worse, Lauren will then snap at her young son Louie. Unable to cope, she’ll then decide her best option is a GP appointment.
Once in her GP surgery, Lauren will be told to reduce her pain medication as she’ll be denied another prescription. Later on, a chat with Anna Knight will lead to Lauren wondering if she could be pregnant and a positive pregnancy will confirm the news. How will she share it with Peter and, more importantly, how will he react?
This comes as another mystery has kept EastEnders viewers interested, following Nicola Mitchell’s arrival in Walford. The newcomer portrayed by Laura Doddington was introduced as Teddy’s ex-wife and the mother of his two sons, Harry and Barney. But her arrival has raised multiple questions as soap fans wonder who she could be connected to in the Square.
During Wednesday’s trip to the Square (November 13), Nicola surprised many soap aficionados by snuggling up to Sharon Watts’ brother, Zack Hudson (James Farrar), as the pair shared a flirty exchange.
Though many theories have emerged, among viewers underlining Nicola’s resemblance to Sharon, another fan theorised: “What if Nicola Mitchell and the resemblance was a factor in her casting as many have agreed that she looks like Sharon in the 80s. I see a resemblance she has to Zack as well I could totally see her as Sharon and Zack’s long lost sister and secret daughter of Gavin.”