Ruby Allen (Louisa Lytton) fell back into her manipulative ways in recent EastEnders scenes as she tried to change the future of Turpin Road.
The Turpin Road section of Bridge Street Market has come under threat of redevelopment, with the market traders having been served eviction notices.
A campaign, led by Martin Fowler (James Bye), was launched to try and save the beloved market, which has been a staple on Albert Square for hundreds of years.
However, when Martin couldn’t attend a recent meeting with Councillor Barker, Ruby offered to step in – though her attempts to get the council on side ended in disaster.
With the Councillor having refused to budge on his position, Ruby decided to change tactics, resorting to a classic blackmail plot to get what she wanted.
After making a fake online account, Ruby arranged to meet with Councillor Barker, who was shocked to see that it was her he had been messaging.
Ruby was quick to point out that she had all of the messages he had sent, including nude pictures.
Councillor Barker seemed unphased as he pointed out that he had been sending consensual messages to someone he believed to be over 18, and therefore hadn’t broken any laws.
However, Ruby revealed that she wasn’t concerned about that, and instead threatened to publish the images in the Walford Gazette unless the Councillor put a stop to the regeneration project on Turpin Road.
When Councillor Barker threatened to have her sent to prison for ‘sexploitation’, Ruby revealed that she was willing to take the risk.
Unfortunately for her, Martin wasn’t best pleased about her plan when she later told him about it, much to her surprise.
As she attempted to defend herself, Martin explained how his daughter Bex had had a similar experience with sharing nude photos, and the ordeal had been really difficult for her.
He also worried that the whole situation would backfire, and end with more market traders losing their jobs as a result of Ruby’s actions.
When Ruby argued that she thought he’d be more grateful, Martin pointed out that she had just proved that she was as spiteful, manipulative and underhanded as she always had been.
Ruby then stormed out, bringing the argument to a halt.
Will her plan work out, or is Martin right to worry?
