EastEnders is on location tonight as Shirley, Heather, Whitney, Ryan, Fatboy and Dot hit Southend. Expect danger for Whitney and the prospect of Dot meeting up with her estranged sister, Rose. But, of course, this isn’t the first time that the show has ventured away from the Square. Do you recall any of these other memorable trips?
1986 - Den took Angie on a second honeymoon to Venice, under the impression that his wife had just “six little months” to live. But on the return journey via the Orient Express, Angie told a barman that she wasn’t ill at all – a disclosure overheard by Den.
1995 – A holiday to Torremolinos saw David Wicks bedding a supposed model who turned out to be Phil and Grant’s sister, Sam. In true Mitchell style, the boys took a calm and considered approach and dragged her back to Albert Square.
1996 – A trip to Blackpool ended in disaster when Sarah Hills’s drink was spiked, but it was the memorable kiss between Tony Hills and Simon Raymond that grabbed all the headlines.
1997 – In one of the most well-received foreign excursions, Grant, Phil and Ian journeyed to Italy to find Ian’s sons, who’d been taken by their mother, Cindy. Here, a race to the airport is interrupted by a car accident and a punch-up.
1997 – The infamous Dublin episodes that found the Fowler and Beale families travelling to Ireland to meet their long-lost relatives. The BBC was forced to issue an apology after being inundated with complaints about the negative stereotyping.
2000 – Frank slept with Pat in Alicante, unbelievably begged for “five more minutes” in bed with her and was then discovered in flagrante by Peggy.
2003 – After months of leading him on, Janine headed to Scotland with Barry to get married. But when she disclosed the truth, they scuffled and the big schlub fell off a cliff. Relive the moment that callous Janine watched Barry die.
2007 – Take a deep breath: it’s Heather in Brighton doing her karaoke version of Harry Nilsson’s Without You before fishing around in her bra for her emergency food fund.