7 EastEnders spoilers: Interfering Emma comes between Lola and Jay

Elsewhere, grieving Whitney Dean (Shona McGarty) and Zack Hudson (James Farrar) cope separately with their loss, while Ravi Gulati (Aaron Thiara) steps up his plotting when Denise Fox (Diane Parish) walks away.

Chelsea Fox (Zaraah Abrahams) quizzes new lover Keanu Taylor (Danny Walters), and Stacey Slater's (Lacey Turner) mistake also comes back to haunt her.

Read on for all your EastEnders spoilers from 13th-16th March 2023.

7 EastEnders spoilers next week

1. Lola's health takes a worrying turn

When unwell Lola suddenly zones out, her husband Jay and daughter Lexi are worried about her. But Lola refuses to get checked out, and pours all her energy into a brain tumour awareness fundraiser — until she zones out for a second time. Jay insists they must go to the hospital, and also tries to convince Lola that they should arrange counselling for a struggling Lexi. Lola, however, is determined to support her daughter herself.

But by the time Jay manages to persuade Lola that Lexi needs extra help, he is left frustrated when Lola's mother Emma arrives and promptly undoes all his good work. It turns out that a worried Lexi called Emma, and Lola is troubled by the fact that Emma gave her daughter her number in secret and encouraged her to lie. However, it doesn't take long for Lola to forgive Emma, and she later cancels the counsellor thanks to Emma offering her opinion on the matter.

This leaves Jay fuming, and as he and Emma continue to clash over their different approaches to Lola's situation, Emma urges him to stop being so overprotective — but Jay stands his ground, saying that Lola mustn't do too much in her condition. The two women convince Jay to go out with Ben Mitchell (Max Bowden) and Callum Highway (Tony Clay), while Emma accompanies Lola to the hospital, but the doctor has some worrying news for Lola. What is it?

2. Emma causes a rift between Lola and Jay

It's not just Lola's health that's a cause for concern. Back in Albert Square, Lola doesn't want Emma to fetch Jay, but she does so anyway. Still out with Ben and Callum, Jay has been joined by Shanti, who is on a hen do she isn't enjoying. They're talking about how much Jay loves Lola when Emma walks in and see them looking too close for comfort. When Jay gets home, he is stunned to be met with a furious Lola, who tells him he was seen by Emma. She orders her husband to leave, fearing he has cheated!

Jay is heartbroken, and he can't believe that Lola thinks he's capable of cheating. He's later horrified to hear that his wife is having an MRI scan and he didn't know. Honey Mitchell (Emma Barton) urges Jay to head to the hospital, while she tags along to distract the overbearing Emma. A terrified Lola finally agrees to speak to Jay, and the pair share a deep and painful conversation about what's happening. At the same time, Honey tries to find out why Emma is behaving in such a controlling manner. Can Honey convince Emma to ease up on Jay and give Lola some space — and will Lola and Jay stick together?

3. Whitney and Zack's grief drives them further apart

When Whitney returns to work in the market, it's a tough first day for her as Mother's Day is the topic of conversation. Although it does Whit good to keep busy, she soon receives a call to say that baby daughter Peach's ashes are ready to collect, and the news leaves her broken. Zack tries to talk to her but Whitney rushes off, blaming those around her for making her go back to work so soon. When Zack pays her a visit, she insists that she's not ready to say goodbye to Peach.

Zack perseveres, trying to talk to Whit about a memorial for Peach, but she's evasive. They agree to pick up their baby's ashes together, but when Whitney spots pregnant niece Lily Slater (Lillia Turner) having a health scare, she uses this as an excuse to ditch Zack. At the Slaters', Whitney goes over the top about protecting Lily's unborn baby, and a row breaks out. Meanwhile, Zack struggles with his emotions as he sits with Peach's ashes, and when he sees a distraught Whitney, he calls her out for leaving him to collect them alone. Can the pair help each other through this, or are they set to remain estranged?

4. Ravi steps up his scheme as Denise turns against him

Under pressure from Ravi, Denise contemplates breaking into husband Jack Branning's (Scott Maslen) laptop to get the information he needs. She almost goes through with it, until she receives a call from school saying that stepdaughter Amy Mitchell (Ellie Dadd) has been in a fight. Later, Denise finds Ravi and calls his bluff, refusing to betray Jack and telling Ravi to do his worst. Unaware of what's really going on, Denise's sister Kim Fox (Tameka Empson) comforts her as she feels guilty for letting her family down. Meanwhile, Ravi comes up with a new plan to save his skin.

He prepares to break into the Branning house to search for what he needs, but is interrupted by Denise's daughter, Chelsea. Ravi comes up with a convincing excuse and the pair share a flirty exchange. When Chelsea has to go and see to baby son Jordan, Ravi gets set to take his chance to snoop — but Jack and Denise arrive home with Keanu in tow. Denise is desperate to set Keanu up with Chelsea after their previous dalliance, but when they go on a date at The Vic, Ravi slithers over to flirt with a flattered Chelsea. Ravi is delighted when he later spots conflict between her and Keanu, and he hopes to manipulate his way in for his own gain. Will his ploy work?

5. Chelsea confronts Keanu over Sharon

Keanu convinces sceptical Chelsea to give him another chance, but she's not happy when she learns that he's agreed to work for his ex — and the mother of his child — Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean). Keanu's mum Karen is all for his romance with Chelsea, so she desperately tries to persuade the latter that Keanu really likes her.

But with him giving off certain vibes, Chelsea asks Keanu directly if he still loves Sharon. What will Keanu say? And even if he chooses Chelsea, is this union destined for disaster if Ravi gets his way?

6. Stacey is caught out

When the Slaters' fridge break down, there's fresh chaos to cope with — but Stacey isn't bothered, as she now has cash to splash. Suspicious mum Jean (Gillian Wright) demands to know if Stacey stole it from the office they cleaned recently, but Stacey denies it. That is until her daughter Lily gets into a fight at school (we have a feeling this involves Amy...) and Stacey realises her actions could send her to jail and she could lose her kids.

Stacey enlists Jean's help to return the money by distracting security guard Alan, but things don't go to plan and local copper Callum asks Stacey to go to the station to explain herself. Stacey panics that she's heading straight back to prison and on the way, she visits Alan and issues him with a threat. Stacey denies theft when quizzed by Callum, and back at home, Kat (Jessie Wallace) reveals she's using Mitchell money to solve the Slaters' problems. But Stacey's pride leads to an argument with Kat, and Jean's attempts to restore peace fail...

7. Martin returns just in time

After some time away to earn money for the clan, Martin Fowler (James Bye) returns flush with cash. He immediately tries to support Stacey and makes her see that it's madness to turn down Kat's offer to help. She agrees to apologise, but just when it looks like Stacey and Kat are about to call a truce, something sparks a new row. What else has happened, and will poor Martin wish he'd stayed where he was?

If you have been affected by Whitney and Zack's storyline, you can find help and support at Petals or by visiting the British Pregnancy Advisory Service.

EastEnders is working closely with Brain Tumour Research and Macmillan Cancer Support on Lola's storyline, and you can find help and support by visiting their websites.

Read more:

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• EastEnders 'casts Strictly star for new Queen Vic family'

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