EastEnders airs surprise early return for major character after 10 years in BBC iPlayer release
Warning: Contains spoilers for Thursday's episode of EastEnders, which airs on BBC One at 7.30pm or can be streamed now on BBC iPlayer.
Wherever Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden) goes, drama follows - and today's episode of EastEnders was no exception.
For weeks he's been secretly plotting to move to Portugal with old pal Nigel Bates (Paul Bradley), despite the fact he's living with young-onset dementia and his cognitive ability is declining.
As well as this, Nige's wife Julie (Karen Henthorn) has been left in the dark about the plans, and has been actively seeking care arrangements for him in the meantime.
In today's episode, Phil was bidding farewell to son Raymond, who had stayed overnight. Raymond's mum Denise Fox (Diane Parish) remarked that it could be nice for the child to have more sleepovers in the future, and quickly noticed the atmosphere change.
Phil claimed he had far too much on his plate to plan anything, and when she asked if anything was wrong, he blamed his low mood on thoughts surrounding sister Sam's (Kim Medcalf) lumpectomy operation.
She couldn't shake that there was something more going on, and cornered George Knight (Colin Salmon) in the Minute Mart. She hoped that he'd be able to get to the root of the problem, and he promised to do some digging.
At the hospital, Sam had woke following her operation and was surprised to see Phil there. It was a rare moment of peace between the siblings, who haven't exactly seen eye-to-eye over the years.
She mentioned that she thought he'd have already left for Portugal with Nigel, something which immediately raised George's eyebrow.
Outside in the corridor, Phil blamed Sam's 'random' comments on her medication and warned George to keep his nose out of his business. But this is Walford, and things don't stay secret for long.
Denise was called, and she sat waiting at the Mitchell house for Phil's return to get some answers. She began to tear strips off him, saying that his decision to whisk Nigel away is deeply irresponsible and that he hadn't even thought about his own commitments.
However, that night, Phil sat down for a conversation with Nigel and asked whether he still wanted to leave.
The men's conversation was interrupted by the sound of a knock on the door, with a surprise old face appearing on the doorstep - Mark Fowler Jr (Stephen Aaron-Sipple).
Badly beaten, he charged into the hallway and wanted his uncle to ensure he locked-up behind him.
Who is he running from, why is he back in Walford, and who is responsible for the attack?
Read more:
- 5 EastEnders spoilers next week: Mark Fowler Jr returns as Joel Marshall trial twist rocks Vicki
- EastEnders airs dark Ravi Gulati scenes amid revenge story in early BBC iPlayer release
- EastEnders airs dilemma for Priya Nandra-Hart following Nugget Gulati's assault in BBC iPlayer release
- EastEnders 2026 preview: 10 spoilers for the year ahead from Max Branning twists to Sukeve adoption
- 10 EastEnders characters who need to have a huge 2026 – from Chelsea Fox to Oscar Branning
Visit our dedicated EastEnders page for all the latest news, interviews and spoilers.
Add EastEnders to your watchlist on the Radio Times: What to Watch app – download now for daily TV recommendations, features and more.
Check out more of our Soaps coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Authors
Michael Adams is the Soaps Editor at Radio Times, covering all of the hot gossip and spoilers from Weatherfield to Walford, Emmerdale to Hollyoaks and everywhere in-between. He joined the team from Metro, where he spent two years as a Soaps Reporter and previously worked on the sets of both Coronation Street and Emmerdale.
