Overview
- Joel Marshall has been written back into EastEnders after serving a six-month sentence in a young offenders’ institution for the on-screen assault of Vicki Fowler.
- New episodes show Joel arriving unannounced at the Fowlers’ home and immediate heated arguments between Ross and Cleo over who should look after him.
- The actor who plays Joel, Max Murray, is 18 in real life while the character is portrayed as about 15, a detail prompting viewer discussion about casting and age portrayal.
- Mazz Murray appears on-screen as Cleo and is Max Murray’s aunt in real life, and reporting traces the family’s wider performing background through his mother Gina and grandparents Mitch Murray and Grazina Frame.
- Upcoming episodes will focus on local reactions and the Fowler family’s trauma, and viewers should expect further scenes showing how Joel’s return affects his peers and the wider community.