Zoe Slater made a shock return to EastEnders – but the clues Michelle Ryan was coming back has been there for weeks, as future storylines have been teased

Zoe’s arrival will cause shockwaves(Image: BBC)
Zoe Slater made a shock return to EastEnders – with fans left thrilled to see her back after so long. Actress Michelle Ryan has reprised her role as Zoe after two decades – but the character is struggling.

Of her future on the show, Michelle said: “I can’t say too much as there is a lot of drama to come, but Zoe is a mess. She’s not the girl that left Walford twenty years ago, and she’s been really struggling on her own. She has her defences up, but this week you will see that she needs help, but whether she is willing to accept it is another story.”

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Iconic line

Just minutes before Zoe’s return aired on EastEnders evening, there was a conversation between Tommy and Kat. When Kat told him to go home, he said he had been to hospital and Kat called out his lie.

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Zoe made a shock return on Monday(Image: BBC)
“It was only yesterday you was giving me the big watery eyes, promising me you’d never let me down,” she said as he tried to explain his reason for skipping school. Kat said she was worried about the social getting involved and then said: “I am worried. I’m your mother,” which was a great throwback to Zoe’s iconic line ‘you ain’t my mother’.

Graffiti clue

The soap had been teasing all weekend who might be making a return. There had been clues all over social media, including the prominence of some graffiti where the letters Z O and E could be seen.

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Fans were convinced this meant Zoe was coming back – and they were right.

Leak

Sources previously claimed that Zoe would be coming back to Walford as Michelle Ryan reprises her role.

“Bosses have repeatedly reached out to Michelle over the years, but the timing has never been quite right. People are still talking about her character, so it’s a real coup to bring her back,” a source had said.

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It’s a big anniversary for the Slaters(Image: BBC)
“She feels like now is the perfect moment — and there was an exciting script on the table.”

Anniversary year

It’s a big anniversary for both the character and the Slaters. It was around two decades ago to the day that Zoe made her shock exit from the show so what better time to make a big return.

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It is also the 25th anniversary of the Slaters making their arrival on the Square and with new executive producer Ben Wadey – a huge fan of the Slaters – at the helm, it’s no surprise she’s back!

Future storyline

Not much has been revealed about Zoe’s future – but we know she is back for good and we know she is coming back later this year. Fans have been speculating about why she’ll be back and how.

“We know that Alfie is disappearing this week to see Spencer and Stacey isn’t due back yet – I think Stacey will be stuck looking after Zoe and helping her through whatever she’s going through, and Kat will be left in the dark. I don’t think Kat will even learn that Zoe is nearby for a while. Probably not until September. Or before that – but it’ll all kick off in September,” one wrote.

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Another added: “Yeah I don’t think she’ll actually be back on the Square at the moment. Also gives Stacey more leeway to be AWOL a bit longer. September makes more sense to be Slater heavy with their 25th anniversary coming up.”