EastEnders fans, Peggy Mitchell is back on TV!

It’s the sight many EastEnders fans thought they’d never see – Peggy Mitchell is back.

Of course, soap characters have made unlikely returns before – Kathy Beale can currently be found wandering around the Square, and she was initially killed off in 2006.

However, Peggy’s return is different as it’s happening as part of a special flashback episode, which takes viewers back to 1979.

That’s six years before the start of EastEnders and 12 before we first met Peggy. The character was introduced to viewers in 1991, when she was played by Jo Warne and appeared in 10 episodes.

At that time, few EastEnders fans thought they had witnessed a soap icon in the making, but then three years later, the show’s bosses brought Peggy back – and this time she was played by Barbara Windsor. The actress was already a national treasure thanks to her roles in the Carry On films, but playing Peggy brought her to a new generation of fans, and even gave her a new catchphrase “Get out of my pub.” (Or, to be more accurate, “Gerrouttamypub!”)

After numerous slaps, squabbles and a couple of ill-fated marriages, Peggy bid a tearful goodbye to the Square in 2010, but would return occasionally return. Then in 2016, she made her last visit to Walford as she discovered she had terminal cancer and made the decision to end her own life.

If that hadn’t seemed final enough, Windsor died in 2020 at the age of 83. So, taking on such a much-loved role could be daunting, but luckily it’s going to an actress who knows a little bit about dealing with Barbara Windsor’s legacy – Jaime Winstone.

The real-life daughter of Ray Winstone, she previously won rave reviews for playing the young Barbara in the TV biopic Babs, and she was excited to get a chance to do it again.

Jaime says: “It’s been such an honour to step into Peggy Mitchell’s shoes for the first time, and into Barbara’s shoes for the second time. There’s certainly a healthy amount of pressure when you’re taking on such an iconic role – I thoroughly enjoyed it.

“Playing this role has really cemented my love and admiration for Barbara as I got to bookend my journey by playing Peggy Mitchell – I hope I’ve done her justice and I’ve loved every minute of it, I can’t wait for everyone to see the episode.”

The flashback is prompted when DCI Keeble puts increasing pressure on Phil, prompting him to take a journey into the past.

Viewers are transported to 1979, when Britain was in economic turmoil (imagine that, eh?) and Peggy is feeling the pinch as she tries to keep her family in line, even as her marriage to Eric (George Russo) shows the strain. Speaking of Eric, he’s got a little job to do and he’s planning on taking his sons Phil (Daniel Delaney) and Grant (Teddy Jay) along. There are also glimpses of the young Archie and Glenda, as well as Billy and his brother Charlie. But the question remains – how do the events of 1979 affect Phil in 2022?